UNCA announces programs highlighting Native American History Month

Press release from UNC Asheville:

Exhibitions in two campus galleries and discussions of issues confronting Native Americans will highlight UNC Asheville’s celebration of Native American History Month during November. The schedule includes these events:

• Opening Nov. 1 – Art Exhibition – Jeff Marley, a member of the Qualla Arts & Crafts Mutual in Cherokee, N.C. presents works in varied media designed to facilitate deepened understanding on issues of race, identity and culture. An enrolled member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, Marley chairs the Heritage Arts Department at Southwestern Community College in Sylva, N.C. He earned his BFA at Western Carolina University and an MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts. A reception with the artist will be held from 6-7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 9. This exhibition is free and open to everyone in UNC Asheville’s Highsmith Art and Intercultural Gallery with viewing hours from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays through Nov. 25. The exhibit will move to the YMI Cultural Center in downtown Asheville beginning Nov. 28.

• Opening Nov. 8 – Photography Exhibition – All My Relations, an exhibition of photos by Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians artist Shan Goshorn will include 40 black-and-white photographs of contemporary Cherokee people that were taken over a 25-year period. Goshorn is known for her woven baskets which are part of exhibitions at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian and many prestigious collections nationally and internationally. In 2015, she received the United States Artists Fellowship. A reception for this exhibit will be held from 5-7 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 15. The exhibition is free and open to everyone through Dec. 16 in Ramsey Library’s Blowers Gallery during regular library hours (see http://library.unca.edu/about/hours).

• Nov. 9 – Reception for Art Exhibition – A reception with artist Jeff Marley will be held from 6-7:30 p.m. in the Highsmith Union Intercultural Center. An exhibition of his works is on view through Nov. 25. The reception is free and open to everyone.

• Nov. 11 – Indian Politics in the United States – This presentation will feature three members of the UNC Asheville faculty who traveled to the site of Native American protests against the Standing Rock pipeline oil project near the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation. Presenting will be Gilliam Jackson of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, a UNC Asheville adjunct lecturer who teaches Cherokee language; Trey Adcock, a Cherokee Nation citizen who is assistant professor of education and director of American Indian Outreach; and Juan Sánchez Martinez, assistant professor of Spanish. This event, free and open to everyone at 11 a.m. in Humanities Lecture Hall, is part of UNC Asheville’s Humanities Lectures series.

• Nov. 14 – Conversation with Kristina Hyatt, Miss Native America USA – UNC Asheville’s Native American Student Association presents a chance to meet Kristina Hyatt, Miss Native America USA 2015-16 and a UNC Asheville alumna. A dental hygienist, Hyatt has spent her reign as Miss Native America USA promoting dental health, especially for children, to Native Americans across the country. This event is free and open to everyone from 4-5 p.m. in Humanities Lecture Hall.

• Nov. 15 – Reception for Photography Exhibition – Trey Adcock, UNC Asheville director of American Indian outreach and assistant professor of education, and Barbara Duncan, UNC Asheville adjunct assistant professor teaching Cherokee language, will present at a reception for All My Relations, the exhibit by Eastern Band artist Shan Goshorn of photographs of contemporary Cherokee people. This event is free and open to everyone from 5-7 p.m. in Blowers Gallery, in UNC Asheville’s Ramsey Library.