News

 

WILLIAM KING MUSEUM ANNOUNCES PLANS TO RELOCATE

At its July 20th Board meeting, a quorum of the Board of Trustees of William King Museum voted unanimously to begin the process of selling the museum complex along with the 20 acre property located at 415 Academy Drive in Abingdon, and to explore and evaluate potential relocation sites in the area.

Given the current state of the economy and the decline in government, foundation, and private funding, the Board made the decision to explore relocating the museum to a more accessible, cost-efficient and visible location.

Board President, Steve Morris is excited about the move.  “Our primary purpose is to serve the public,” he says.  “To do so, sometimes you need to seek solutions, often multifaceted and complex, requiring us to think outside the box.”

“The Board is committed to the future of William King Museum,” Board Vice-President, Carol Jones, states, “and eager to explore ways in which the museum can fulfill its mission of bringing rotating exhibits of works of art from around the nation and the world to our diverse audience, showcasing and preserving our cultural heritage, using art as a tool to educate both children and adults and enrich lives, and serving as a museum showcase for our regional artists.”

Executive Director, Marcy Miller, strongly supports the Board’s decisions.  She says, “I believe the move will serve to rejuvenate William King Museum, and I envision the opportunity to offer enhanced cultural, artistic and educational services to our community, resulting in a positive effect for the town of Abingdon and for the citizens of southwest Virginia.”

The Museum is a Partner of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts and the Virginia Commission for the Arts, as well as an accredited member of the American Association of Museums, the Virginia Association of Museums and the Southeastern Museums Conference. 

Please emal info@wkmuseum.org with questions.

William King Museum Announces Panoramic Gallery Exhibiting Artists

William King Museum is pleased to announce the exhibiting artists for the Panoramic Gallery through March 2011. A special thanks to all of the artists and curators that submitted proposals and to our jurors Professor Gary Aday and Polly Mallory along with guest juror Sara Cole.

Gairdt Edwards

August 10 through September 5, 2010, Artist Reception, August 10 from 6 – 8 pm

Gairdt Edwards is a multi-media artist who graduated from Emory & Henry College in 2008. The work featured in this exhibition will include recent oil paintings as well as caricatures Edwards creates based on people he sees in his everyday life and during his travels. His work examines politics, current events, dreams, artistic boundaries, and media influence. Edwards aims to inspire a discussion of these topics through his imagery and the individual narratives the viewer brings with them.

Theresa Markiw

September 7 through October 3, 2010, Artist Reception, September 7 from 6 – 8 pm

Art has always been at the center of my life. The arts and culture of my Ukrainian upbringing strongly influenced me- the rich colors and intricate designs of Ukrainian embroideries, woodcarvings, pysanky (decorated Easter eggs), and Byzantine icons. My formative years of art study heightened an appreciation of nature and a capacity for close observation. My current work synthesizes these varied interests and influences with a love of simple objects, which serve as a vehicle for the articulation of multiple meanings and more complex truths, ideas and emotions.

Theresa Markiw was born in Montreal, Canada of Ukrainian émigrés and grew up in southern New Jersey. In 1979 she received a BFA in Visual Arts from Concordia University in Montreal. In New Jersey she worked as a graphic designer before moving to Washington, DC, where she worked for institutions such as the National Endowment for the Arts and the Department of State. From 2000 to 2005 she worked abroad in Mongolia and Azerbaijan with arts and culture in her portfolio. In 2006 Markiw left the diplomatic service to join her university professor husband in northeast Tennessee and devoted herself to full-time painting – primarily in water media. Throughout her career her work has been exhibited in Chicago, Philadelphia, Ukraine, and Montreal.

 

Carole Farris Blevins

October 5 through October 31, 2010, Artist Reception, October 5 from 6 – 8 pm

A native of Washington County, Virginia, now living in Holston Valley, Tennessee, Carole paints the hills and valleys she grew up among. She has also traveled extensively in Europe where she and her late husband Tedd Blevins taught students during their studies abroad. She recently returned from a two-month stay in Morocco where she observed the culture and made sketches of the cities, mountains and desert. Carole taught watercolor at William King Museum for more than ten years. She has a studio in Holston Valley where she paints full time. Her primary medium is watercolor with the occasional addition of pastel. She has paintings in collections throughout the United States.

Fragment by Fragment: Recent Work by Marlana Williams

November 2 through December 5, 2010, Artist Reception, November 2 from 6 – 8 pm

The cloth materials in these new works remind me of female members of my family. Members who grew up in the mountains, wearing flour sacks sewn into little dresses. The pain endured by these women is shown by their scars, both mental and physical. The cycles continue to circle me, but they comfort me. It’s not scary. I know the cycle has shown them the way to overcome. They have always taken care of me, these females, circling and protecting. Meditations on the circular shapes and sharp lines prove to be a deep part of my works. These thoughts come forward while painting and creating, or searching for old cabinet doors, windows, or pieces of cloth: the markers of time, place and culture.

Marlana Williams received her BA with a Concentration in Painting from University of Virginia’s College at Wise in 2002. She has shown her work extensively throughout the region and is a regular contributor to Appalachian art and culture. 

