During this week in 1865 the Sutherlin House which is now the Danville Museum of Fine Arts and History become known as the temporary residence, April 3 - 10, 1865, of Confederate President Jefferson Davis. In this house, Davis authored his last official proclamation as President of the Confederacy. The government remained in Danville until receiving the news of Lee's surrender at Appomattox on April 10. Largely because of events documented in this house during the Confederacy's final week, Danville has become known as the "Last Capital, facilitating the last Confederate Government proclamation of surrender."
Jefferson Davis and his cabinet (Print)
Repository
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA
They met at a private residence in Appomattox Court House, Virginia. General Grant was reported to have begun the conversation by saying, “I met you once before, General Lee, while we were serving in Mexico… I have always remembered your appearance, and I think I should have recognized you anywhere.”
To which Lee is said to have replied, “Yes. I know I met you on that occasion, and I have often thought of it and tried to recollect how you looked, but I have never been able to recall a single feature.”
They talked over terms for an end to the war. Lee asked Grant to commit the terms to paper, which Grant hand-wrote on the spot. Lee accepted them on the spot. They shook hands. Before Lee rode off to inform his men, the two generals raised their hats to each other in salute. The site is now a National Historic Park.
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The VMFA Brings Art to You: THE DIRTY SOUTH |
Opening May 22, 2021
The Dirty South:
Contemporary Art, Material Culture, and the Sonic Impulse
Curated by VMFA’s Valerie Cassel Oliver, this groundbreaking exhibition reveals aesthetic traditions of the African American South and their influences on art, music, and other forms of cultural expression over the last 100 years. Contemporary art and art, created by those not academically trained, converge with music in a relevant and culturally rich study that includes paintings, sculpture, assemblage, and collage, as well as the personal possessions of music icons such as Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, and others. The Dirty South makes visible the roots of Southern hip-hop culture, and reveals how the aesthetic traditions of the African American South have shaped visual art and music. The exhibition looks into the frameworks of landscape, religion, and the black body as deep meditative repositories of thought and expression. Get your exhibition tickets now! Also register for the Curator’s Opening Talk, a free virtual event on May 20.
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New Exhibition opens for the 500 Craghead Block Gallery in the River District April 18th
Mark your calendars for Sunday April 18th for a reception from 2-5pm in the Craghead Gallery!
Veronica Jackson’s work is autobiographical, stems from her position as a black woman marking space, and responds to the travails of her ancestors. She has a multidisciplinary visual-art practice based on an interpretive exhibit design, and architecture career spanning more than three decades. Jackson tells stories using quotidian objects such as felt-lined bulletin boards, clothing, hair, handmade paper, timecards, and text. Her work addresses several internal queries arising from her plight as a black woman in America: What does it mean to be invisible? How does the designation of invisibility affect her identity and sense of self?
Jackson’s artwork is also grounded in the belief that studying visual culture elicits transformation. As an emerging cultural producer with a socially conscious practice, her goal is to engage audiences who may benefit from the ways visual art incites the imagination to see the world differently Please visit her website at: https://jacksondesigngroup.com/veronica-jackson
Exhibition Site: 536 Craghead Gallery, River District, Danville, VA 24541 For Information about exhibition: Contact: info@danvillemuseum.org Phone: 434.793.5644
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WANDERLOVE: A Stitch in Time update
Suzanne Wilkins has been very busy knitting and says: “I finally taught myself how to crochet just to get involved in this fun and beautiful project! Not only have I made a basket full of pieces for the event (more in the making), I’m finishing up my second baby blanket for my sweet neighbors who are having twins any day. You can get involved too! “
Don't miss being a part of this special project! If you haven't registered your organization, group, church, or just as an individual who wants to participate. Check out our “How to Video’s” on the DMFAH WANDERLOVE: A Stitch in Time Information Page: https://www.danvillemuseum.org/community-outreach-2020-2021
You might want to be a donor of yarn, or a gatherer of knitted or crocheted items from your own closet or thrift stores, etc.!
You can help cut t-shirts into 1 continuous strand to be knitted or crocheted! We will need men and women to help at time of installation! So many ways to be involved! Register Today for WANDERLOVE: A Stitch in Time!!!! Or join us for a Riverwalk on Sunday, April 11 at 4pm to find out more. We will be meeting up at the JTI Fountain in the River District just outside of Me’s Restaurant.
