China: Insights Lecture Series Begins Thursday!
Cedar Rapids, Iowa—The Cedar Rapids Museum of Art (CRMA) will present a series of lectures in conjunction with our current exhibition
China: Insights. The first of these lectures will take place this Thursday, October 14 at 7:00 p.m. in the Auditorium at the CRMA.
Judy Polumbaum, Professor, School of Journalism and Mass Communications, University of Iowa
“Light and Shadow: Documenting a Changing China”
Thursday, October 14, 2010 at 7:00 p.m.
This presentation will review the evolution of Chinese photojournalism since the mid-20th century, considering the medium’s myriad roles as an instrument of state propaganda, chronicle of historical memory, vehicle of personal expression and testimony to social change.
Polumbaum's research has focused on journalism and media in mainland China. She did her undergraduate work in East Asian studies at McGill University in Montreal, Canada and has a master’s from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and a doctorate in communication from Stanford University. She’s worked as a newspaper reporter in Vermont, California and Oregon, and also has worked for English-language news organizations in China. She joined the Iowa faculty in 1989. She is an affiliated faculty member in a number of international and interdisciplinary programs and centers at Iowa, including the Center for Asian and Pacific Studies and International Studies. Her most recent publications include the book China Ink: The Changing Face of Chinese Journalism (Rowman & Littlefield, 2008), based on interviews with 20 young Chinese journalists.
Short bio: Judy Polumbaum, a professor of journalism and mass communication at The University of Iowa, has studied mass media in China for the past three decades. She has a special interest in photojournalism, having grown up in a wet darkroom; her father, Ted Polumbaum, photographed for LIFE and many other publications, and his archives are in the custody of the Newseum in Washington DC.
Edy Parsons, Associate Professor, History, Mount Mercy University
“Embracing a New Century: Life in Today’s China”
Thursday, October 21, 2010 at 7:00 p.m.
Since the reforms began in the late 1970s, China’s economy has been improving in many ways. China has become a major economic power in the world and her economic growth has changed people’s lives in China dramatically. This presentation gives an overview of how China developed since the late 1970s, how the changes reshaped life in China, and what life is like in today’s China.
Parsons holds a Ph.D., from Iowa State University. She specializes in American and East Asian History. Her expertise in both western and non-western fields allows her to introduce valuable new perspectives on the world to her students. Parsons’ research areas cover both American and East Asian History. Her current research project is about U.S.-China policies and relations. Her courses include Modern East Asia, Recent China in Global Economy, Recent American History, the American Nation, and the U.S. and the Vietnam War, among others. She also has an interest in Chinese & U.S. Diplomatic history.
China: Insights. New Photography from the People’s Republic is on display from October 9 through January 2, 2011. This exhibition brings together the work of seven photographers from mainland China, each of whom have undertaken the creation of a long-term documentation of one or more aspects of Chinese culture that he or she feels reflects something new about China now—whether that is something emerging or something vanishing. Produced by the Foundation for the Exhibition of Photography, Minneapolis Minnesota, with production assistance from the Flying Dragon Cultural Enterprises, Ltd, Hong Kong. Curated by A. D. Coleman and Gu Zheng.
China: Insights is sponsored by Rockwell Collins, Bradley & Riley PC, and the Momentum Fund of The Greater Cedar Rapids Community Foundation. The lecture series is supported in part by a grant from Humanities Iowa and the National Endowment for the Humanities.
***************************
The mission of the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art is to excite, engage and educate our community and visitors through our collection, exhibitions and programs. The Museum’s collection contains more than 5,800 works of art by hundreds of artists, including the world's largest collection of works by Grant Wood. For more information on exhibitions or related programs call the Museum at 319.366.7503 or visit the Museum's web site at www.crma.org. The CRMA is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, with extended hours and free general admission from 4 to 8 p.m. on Thursday. The CRMA is also open noon to 4 p.m. on Sunday, but closed Monday and major holidays.