Highlights

Highlights
For Dec. 21
Art
The holiday season is a good time to enjoy the museums and galleries in NWA. Pull the kids away from the TV or Gameboy and introduce them to something different or go out alone and treat yourself. Most of the museums and galleries have free admission.

At the Walton Arts Center is an impressive collection of photographs by southern writer Eudora Welty. More than 50 of photographs make up the traveling exhibit, “Passionate Observer.” The vintage prints are provocative portraits of everyday people that overtly relay the southern sensibilities, fears and hopes of southern folk during the Great Depression. Also on display at the WAC is “From Slavery to Freedom: The Issue of Race in Film,” a collection of vintage African American film posters. Each of the poster panels includes a synopsis about the film, stars or director. Both exhibits will be on display until Feb. 17.

The Shiloh Museum in Springdale will open a new vintage photo exhibit on Dec. 22 entitled “Serving Our Clients: Rural Relief in 1930s Newton County that features 20 photographs taken from an album of photographs shot by Ernest and Opal Nicholson. The Nicholsons were the county directors of a WPA rural relief program in Newton County—the remote and rural county best known for the beauty of the bluffs and waters of the Buffalo National River.

“Typewritten notes accompany many of the photos, which offer poignant—and sometimes pointed—comments about the devastating effects of financial depression and drought on hardscrabble lives,” said Marie Demeroukas, museum photo archivist.
The exhibit will be on display through Apr. 26.

The Shiloh Museum is one of only a few museums that offers a great space for kids to romp a bit after they’ve been on their best behavior inside the museum. Several historic buildings have been moved to the museum grounds—an old church and store—and are good for window peeking.

And, if Mother Nature decides to send us snow and ice for the holidays—after these 70-degree days—and you want to stay inside, think about tackling your own photo album project. But, before you do, go to the Shiloh Museum’s website, www.springdaleark.org/shiloh, to the photo collection button, to find some excellent tips on how to archive your photographs for future generations. The museum is well-known for its Mary Dudley Parsons photo archive which contains more than 500,000 images of life in Northwest Arkansas. Of course, the museum is unable to display such a large collection, but it is available for researchers and different photographs are featured in displays at the museum on a rotating basis.

Music
Most of the clubs will still be cooking during the holiday season, and as always, there’s a wide range of music happening in NWA. Tonight The Gemini and Jamie Anawaty will bring something a little different to the Green Door in the Evelyn Hills Shopping Center on North College Avenue. If you’re assuming that The Gemini is a group—wrong. The Gemini is the assumed name of a Michigan-based musician who is in town to record an album at Guitar Keys Studio, owned by Anawaty, who’s also a vocalist and guitarist for new band, Lizird Munky. The Gemini began his musical career eight years ago in a rock band, dropped the rock for a solo gig and taking a moody, atmospheric route—his second album “Day at the Beach” is a tribute to the sea and discovery of one’s inner self—but he’s now come back to the rock realm. Should be an interesting show and the Green Door is a great room.

Also in town this week for a Wednesday night show at the Green Door will be former Fayettevillian and award winning fiddler Marty Faiers and hubby Greg Faiers who perform a spicy blend of folk, Texas swing and Celtic as Dead Irish Blues. Marty has performed with the likes of John Hartford, Del McCoury and Vassar Clements. Greg is an adept vocalist and guitarist and also stretches out on bouzouki, octave mandolin, banjo and kazoo and claims to be a “certified kazoomeister. Get out for a good time. This is a high energy and fun duo.