The Harlem Renaissance will be
coming to the museum this Thursday, Feb. 21, as we honor Harold Rittenberry and
the late Rudolph Byrd at this year’s Black History Month Dinner. The theme of
the annual event is “Harlem Renaissance: A Sampler.” Vintage décor from Agora,
a vintage and antiques store in downtown Athens, will contribute to the feel.
The evening will start off with a
gallery talk led by Paul Manoguerra, the museum’s chief curator and curator of
American art, on the exhibition, “William H. Johnson: An American Modern.”
Following that will be a seated dinner catered by Epting Events, as well as
cocktails and desserts. Entertainment, including a performance by singer Monica
Kaufman-Pearson, a retired WSB-TV anchor in Atlanta and a current graduate
student in the University of Georgia Grady College of Journalism and Mass
Communication, will add to overall theme and feel of the evening.
Harold Rittenberry |
Both men, Rittenberry and Byrd, have
greatly contributed to the arts and culture in their communities. Rittenberry
will receive the Larry D. and Brenda A. Thompson Award and Byrd the Lillian C.
Lynch Citation. Rittenberry, born and raised in Athens and a self-taught
artist, has metalwork sculptures throughout the state. Byrd, a long-time
professor at Emory University, founded the James Weldon Johnson Institute at
Emory in 2007, which studies the modern civil rights movement, and served as
director of the department of African American Studies for a decade. Both men’s
work and contributions express the efforts of both the Thompsons and Lynch.
This will be an evening that you
will not want to miss. Tickets are $45 per person and reservations are
requested. We still have tickets left, so call 706.542.0830 to reserve your
spot.
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