MICHELANGELO'S WORLD
October 12-13, 2001

Friday, October 12, 2001
8:00 pm - 10:15 pm

A giant of the Italian Renaissance, Michelangelo Buonarroti has left an unparalleled legacy of brilliant, highly personal art, architecture and poetry. The San Francisco Choral Artists will present a program of sacred and secular choral music from Renaissance Italy, featuring compositions from Rome and Florence. Princeton Professor Theodore Rabb will present an overview of Michelangelo's life from his native Florence to the Rome that witnessed his greatest fame.

Saturday, October 13, 2001
10:00 am - 4:00 pm

New View of an Old Master Frescoes in the Vatican Palace and architecture and sculpture for St. Peter's Basilica link this passionate Florentine patriot inextricably with the Eternal City of the popes. William Wallace offers a brilliant new biography of Michelangelo; art historian Loren Partridge reexamines "The Last Judgement;" Marc Levoy shows remarkable images of sculpture from Stanford University's Digital Michelangelo Project. Renaissance expert Eric Apfelstadt moderates.




ONE HUNDRED YEARS IN BARCELONA
February 8-9, 2002

Songs of the Spanish Civil War
Friday, February 8, 2002  8:00 pm - 10:15 pm

Established in 1833, the Province of Barcelona was a center of Catalan regionalism, anarchy, and industrial unrest throughout the 19th century, and became a Loyalist stronghold during the Spanish Civil War. Humanities West's exploration of this fascinating region and period begins with a lecture on the political, intellectual and cultural context of the Spanish Civil War by historian Sandie Holguin. A performance of Pasiones, a critically acclaimed cabaret that spotlights the songs written and sung throughout the period, follows. Here versatile artists Michael Smith and Jamie O'Reilly combine popular and folk song with historical text and poetry by, among others, Hemingway, Garcia Lorca, Brecht and Orwell. Their presentation of this unique collection, sung in six languages, has been called "sublime," and "sweeping and passionate," by the Chicago Tribune.

Art and Architecture of Barcelona
Saturday, February 9, 2002 10:00 am - 4:00 pm

As "head and hearth" of Catalonia, Barcelona has long embodied the tensions of that rich and historic land between the Mediterranean and the mountains. Gary McDonogh (Director of the Growth and Structure of Cities Program, Bryn Mawr College) will look at Barcelona's identity and power at the turn of the century and its transformation as a global and local metropolis. Lectures by Judith Rohrer (Emory University) and Marta Altisent (UC Davis) will explore the architecture of Antoni Gaudí and the literature and painting of Catalonia's burgeoning modernist movement, often referred to by the artists' meeting place, the brew-pub Els Quatre Gats. Attendees will also enjoy a performance of traditional Catalonian folk dance by Casals de Catalans' Grup Dansaire Catalunya and a panel discussion on the important role Catalonia played in the development of the modern Spanish State.

Program held at Herbst Theatre, located at 401 Van Ness Avenue (at McAllister), San Francisco.

Friday and Saturday Tickets: $50-55.  Friday or Saturday only Tickets: $25-30.

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

SONGS OF THE SPANISH CIVIL WAR
Friday, February 8

Lecture  Barcelona Between Revolution and Repression
The revolutionary atmosphere in Barcelona from the mid-19th century to the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939) provided a crucible for great artists and architects, but it also became the breeding ground for violence among Catalan industrial magnates, anarchists and the central government of Madrid. Historian SANDIE HOLGUIN (University of Oklahoma) will discuss the social, political, and cultural conditions in Barcelona that culminated in the Spanish Civil War.

Performance  Songs
The Spanish Civil War had its own rich musical legacy: songs reflecting the violent passions, deep ideological commitments, and folk traditions of the numerous factions in the struggle. PASIONES is a critically acclaimed cabaret that spotlights the songs of the Spanish Civil War. Versatile artists Michael Smith and Jamie O'Reilly combine popular and folk song with historical text and poetry by, among others, Hemingway, Garcia Lorca, Brecht and Orwell.


HOMAGE TO CATALONIA
Saturday, February 9

Lecture  Cap, Casal and Crossroads: Barcelona and Catalonia in Contex
As "head and hearth" of Catalonia, Barcelona has long embodied the tensions of that rich and historic land between the Mediterranean and the Pyrenees. As a vital capital, port, and cultural center from medieval glory through 19th century industrialization to the present, it has born witness to continuing and sometimes violent conflicts between ideas and social groups. GARY MCDONOGH (Director of the Growth and Structure of Cities Program, Bryn Mawr College) will look at Barcelona's identity at the turn of the century and its transformation to a global and local metropolis.

Lecture  Els Quatre Gats: Barcelona in Paint
At the turn of the century, a Barcelona tavern, Els Quatre Gats, became the meeting place for a Bohemian circle of young avant-garde artists, including Picasso, Dali and Ramon Casas. ROBERT LUBAR (Institute of Fine Arts, New York University) will explore modernism in Barcelona and the city's unique openness towards, and effect on, cultures and movements passing through the region.