We are collectively creating a spectacular Art Installation for the Danville River District and the Riverwalk!
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Upcoming Events: Spring Book Talks |
Zoom book talk next Tuesday, April 13 at 6:30 on Caste by Isabel Wilkerson.
Wilkerson says the term “racism” is insufficient and argues that the language of caste is more appropriate for understanding American society. She compares our system of racial hierarchy to the caste systems of India and Nazi Germany.
To register, email Friends of the Library fotldanvilleva@gmail.com
This will enable you to receive the link for both Katie Whitehead's Talk on Caste on the 13th and Rachel Timm's Talk on Yarn Bombing on the 20th. The Museum will briefly be speaking on the 20th about WANDERLOVE and inviring people to participate in this community created Art Installation.
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West Piedmont Planning District Commission |
WPPDC Pandemic Recovery and Resiliency Plan
The Danville Museum of Fine Arts and History will be closely looking at guidance from this Planning Process as we maintain our equilibrium through the Pandemic.
The WPPDC Pandemic Recovery and Resiliency Planning process began in December of 2020 and will run through August 2021. As part of the project launch, WPPDC is establishing a website that will provide information on planning process updates, project benchmarks, accomplishments, and news relevant to key topics being discussed.
Communities & Organizations Involved: West Piedmont Planning District Commission/ Franklin County/ Henry County/ Patrick County/ Pittsylvania County/ City of Danville/ Southern Virginia Regional Alliance/ Institute for Advanced Learning and Research/ Danville Pittsylvania County Chamber of Commerce/ City of Martinsville/ Town of Rocky Mount/ Southern Virginia Regional Alliance/ Harvest Foundation/ Danville Regional Foundation/ Patrick Henry Community College/ Martinsville-Henry County Chamber of Commerce/ Longwood SBDC/Martinsville-Henry County Economic Development
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The DMFAH partners with First Presbyterian Day School for an Easter Egg Hunt on the Lawn |
On Tuesday, March 30th at 11pm, before Good Friday, the Danville Museum opened up the Museum grounds to a large Easter egg
hunt this year. For this Easter Egg hunt we partnered with the First Presbyterian Day School and their Director Erin Parris. Multiple families and their children had the opportunity to socialize at a distance outside, and give the little tikes more running space, while Easter eggs where found and decorated to fill many colorful Easter baskets.
We anticipate this will become an annual tradition to usher in spring every year!!!
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Red Geraniums at The DMFAH |
" The Garden Club of Danville" – provides red Geraniums to the museum on April 13 and we would like to thank the Garden Club of Danville for this long standing gift which came about after a landscaping project Massey Award in the 1950's when the Museum was a Library.
It is also part of a larger philanthropic engagement of distributing plants on recommendation of garden committees across multiple Danville sites such as the Science Center between the main building and the train station and the Danville Museum and the Grove Street Cemetery, Opera Alley and others. The Gabriella Garden Club has a sign on the exit ramp from Central Boulevard North after you cross the river and go up the hill towards the mall. The second or third exit has landscaping by Gabriella that is maintained by the city. The Garden Club of Danville maintains the Perkinson Rose garden at the Museum.
The geraniums reassure us that summer is coming. We thank the Garden Club of Danville.
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Mark Your Calendars: DMFAH Programs |
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We invite all to join in these great FREE Community programs |
· Reading on the Lawn by Smokestack Theater Company (Contact James Anderson about first pop-up reading in April before the program begins in May)
· Yoga on the DMFAH Lawn by Firefly Yoga (Saturday April 10 and 17 from 12-12:45pm)
· New Exhibition Opening on Craghead Street Gallery in River District (April 18 2-5pm)
· WANDERLOVE Workshops (Wednesday and Friday Mornings from 10am -12 noon and last two Thursdays of the month in the evening from 6:30 – 9pm)
· WANDERLOVE Riverwalk (April 11, 4pm – Meet at River District’s JTI Fountain)
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This newsletter has been curated and edited by Elsabe Dixon. Have an idea or a link? We’d love to hear from you at elsabe@danvillemuseum.org. Thanks for reading, and have a good weekend! |
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