Notice Board

Robert Enright and Meeka Walsh
The Imminent Domain: The Allusive and Elusive Presence of Art in Liberal Education
Thursday, September 17, 2015
7 pm, University Theatre
FREE admission, everyone welcome
Reception to follow

This year the University of Lethbridge is placing an emphasis on cross-disciplinary relationships and a spotlight on liberal education. With that in mind, Robert Enright and Meeka Walsh are the first guest speakers of the season. 

Robert Enright is a contributing editor and film critic for Border Crossings magazine, and the Research Chair in Art Theory and Criticism in the School of Fine Arts & Music, at the University of Guelph. He has more than 35 years of experience as a cultural journalist in print, radio and television. In 2006, he received the Art Award of Distinction from the National Council of Arts Administrator and in 2007 a Gold Medal for his contribution to the arts by the Royal Canadian Academy. In 2005 he was made a Member of the Order of Canada and in 2012 received the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal.

Meeka Walsh, an award-winning critic, writer, editor and curator, has been the Editor of Border Crossings magazine since 1993.  In 2003, she received the Lifetime Achievement at the Western Magazine Awards in Vancouver and in 2007 was given the Royal Canadian Academy Gold Medal for her contribution to the arts. 

The well-respected pair present several free public lectures on campus during their visit. The first presentation is Sept 17 at 7 pm in the University Theatre. Their two-voiced presentation entitled The Imminent Domain: The Allusive and Elusive Presence of Art in Liberal Education, considers art as the “about-to-happen” in light of the “already-having-happened.”  It is a measuring of the influence of tradition and how the past is used in the ongoing present. They also discuss what they have accomplished with the magazine and how it locates itself within the topic of liberal education. The lecture is co-sponsored by the Faculty of Fine Arts’ Crossing Boundaries and Tagg-Yoshida Lecture Series.

“The Tagg-Yoshida Series invites speakers who through their work and life epitomize the pillars of liberal education, which has been a foundation at the U of L since its inception,” says Dr. Shelly Wismath, a professor in the liberal education program.  “A liberal education is one that liberates the mind, helping us to question ideas and assumptions to create a better world for all.”

The Faculty of Fine Arts’ Crossing Boundaries Series selects speakers for the breadth and scope of their cross-disciplinary interests and practices. “Our object is to share creative innovators with the community and activate cultural discourse,” says Dr. Edward Jurkowski, Dean, Faculty of Fine Arts. “Through their several presentations, Enright and Walsh are sure to do that.”

On Sept. 18 as part of Art NOW, Meeka Walsh presents Fragments of the Autobiographical: Me and Robert Frank at 12 noon in the University Recital Hall.  “Although part of a class, this lecture, and all Art NOW lectures, are also open to the public,” says Jurkowski.

On Sept. 19, at 10 am in M1040 (Markin Hall) Robert Enright presents The Interview: Its history, perfidy and mystery - a miscellany for voices.  Admission is free and everyone is welcome.