Duane Cregger

December 7, 2010 through January 2, 2011, Artist Reception, December 7 from 6 – 8 pm

The creation of something new is not accomplished by the intellect, but by the play instinct acting from inner necessity.—Carl Jung

It is this play instinct that Jung speaks of that leads me to the use of a variety of oil paints and thinners, working on canvas or wood. Occasionally, I will add a rough layer of plaster and dig into it before it dries then paint over the rugged surface. I’ll use a seemingly finished work as the under-painting for another piece, contributing to a deep layering of color, texture and emotion. In the words of artist and writer Ray Kass, “thick oil paints applied in loose rectangular patterns are incised with Cregger’s personal scribbling…anchoring these works in language…”

A native of Appalachia, Duane Cregger lives and works in the mountains of Virginia. His work hangs in public spaces, galleries, and corporate and private collections in Virginia, Tennessee, Ohio, Washington DC, and California.

Point-Time: A Graphic Confluence of Artists

curated by Jean Hess and in conjunction with East Tennessee State University

January 4 through January 30, 2011, Artist Reception, January 4 from 6 – 8 pm

This exhibition will showcase the visual art currently being produced in metro-Knoxville, Tennessee, with no other agenda than to represent what is created in this particular locale. This exhibition presents an opportunity to look at this geographic context in freeze-frame, and will run concurrent to the East Tennessee State University exhibition providing audiences with a more comprehensive experience of the work. The artists that will be featured in Point-Time include Chad Airhart, Paige Barbee, Robmat Butler, Rachel Clark, Alan Finch, Nick de Ford, Diane Fox, Marcia Goldenstein, Joyce Gralak, Briena Harmening, Jean Hess, Thomas Riesing, Denise Sanabria, Zachary Searcy, Jason Shoemaker, Jessie Van der Laan, and David Wolff.

Derek Smith

February 1 through February 27, 2011, Artist Reception, February 1 from 6 – 8 pm

We, as humans, are instinctually programmed to emotionally respond to outside stimuli, whether it be sight, sound, touch, taste, or feel. It is my task as the artist to create striking and engaging works that draw the viewer in and promote thought.

Derek Smith is a native of Kingsport, Tennessee. He is an alumnus of Savannah College of Art and Design graduating magna cum laude with a BFA in Painting in 2003. Since then, he has been Barter Theatre’s Scenic Artist and has worked on approximately 100 shows. Popular designs have been featured in Betrayal, Beyond Gravity, Greater Tuna, Thousand Cranes, Lear, Blackbird, Four Places, Othello, Frosty and most recently Dead Man’s Cellphone. Derek maintains a working studio in Bristol, Tennessee, where he and his wife currently reside with their newborn son, Aiden.

 

Inspired by Nature: Ceramics by Cecelia Pippin and Adelaide Moss

March 1 through April 3, 2011, Artist Reception, March 1 from 6 – 8 pm

Cecelia Pippin has been a clay artist and teacher since 1991. She has taught in the Wise County Public Schools and Norton City Schools as an art teacher in grades K-12 and currently teaches ceramics at William King Museum. Making functional, decorative pots brings balance to her and she hopes to pass on the pleasure of pottery to others.

Adelaide Moss is an Abingdon resident and was trained formally in oil painting at Hollins University. She has shown work throughout New England, in Australia, and more recently at the Arts Depot in their Spotlight Gallery. Moss teaches pastel painting at William King Museum where she also has worked in ceramics with Cecelia Pippin.

William King Museum is now a part of The North American Reciprocal Museum (NARM) program which allows our members to receive free admission to any participating museum.
Find a list of participating museums at http://sites.google.com/site/northamericanreciprocalmuseums/official-narm-listings

Invitation to local artists to submit works for our Panoramic Gallery

William King Museum Welcomes Two New Resident Artists

William King Museum is pleased to welcome local artists Kyle Buckland and Jennifer Counts to its resident artist studio on Level Three.

Growing up as an Abingdon Virginia native, Jennifer Counts was immersed in the arts and culture of the southern Appalachian region at an early age. Now, using any and all artistic media to express her talents, Jennifer is forging her own path as a working artist in the region. Whether it’s painting, mixed media, photography, sculpture, or jewelry, her vision is never compromised. Jennifer has studied art and education with acclaimed artists Sam Morrow and Val Lyle at Virginia Highlands Community College.

Kyle Buckland is a plein air landscape painter living in the rural Appalachian region of southwestern Virginia.  His understanding of the complex philosophies regarding impressionism and his ability to capture sunlight and colored atmosphere is uncanny for an artist of his age. As a self-taught painter, Buckland has worked with oils since he was sixteen years old, stretching and priming his canvases and hauling his gear out into the surrounding fields and woods, never concerned with whether the temperature was ten degrees or if it was a languid summer day.  Each trip, to him, is an opportunity to capture something new.  In these seasonal excursions spanning ten years, Kyle, who is now 26, figures he has completed over one thousand paintings of the Appalachian landscape--many now in private and corporate collections around the country.  These works are a culmination of the painterly skills this young artist has developed during his time observing these mountains and their valleys.