Performance  Grup Dansaire Catalunya
Twentieth Century Catalan folk dance has its origins in the tradition of  "esbartades", or outdoor celebrations that began as poetry readings in the 1850s and later incorporated the research and diffusion of traditional Catalan dances. GRUP DANSAIRE CATALUNYA performs a sampling of these dances, highlighting the music, movement and costume of their homeland.

2:00 pm  Lecture  The Catalan Spirit: Gaudí and His Contemporaries
The splendor of Barcelona's turn of the century renaissance was most visible in the brilliance of its buildings and monuments, particularly in the architecture of Antoni Gaudí. JUDITH ROHRER (Emory University) will discuss the intersection between art and politics in Gaudí's Barcelona. She will also review the history of the Temple of the Sagrada Familia, a structure unfinished at the time of Gaudí's death.

Renaixenca Catalan: Barcelona in Literature
The Catalan renaissance, sometimes referred to as the Silver Age, holds its roots in the literary movement of Barcelona in the late 19th century. Distressed by a long period of decline in Spanish political power, a large group of writers, including Federico Garcia Lorca, searched for its causes and attemped to seek out remedies for Spain's regeneration. MARTA ALTISENT (UC Davis) will discuss urban images in three turn of the century literary works.

Panel Discussion  Charles Faulhaber, moderator
A discussion among all lecturers with questions from the audience.

ANCIENT EGYPT
May 31-June 1, 2002

Inspirations from the Nile
Friday, May 31, 2002  
8:00 pm - 10:15 pm

The 19th century unearthing of the Rosetta Stone and the magnificent artifacts of King Tutankhamen's tomb lured writers and artists as well as archaelogists to Egypt. Moderator Stuart Tyson Smith will overview the archeological discoveries of that period and the "Egyptomania" that inspired new work in decorative arts, music and film. Gifted soprano Geraldine McMillian will perform works from Giuseppe Verdi's Aïda and repertoire from early 20th century Egyptian composers.

Treasures of the New Kingdom
Saturday, June 1, 2002
10:00 am - 4:00 pm
Distinguished speakers use art and archeology to unlock mysteries 3500 years in our past. UC Berkeley's Cathleen Keller looks at everyday life in ancient Egypt through art. James Romano of the Brooklyn Museum tells the story of New Kingdom (1570-1182 BCE) pharoahs - Akenhaten, Tutankhamen, Ramses II - through sculpture. Peter Lacovara of the Carlos Museum examines religion through the architecture of the city of Amarna. UC Berkeley Visiting Lecturer Marian Feldman explores the art of diplomacy in the New Kingdom era with an emphasis on the gifts exchanged between leaders in the region and the sharing of technology and resources.
 
Program held at Herbst Theatre, located at 401 Van Ness Avenue (at McAllister), San Francisco.
Friday and Saturday Tickets: $50-55.  Friday or Saturday only Tickets: $25-30.

 
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

Stuart Tyson Smith, Moderator

INSPRIATIONS FROM THE NILE
Friday, May 31

Opening Remarks  H.E. Afaf Elmazariky, Consul

Lecture  Egypt in Film - the Good, the Bad, the Nile
Moderator Stuart Tyson Smith overviews the birth of "Egyptomania" and discusses how Egypt maintains its hold on our imaginations.

Performance  Geraldine McMillian, soprano, accompanied
Arias from Verdi's Egyptian inspired Aïda and other works from Egyptian romantic composers of the 19th century and the music pertaining to their Egyptian heritage.
 


TREASURES OF THE NEW KINGDOM
Saturday, June 1

Lecture  Life
When thinking of ancient Egypt, we are often struck with an image of King Tut's golden head or Cleopatra being fanned by the Nile. However, Egyptian reliefs and sculptures also portray average Egyptian's in the most common settings and routines. In this lecture, Cathleen Keller (Associate Professor, Department of Near Eastern Studies, UC Berkeley) will offer a look at everyday life in ancient Egypt through art.

Lecture  Royal
The rulers of the New Kingdom (Dynasties 18 - 20) included some of the most extraordinary and powerful personalities in the 3000 years of Egyptian history. James Romano (Curator, Dept. of Egyptian, Classical and Ancient Middle Eastern Art, Brooklyn Museum of Art) will use sculpture to introduce some of the better known monarchs (Hatshepsut, Thutmose III, Amunhotep III, Akhenaten, and Ramses II) as well as other, lesser-known kings whose achievements had profound significance in their time.

Performance  Traditional Egyptian Dance

Lecture  Sacred
The city of Akhenaten, now known as Amarna, contains ruins of temples, palaces and houses of a most unusual period in the religious and architectural history of Ancient Egypt.  Peter Lacovara (Curator of Ancient Art, Carlos Museum at Emory University) will interpret religion through architecture in findings from the city of Amarna.

Panel Discussion  Moderated by Stuart Tyson Smith
Written questions from the audience to be addressed.