December 2 2:00 p.m. Charles L. Blockson Afro American Collection Sullivan Hall, 1330 W. Berks Street The Blockson Collection, in conjunction with Larry Robbins and the bookstore Moonstone, presents a conversation on the legacy of John Brown. This discussion, John Brown in the African Mind, will feature renowned scholars Charles L. Blockson, founder of the Blockson Collection, and Molefi K. Asante of Temple’s African American Studies Department. Charles L. Blockson is a renowned historian and bibliophile from Norristown, PA. He has dedicated his life to collecting and preserving African and African American history, arts and culture. His life’s work created this rich, historical collection at Temple, which opened in 1984. Molefi K. Asante is a Professor in the Department of African American Studies at Temple University. He is the author of seventy books, including African American History: A Journey of Liberation.

Wednesday, November 18 11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m., Paley Library Lecture Hall Temple University Libraries Celebrate National GIS Day! On Wednesday, November 18th, 2009, join Temple University Libraries in celebrating National GIS Day. The two hour event will begin at 11:00 AM with presentations by invited speakers, followed with a reception. Matthew Harris will make the first presentation. A Master’s graduate from Temple’s Anthropology Department, Harris will speak on the topic of applying GIS skills in the Social Sciences. He will draw on his experiences as an archeologist, GIS analyst, and GIS manager to discuss the importance of finding a niche and creatively using GIS in a chosen field of study. Using examples from current and past projects, he will illustrate ways that GIS is applied to the field of Cultural Resources and more broadly to a number of GIS applications. The second presentation will be given by Robert Cheetham, founder and CEO of Avencia Inc., a software design and development firm for geospatial analysis tools and services, with particular expertise in natural resource planning, economic development, crime analysis, real estate property analysis, and cultural resources. He also serves on the advisory board of the Penn State Master’s in GIS program, and has served as the Senior GIS Developer for the City of Philadelphia and as Crime Analyst for the Philadelphia Police Department. In his presentation, Cheetham will highlight recent GIS initiatives at Avencia, including the PhillyHistory project as well as describe how the Avencia staff integrate GIS training. The presentations will be followed by a reception with light fare and opportunities to meet the speakers and other guests. Please forward this announcement to students and others who are interested in GIS. I look forward to seeing everyone in the Philadelphia GIS community.

November 12, 2:30 p.m., Paley Library Lecture Hall Did you know that nearly a quarter of the city of Philadelphia’s budget is spent on criminal justice and jails? Our prisons are now overcrowded, stuffed with first-time offenders. Legal experts and public administrators know, there are many different ways to approach these problems. Hear from an incredible panel of experts on this issue. State Superior Court Justice Ron Castille and former Police Commissioner Sylvester Johnson will join Temple professors for a conversation moderated by former Mayor John Street for the latest installment of Chat in the Stacks.

Special Collections Showcase Celebrating 125 Years of Temple November 4, 4:00 p.m., Paley Library, Mezzanine, Special Collections Reading Room Get up close and personal with Temple’s history as a diverse and vibrant educational institution. The Libraries’ Special Collections Department oversees the Conwellana-Templana Collection, Temple’s unofficial university archives and a rich repository of materials related to Russell Conwell and the university’s birth. This showcase will offer an opportunity to speak with curators at the Special Collections Department and hold Temple’s history in your hands. Please also visit the companion exhibition Celebrating 125 Years at Temple: Materials from the Conwellana-Templana Collection happening this fall.

A Film Series Curated by Wolgin Prize Finalist Sanford Biggers Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter… and Spring, Dir. Kim Ki-duk, 2003, 103 min. October 28, 7:00 p.m., Paley Library Lecture Hall A beautiful and meditative film in five parts; it follows the life of a Buddhist monk from his formative years as an apprentice through old age. Sanford Biggers has selected four films to be screened in conjunction with his exhibition at Tyler Gallery. These films approach African American identity in American history, from the 1930s through the present day, through cultural mediums including music, dance, film and religion. This event is part of a series of collaborative public programs presented in conjunction with the Tyler School of Art’s Jack Wolgin International Competition in the Fine Arts Additional Films Two additional films selected by Sanford Biggers will be screened at Tyler School of Art, Lower Level, B04. Visit www.temple.edu/tyler/exhibitions for more details.

A Panel Discussion on the Work of Wolgin Prize Finalist Michael Rakowitz October 15, 5:30 p.m., Paley Library Lecture Hall At this event, scholars and critics will examine Michael Rakowitz’s art as social commentary that explores problematic urban situations. The Invisible Enemy Should Not Exist, the focus of Rakowtiz’s WolginPrize exhibition, discusses objects stolen from the National Museum of Iraq in the aftermath of the U.S. invasion of April 2003. This piece attempts to make “war culture” more visible in America in the hopes that outrage over the stolen objects translates to outrage towards the loss of life. Participants include Temple University’s Susan Feagin, Research Professor in the Department of Philosophy at Temple University and Editor of The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism; Philip Glahn, Assistant Professor in the Department of Painting, Drawing and Sculpture, Tyler School of Art; Dustin Kidd, Assistant Professor, Sociology; and Srdjan Jovanović Weiss, Assistant Professor in the Department of Architecture at Tyler School of Art. This event is part of a series of collaborative public programs presented in conjunction with the Tyler School of Art’s Jack Wolgin International Competition in the Fine Arts About Wolgin Prize Finalist Michael Rakowitz Based in Chicago and New York, Michael Rakowitz’s (b. 1973, New York) art practice is characterized by its exploration of and symbolic interventions with problematic urban situations, as well as endeavors to make visible other urgent moments of silence, invisibility, and marginality. In 1998, he initiated paraSITE, an ongoing project in which the artist custom builds inflatable shelters for homeless people that attach to the exterior outtake vents of a building’s heating, ventilation, or air conditioning system. Other recent projects include the public work, Return, presented by Creative Time in New York, and The invisible enemy should not exist. His work has been exhibited in venues worldwide including P.S. 1, Long Island City, NY; the Museum of Modern Art, New York; MASSMoCA, North Adams, MA; Castello di Rivoli, Turin; and biennials and triennials including the 16th Biennale of Sydney; the 10th Istanbul Biennial; Sharjah Biennial 8; the Tirana Biennale; the National Design Triennial at the Cooper Hewitt; and Transmediale 05. He also has been the recipient of a number of prestigious international artist grants and fellowships, and has had numerous solo exhibitions at galleries and art spaces through the U.S. and Europe, including a forthcoming show at the Tate Modern in London.