Come visit Kyle and Jennifer and watch them work their artistic magic. For more information, contact the Museum at 276-628-5005 or visit us on the web at www.williamkingmuseum.org

William King Museum is named on The National Tour Association (NTA) list of 25 Top Main Street Treasures in Virginia. To read the entire story click on the link below:

http://www.virginia.org/pressroom/release.asp?id=209

Museum Names New Executive Director

The Board of Trustees of William King Museum has announced the appointment of Marcy K. Miller as the new Executive Director effective March 1.

As Executive Director for this American Association of Museums accredited museum, her responsibilities will include staff management and leadership in all aspects of planning, fiscal management, fundraising, and ongoing operations.

Miller, who is relocating to Abingdon from Maryland, holds a bachelors degree in psychology from Yale University, a masters degree in education from Sacred Heart University and a masters degree in business administration from Columbia University.

She most recently worked as the Director of Development, Department of Neurology, at the University of Maryland School of Medicine where she led the departments strategic planning process for support, was responsible for major gifts, and obtained a $4 million endowed gift.

Miller has also been a teacher, business owner and market researcher.

William King Museum is located at 415 Academy Drive, off West Main Street or Russell Road, in Abingdon. The museum features three exhibition galleries, resident artist studios, a museum store and outdoor sculpture garden. Educational programs in the visual arts are offered year-round for both children and adults, and school audiences are served by in-house and outreach programs.

Accredited by the American Association of Museums, the William King Museum is a partner of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, and a member of the American Association of Museums, the Virginia Association of Museums and the Southeastern Museums Conference.

Volunteer at the Fields-Penn 1860 House Museum!

Are you a history buff, fan of the arts, architecture lover, have a knack for teaching, or just enjoy volunteering? If you said yes to any of the above, come volunteer at the Fields-Penn House!

The Fields-Penn 1860 House Museum in Abingdon, Virginia is extending its hours of operation to better serve its visitors. The museum offers guided tours of the house led by volunteer docents, and the museum needs more of these volunteers to accommodate the expanded hours of operation.

The museum will be open Tuesday through Saturday beginning at 10 am with last entry at 4 pm and on Sunday beginning at 1 pm with last entry at 4 pm. Volunteers usually take one shift each week or every other week for the morning or afternoon. Volunteers are especially needed for Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Sundays. All docents will be trained in basic tour techniques and will be provided with a docent's package with information about the home. Volunteers who work for ten or more hours per month will also receive a complimentary individual membership at the William King Museum.

If you are interested in volunteering with us, please contact Elyse D. Gerstenecker, Curator of Decorative and Folk Art, at (276) 628-5005 extension 135 or egerstenecker@wkmuseum.org, or Henrietta Umberger, Volunteer Coordinator for Fields-Penn House, at (276) 676-0216.

Fields-Penn 1860 House Museum is owned by the Town of Abingdon and managed by William King Museum: Center for Art and Cultural Heritage.

William King Regional Arts Center Changes Name to
William King Museum: Center for Art and Cultural Heritage

The board and staff is pleased to announce that on July 1, 2009 the William King Regional Arts Center will formally change its name to: William King Museum: Center for Art and Cultural Heritage.  This decision was the culmination of a long process of consultation and deliberation by the Board of Trustees and friends of the museum and marks yet another step in the transformation of the museum's role in promoting and preserving the traditional and fine arts and Cultural Heritage of Southwestern Virginia, Northern North Carolina, Northeast Tennessee and the world.
The William King Museum is located in Abingdon, VA on the grounds of the former Abingdon Male Academy comprised of approximately 20 acres.  In c. 1905, the Abingdon Academy closed its doors, and in 1912, its trustees leased the property to the Town of Abingdon and the Central School District of Washington County and the new public school was named William King High School.  The building was used as a public school until 1973. In 1979 members of the community organized to renovate the building as a community arts center. The Arts Center closed its doors for a major renovation project in 1990 and reopened as a museum in 1992.  In 2004 William King Regional Arts Center was accredited by the American Association of Museums.

Over the next year the goal is to transform William King Museum from an institution into a platform where a community of the curious can come to engage in dynamic conversations about art, history and heritage.  Later this year the museum will break ground on its first new building of Phase 1 of our multiphase Cultural Campus Expansion Project: The Artisans Courtyard.  The Courtyard will house eight purpose built artist studios with space for glass blowing, painting, ceramics, fabric arts, large-scale sculpture and more.  The facility is designed to be an interactive space where visitors to the museum can interact with artists and learn about the physical and intellectual facets of the artistic process without the traditional barriers between artist, art and public.  Join the museum in pursuing their goal to become a museum without barriers. 

For more information, contact William King Museum at 276-628-5005 or visit us on the web at www.williamkingmuseum.org

William King Museum is located at 415 Academy Drive in Abingdon. Free parking is available and the facility is fully accessible. The Museum is a Partner of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts and the Virginia Commission for the Arts, as well as an accredited member of the American Association of Museums, the Virginia Association of Museums and the Southeastern Museums Conference.