Modernizing Melodrama Exhibition Opening
Modernizing Melodrama, an exhibition at the Carleton College Art Gallery, opens on Friday, January 9, with a talk on "Our Melodramatic Fix" by Professor Linda Williams, University of California-Berkeley, at 7:30 p.m. in Boliou Hall. Professor Williams is author of Playing the Race Card: Melodramas of Black and White from Uncle Tom's Cabin to O.J. Simpson (Princeton, 2001), among other notable works. There will be an opening reception in the Carleton Art Gallery, 8:30-10:00, following Professor Williams' talk. Everyone is welcome!
Modernizing Melodrama explores the history and persistence of melodrama as a popular mode of visual storytelling in the American tradition, emphasizing pathos, sensational action, and stereotypical characterizations of virtue and villainy. The exhibition introduces representative ideas and powerful stories through film clips, stage posters and lobby cards, mass media, documentary and artistic photoraphs, and experimental works by contemporary artists. The exhibition is co-curated by Carol Donelan, Associate Professor of Cinema & Media Studies, and Laurel Bradley, Director of Exhibitions at Carleton, with contributions by students enrolled in the fall term course, The Melodramatic Imagination. The exhibition will remain open to the public until March 11, 2009.
