Sources: Philip Nel, 785-532-2165, philnel@k-state.edu; Karin Westman, 785-532-2190, westmank@k-state.edu
Note to editors: Melissa Glaser is a graduate of Emporia High School, Caley Cole-Robinson is a graduate of West Smith County High School, Kensington, and Chelsea Brimer is a graduate of Maize High School.
News release prepared by: Beth Buchanan, 785-532-7718, bethb@k-state.edu
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
K-STATE'S BEACH MUSEUM, ENGLISH EDUCATORS CELEBRATE CHILDREN'S BOOKS
MANHATTAN -- The Marianna Kistler Beach Museum of Art and the Kansas State University department of English are offering two ways to look at a child's world of letters starting in April.
The Beach Museum's upcoming exhibit "Alphabet Soup: Work by Stephen Johnson, Jim Munce and Tony Fitzpatrick" has gathered art that uses letters from the alphabet. Most of the exhibit focuses on the work of Stephen Johnson, whose work goes well beyond illustration, according to Philip Nel, associate professor of English.
"Johnson's 'Abstract Alphabet' is part children's book and part lesson in 20th century artistic movements," Nel said. "Cubism is here, but the work also explores the influence of dada and its children: surrealism, pop art, conceptual art, abstract expressionism and color field painting. The result is a provocative meditation on art and language."
Nel and Karin Westman, head of K-State's English department, selected the works with the help of Liz Seaton, associate curator at the Beach Museum. The show, which runs April 4 through Aug. 3, coincides with the first interdisciplinary conference on children's literature at K-State April 5 in the Student Union.
Organized by the student-run Children's and Adolescent Literature Community with help from K-State's department of English, this one-day conference offers an opportunity for students, librarians, K-12 teachers and college and university faculty to share perspectives on children's literature, Westman said.
"The conference will feature speakers representing three ways of experiencing children's literature – through education, English and library science," Westman said. "After three morning panel sessions, we will have a keynote presentation by Stephen Johnson on the process of creating children's books."
A book-signing and informal tour of the "Alphabet Soup" exhibit concludes the conference. More information is available at http://www.k-state.edu/chalc/
Children's and Adolescent Literature Community officers, all graduate students in English, include Chelsea Brimer of Lawrence, Caley Cole-Robinson and Melissa Glaser of Manhattan, and Rachel Parkin of Olathe.
For more information on the exhibit, call the Beach Museum of Art at 785-532-7718 or drop by the museum on the southeast corner of the K-State campus at 14th Street and Anderson Avenue. Admission is free, and free visitor parking is available next to the building. Museum hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays; 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursdays; and noon to 5 p.m. Sundays. The museum is closed Mondays.