Weekend Arts Agenda: The High celebrates Gordon Parks November 13 2014
Plus, the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra is back, ‘Murder’ at the Actor’s Express, and Beavis and Butt-Head do the Goat Farm
- The Gordon Parks Foundation
- BOYS BEING BOYS: One of the more than 40 color prints included in the High Museum of Art’s Gordon Parks: Segregation Story exhibition
Back in 2006 when legendary filmmaker and photographer Gordon Parks passed away, one of the most unlikely displays of adoration came from CNN golden boy Anderson Cooper. When Parks was a photographer for Life magazine he was sent on a photo assignment to shoot Cooper’s mother Gloria Vanderbilt. Parks and Vanderbilt would grow to become good friends, and in his letter posted on CNN.com remembering the man behind the lens, Cooper wrote about a “man whose life was truly remarkable and deserves to be celebrated and honored for years to come.”
“If you don’t know who Gordon Parks is, or even if you think you know about him, chances are you only know one part of his story,” Cooper wrote. Thankfully, the folks at the High Museum of Art you’ll have from Sat., Nov. 15 to June 7, 2015 to get familiar. In conjunction with the Gordon Parks Foundation, the High’s exhibition, Gordon Parks: Segregation Story, features more than 40 Parks’ color prints — many on display for the first time — created for “The Restraints: Open and Hidden,” a 1956 photo essay for Life, in which he spent time documenting the lives of an extended African-American family in segregated Alabama.
Along with the Parks exhibit, the High will also showcase the works of photographer Leonard Freed, and his multi-year documentary project and 1968 book Black in White America. The gist: “From 1963 through 1966, Freed traveled across the U.S. capturing images of the Civil Rights era, from rural scenes in the South to daily life on New York City streets and political protests in Washington, D.C. This journey culminated in Freed’s landmark photo essay, which offered a look into African-American life across the nation during the struggle for racial equality.” Also on display from Sat., Nov. 15 to June 7, 2015.
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THURSDAY (And SUNDAY)
ICYMI: The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra is back! That sound? A sigh of cultural relief from ATLiens happy to have their world-class musicians back in action. With that said, the ASO and chorus will kick off the 70th season tonight at 8:00 p.m., with performances of Beethoven’s “Symphony No. 9” and Mozart’s “Violin Concerto No. 5.” An additional performance is going down Sat., Nov. 15, at 7:30 p.m. Get tickets here.
Nick Madden has a solution for the oncoming cold front and chilly temperatures: “Come cozy up with some art and friends at 9 Ace Gallery.” There’s a thought. Madden and Will Eskridge will be displaying new works on paper and wood panel for a show dubbed, 9x12. It’s all going down tonight from 7-11 p.m
THURSDAY-SUNDAY
- The Cricket Gallery
What do Beavis, Butt-Head, Doug, Patti Mayyonaise, and Stimpy have in common? They’ll all be on display in some sort of fashion at Cartoon Art From the ’90s, an exhibition at the Goat Farm’s Shoebox Gallery. CL scribe Andrew Young spoke with the folks at the Cricket Gallery who’ve spent the past several decades collecting animation cels. Runs Nov. 13-16, from 6-10 p.m.
SATURDAY
From noon to 6 p.m., an old motel in the Lakewood community will be the site for a hodgepodge of creative happenings: music, painted murals, trippy installations, and music aka the Phoenix Festival. We caught up with Nurci Icgoren about the story behind the festival and the cool work he’s doing on the site, which is also the location for Urban Sprout Farms. It’s free with RSVP. Just don’t try and catch any of the goldfish or koi in the motel’s pool-turned aquatic habitat.
SUNDAY
Murder Ballad is Actor’s Express Artistic Director Freddie Ashley’s tale of a singer that “takes the stage in a seedy downtown bar, singing a story of ‘true love gone awry.’ Against the backdrop of an unforgettable rock-and-roll score, she spins a lurid tale of lust and murder that unfolds when a New York love triangle goes wrong.” But wait, there’s more: “Full of pulse-pounding plot twists and powerhouse vocals, Murder Ballad will keep you guessing.” Performances run Wed.-Sat.,at 8 p.m., and Sunday’s at 2p.m. $26-$60. Grab tickets here.