A Panel Discussion on the Works of Wolgin Prize Finalist Ryan Trecartin October 7, 5:30 pm, Paley Library Lecture Hall Ryan Trecartin’s work advances understandings of post‐millennial technology, narrative and identity. Discussed from a variety of perspectives, panelists will examine issues of social media and networks; gender and aesthetic themes in video art; and more. Participants include Temple University’sGerard Brown, Chair of Foundations, Tyler School of Art (moderator); Scott Gratson, Director of the Communications Program and SCT Undergraduate Studies; Aaron Smuts, Visiting Assistant Professor in the Department of Philosophy; Elisabeth Subrin, Assistant Professor in the Department of Film and Media Arts; and Andrew Suggs, Executive Director of Vox Populi Gallery, Philadelphia. This event is part of a series of collaborative public programs presented in conjunction with the Tyler School of Art’s Jack Wolgin International Competition in the Fine Arts About Finalist Ryan Trecartin Ryan Trecartin (b. 1981, Webster, TX) lives and works in Philadelphia, PA, where he structures his art practice in varying collaborative ways. Trecartin has established a singular video practice that, in both form and in function, advances understandings of post-millennial technology, narrative and identity, and also propels these matters as expressive mediums. His work depicts worlds where consumer culture is amplified and absorbed to absurd or nihilistic proportions where characters circuitously strive to find agency and meaning in their lives. The combination of assaultive, nearly impenetrable avant-garde logics and equally outlandish, virtuoso uses of color, form, drama and montage produces a sublime, stream-of-consciousness effect that feels bewilderingly true to life. In addition to his work in video, Trecartin also has a collaborative sculpture practice with artist Lizzie Fitch. Trecartin’s work has been included in several major exhibitions and institutions worldwide, including the 2006 Whitney Biennial, New York; the J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles; the Saatchi Gallery, London; and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York.

A Film Series Curated by Wolgin Prize Finalist Sanford Biggers Strange Fruit, Dir. Joel Katz, 2002, 57 min. September 30, 7:00 p.m., Paley Library Lecture Hall Introduction by Dr. Diane D. Turner, Curator of the Charles L. Blockson Afro-American Collection Director Joel Katz explores the history of the popular song “Strange Fruit,” written by Abel Meeropol and famously performed by Billie Holiday, through interviews with musicians, historians, genealogists and more. Katz fashions a fascinating discovery of the lost story behind this heartbreaking American classic. This event is part of a series of collaborative public programs presented in conjunction with the Tyler School of Art’s Jack Wolgin International Competition in the Fine Arts About Wolgin Prize Finalist Sanford Biggers Sanford Biggers (b. 1970, Los Angeles) is a native of Los Angeles, California, and current New York resident, who uses the study of ethnological objects, popular icons, and the Dadaist tradition to explore cultural and creative syncretism, art history, and politics. An accomplished musician, Biggers often incorporates performative elements into his sculptures and installations, resulting in multilayered works that act as anecdotal vignettes, at once full of wit and clear formal intent. Biggers has won several awards and has participated in a number of prestigious national and international artist residencies and fellowships. Sanford Biggers’ installations, videos, and performances have appeared in institutions in China, Germany, Hungary, Japan, Poland and Russia as well as several notable exhibitions such as the Prospect.1/New Orleans biennial, Illuminations at the Tate Modern, Performa 07, the Whitney Biennial and Freestyle at the Studio Museum in Harlem. He is currently preparing for solo shows at the Contemporary Arts Forum in Santa Barbara and the Brooklyn Museum and a permanent commission in New York City through the New York Percent for Art. About the Competition Created in 2009 by the real estate developer, banker and philanthropist Jack Wolgin of Philadelphia, the Jack Wolgin International Competition in the Fine Arts was established at the Temple University Tyler School of Art to recognize an emerging artist with a significant studio practice who critically and creatively engages with existing histories and images, and whose work transcends traditional boundaries. With a cash prize of $150,000, the Jack Wolgin International Competition in the Fine Arts grants the world’s largest juried visual art prize awarded to an individual. Inspired by the diversity of Temple University and its unique connection to the thriving art communities of Philadelphia, Mr. Wolgin chose the Tyler School to host and administrate the Competition. By bringing the work of innovative and talented artists to the Tyler School, the Competition seeks to open a dialogue among students, the diverse communities of Philadelphia, and the greater art world. The exchange of ideas and art inspired by the Jack Wolgin International Competition in the Fine Arts also perpetuates the spirit of Philadelphia, a cultural hub since our nation’s founding, rich in both historic and contemporary art.