SVC Lecture Series 2011-2012

inspiring history: shaping the future

The lecture series for academic year 2011-2012 is an opportunity for Southern Vermont College and Bennington communities to think collectively about inspiring history and shaping of the future. All lectures were free and open to the public. 

thursday, november 10
stephen hannock, painter

lois greenfield, dance photographer

moderator: michael cassin, sterling and francince clark art institute


Topic: how artists find their muse
2:15 p.m. ~ bennington center for the arts

What causes the magic, the spark, the "happy accidents" that fuel the creative process? How are various artists inspired? Michael Cassin, Director of the Center for Education in the Visual Arts at the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, will moderate as two world-renowned artists--painter, Stephen Hannock, and dance photographer, Lois Greenfield--offer insight into how they find their muse. Hannock's landscapes, which hang in the Metropolitan Museum of New York and National Gallery in Washington, have earned him the title of today's true American luminist. Greenfield¹s unique approach to photographing the human form in motion has redefined the genre and influenced a generation of photographers. Note: This lecture has been made possible with a gift from The Milton and Dorothy Sarnoff Raymond Foundation and the the Estate of Irene M. Hunter. - Read more

TUESday, DECEMBER 6
JANET FLAMMANG, PROFESSOR/CHAIR, POLITICAL SCIENCE, SANTA CLARA UNIVERSITY; AUTHOR

Topic: TABLE CONVERSATIONS: GOOD FOR YOU AND GOOD FOR DEMOCRACY

2:15 p.m. ~ everett mansion theatre

Table activities--the mealtime rituals of food preparation, serving, and dining--prepare the foundation for an education on the value of civility, the importance of a common good, and what it means to be a good citizen. In our fast food and time-pressured lives, less time is spent at the table enjoying the art of conversation. Janet Flammang shows how slowing down and being more thoughtful about our food is good not only for our public and ecological health, but also for our civic and democratic health. Flammang is the author of The Taste for Civilization: Food, Politics and Civil Society; Women's Political Voice: How Women Are Transforming the Practice and Study of Politics; and other works. Flammang will sign books after her lecture, and copies will be available for purchase. Note: This lecture is sponsored by the SVC Campus Community Dinner Series and Sodexo. - Read more

tUEsday, february 7
GLENN M. ANDRES, PROFESSOR, HISTORY OF ART AND ARCHITECTURE, MIDDLEBURY COLLEGE; TYLER RESCH, HISTORIAN, BENNINGTON MUSEUM; sUSAN WARREN, ARCHITECTURAL HISTORIAN, lIBRARY dIRECTOR, jOHN g. MCCULLOUGH FREE LIBRARY 

Topic: THE HISTORY OF EVERETT MANSION
2:15 p.m. ~ Everett mansion theatre

Built in 1911 as the summer home of bottle and glass magnate Edward Everett, the Mansion serves as the administration and classroom building for Southern Vermont College. Starting in 2011, the Mansion, listed on the National Registry of Historic Places, celebrates its centennial. This lecture and events to follow commemorate the Mansion's 100th "birthday." The stone exterior of the magnificent English/Norman-style building was completed in eight months, an astonishing feat for the times; the interior design and furnishings took another three years. This panel presentation will feature fascinating facts and insightful commentary from local historians and architects familiar with the Mansion, the man who built it, and the era in which it came to be. - Read more

tuesday, april 3
andre dubus III, professor, university of massachusetts at lowell; author


Topic: On being a townie: writing the memoir
2:15 p.m. ~ everett mansion theatre

PAndre Dubus III, the award-winning author of The Cage Keeper and Other Stories, Bluesman, House of Sand and Fog, and Garden of Last Days, returns to SVC. In his newest work, the memoir Townie, Dubus III writes about suffering and bullying--from being bullied to using developed physical strength to combat the bullies--and also about compassion, liking what you do, and loving your family. Dubus III will talk about Townie, the story about his growing up in a gritty Massachusetts mill town, and what makes writing so alluring for him and so special a craft to refine. Dubus III will reference writers who are models, including his father, Andre Dubus, a contemporary master of the short story. Dubus III will sign books after his lecture, and copies of Townie and his other books will be available for purchase. - Read more