Syracuse University will kick off the speaker series ‘Memory and Commemoration, as Fact or Fiction’ Thursday at 6 p.m. in Watson Theater with internationally renowned artist Shimon Attie.

Attie is known for his artwork that ranges from new media to site-specific installations to photography. His work has been showcased worldwide at museums such as the Museum of Modern Art and the Corcoran Gallery of Art. As an artist, he has been the recipient of many prestigious art fellowships and awards such as the Rome Prize, according to a Jan. 17 SU News release.

Additionally, Attie was chosen to be the College of Visual and Performing Art’s Sandra Kahn Alpert Visiting Artist and is the spring 2012 semester’s Jeanette K. Watson Distinguished Visiting Collaborator, according to the release.

Both positions at SU usually require leading a small seminar for graduate students, but Attie offered to create a presentation for the entire university and public instead.

Attie organized this series to focus on memory, specifically public commemoration in contemporary art, he said.

‘The topic of the series really comes out of Shimon’s amazing artistic practice, but it is also interesting that the topic of memory has such a big place at SU,’ said Kendall Phillips, associate dean of research and graduate studies in VPA.

For the past decade, VPA has been involved with the Public Memory Project, which has sponsored conferences and hosted classes, among other projects.

‘It seemed like a good fit,’ Attie said.

He said he plans to highlight some of his large-scale, site-specific art installations that deal with memory and commemoration at the seminar.

Attie said he would also like to address some of the key issues, questions and challenges many professions working in the art field face.

‘I really think there is something here for every part of the university,’ Phillips said.

This semester’s speaker series will also include James Young, director of the Institute for Holocaust, Genocide and Memory Studies at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst; Anna Schuleit, recipient of a MacArthur Foundation Fellowship; and Amy Waldman, a former New York Times reporter and author, according to the release.

‘His presence on campus has been a huge success,’ Phillips said of Attie. ‘He has really been a great benefit to the students across VPA.’

Phillips described Attie as not only a great artist, but also a true intellectual who engages audiences with clear insights on a spectrum of issues, specifically memory and visual culture.

‘I hope that my work reaches people and that those attending have a resonant experience,’ Attie said. ‘I hope those attending will in some way feel inspired.’

jbundy@syr.edu

Published on January 25, 2012 at 12:00 pm

Contact Jen: jbundy@syr.edu