Art:21 – Art in the Twenty-First Century

Thursdays, October 8 and 15, 2009
5:30 pm
at the Art Center Cinema
150 S. Santa Fe

The Salina Art Center to host exclusive event featuring FREE advance screenings of four full episodes from Season 5 of the Peabody Award-Winning documentary Art:21 – Art in the Twenty-First Century.

Salina, KS –The Salina Art Center, in partnership with Art21, Inc. as part of its Art:21 Access ’09 initiative, presents a sneak preview of the fifth season of Art:21—Art in the Twenty-First Century, the only prime time national television series focused exclusively on contemporary art. These screenings take place Thursdays, October 8 and 15, at 5:30 pm at the Art Center Cinema, 150 S. Santa Fe. Two episodes will screen each night with conversation following both of these two-hour screenings which are FREE and open to the public.

Art:21 Access ’09is an international screening initiative created to increase knowledge of contemporary art, ignite dialogue, and inspire creative thinking through hundreds of public screenings and events that tailor the ideas presented in the series to the interests and concerns of local audiences. The season premieres on PBS October 7 with a new episode each Wednesday during the month. Through in-depth profiles and interviews, the four-part series reveals the inspiration, vision and techniques behind the creative works of some of today’s most thought-provoking artists.

“Art:21 Access ’09 draws the Art:21 television-viewing audience together in communities around the world and provides a wonderfully enhanced Art:21 experience,” said Susan Sollins, Executive Producer of Art:21. “We hope that audiences will take full advantage of the events in their area and develop an understanding of the complex skills, techniques and knowledge that artists bring to their work. Our goal is that these events contribute to boosting the confidence of audiences worldwide to view and appreciate all art forms.”

Art21 Access ’09 events are presented in partnership with Americans for the Arts as part of National Arts and Humanities Month, the largest annual celebration of the arts and humanities in the nation, held every October. An updated list of Art21 Access ’09 events and venues worldwide can be found at http://www.art21.org/access09.

The following episodes will screen at the Art Center Cinema…
Thursday, October 8, 5:30 pm

Episode 1: Compassion
This episode features artists whose works explore the possibility of understanding and reconciling past and present, while exposing injustice and expressing tolerance for others. William Kentridge, Carrie Mae Weems and Doris Salcedo are featured.

Episode 2: Fantasy
Fantasy presents four artists whose works or personal stories transport viewers to imaginary worlds and altered states of consciousness. With works that seem at times hallucinatory, irreverent, and sublime, each of these artists pursues a vision first held in the mind’s eye. Jeff Koons, Mary Heilmann, Florian Maier-Aichen and Cao Fei are featured.

Thursday, October 15, 5:30 pm

Episode 3: Transformation
Whether observing and satirizing society or reinventing icons of literature, art history, and popular culture, the artists featured in Transformation capture the sensibilities of our age while at times inhabiting the characters they have created. Yinka Shonibare MBE, Cindy Sherman and Paul McCarthy are featured.

Episode 4: Systems
Artists invent new processes to convey the attitudes of today’s supercharged, information-based society, examining why we find comfort in some systems while rebelling against others. Systems features artists who realize complex projects through acts of appropriation or accumulation. In some instances, they create projects vast in scope, which almost elude comprehension. Julie Mehretu, John Baldessari, Kimsooja and Allan McCollum are featured.

All Art:21 – Art in the Twenty-First Century screenings at the Art Center Cinema are FREE and open to the public. For more information visit http://www.salinaartcenter.org, or call the Art Center at 785-827-1431.
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The Salina Art Center is located at 242 S. Santa Fe. The Art Center Cinema is located a block away at 150 S. Santa Fe, Salina, Kansas. Art Center galleries are open Wednesday through Saturday from noon to 5:00 pm, and Sunday from 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm. Business office hours are 9:00 am – 5:00 pm Monday through Friday.

Salina Art Center