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Past Events
An Artist and Her Books: The Mary Kay Watson Collection
March 20, 2024 | 3:00pm | Milano Room, WVU Downtown Library
Speaker: Mary Kay Watson
A native of Morgantown and a graduate of WVU, Mary Kay Brown Watson is an artist with a passion. A passion for art and a passion for book collecting. This exhibition titled An Artist and Her Books: The Mary Kay Watson Collection, explores the intersection of her art and her book collecting. In this exhibition we will see the influence of her art as it is reflected in her collection of decorated books from the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, known as publishers’ book bindings. We will see firsthand how the books she collects are representative of her art. One reflects the other, making for an exhibition where the two worlds of the artist and her collection meet, bringing together a fascinating look at the natural world through the eyes of the artist.
Women Making History: Showcasing the Feminist Activist Collection
October 16th, 2023, 5:00pm | Milano Room & WVRHC, Downtown Library
Speakers: Judith Stitzel and Jessie Wilkerson
“Women Making History” is a collaborative exhibit that features sections written and curated by students in the WVU History department as well as faculty and staff from WVU Libraries. It features content from several collections that make up the West Virginia Feminist Activist Collection.
Reflections on West Virginia Poet Norman Jordan featuring Brucella Jordan
April 4, 2023, 7:00pm | Milano Room, Downtown Library
Speaker: Brucella Jordan
Brucella Jordan will talk about her late husband, Norman Jordan, one of West
Virginia’s foremost Black poets. A native of Ansted, West Virginia, Jordan earned
a Bachelor of Fine Arts from West Virginia University and a Master of Fine Arts
from The Ohio State University. Jordan was a leading voice in the Black Arts Movement
and active in the Cleveland Poetry Movement. In Cleveland, he collaborated with
the Karamu House, the oldest Black theater in the United States. Jordan published
several books of poetry and his poems have appeared in over 40 anthologies. He
was inducted into the exclusive Affrilachian Poets group in 2008. Jordan
was a co-founder of the African American Arts and Heritage Academy and the African
American Heritage Family Tree Museum in Ansted. He also taught literature at both
WVU and Glenville State University.
Lost and Found: What's Next for the West Virginia Feminist Activist Collection
Lost and Found: What's Next for the West Virginia Feminist Activist Collection
March 9, 2023, 7:00pm
Speakers: Judith Stitzel, Members of the Artemis Sisters
Join WVU Professor Emeritus Judith Stitzel and members of the Artemis Sisters Collective in a conversation about the importance of women collecting and preserving the herstory of their local, state and regional activities for future generations. Artemis was formed in the 1980’s by women living in Morgantown who were interested in fostering and promoting opportunities for creative, social and political engagement. Artemis members will share their experiences of donating materials to the Archive and taking part in oral history interviews.
This is a follow up to the 2021 program, “ Don't Throw It Out.”
This project is presented with financial assistance from the West Virginia Humanities
Council, a state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any
views, findings, conclusions or recommendations do not necessarily represent
those of the West Virginia Humanities Council or the National Endowment for the
Humanities.
An Evening with Author Valerie Nieman
Speaker: Valerie Nieman
The WVU Humanities Center and the West Virginia Regional History Center are pleased to present author Valerie Nieman, whose papers are housed at WVRHC. Nieman will read from her creative work, with reception and booksigning to follow.