Everything Nac

The Stephen F. Austin State University College of Fine Arts and School of Music will present the Mix’n Matches jazz trio in a performance at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 10, in Cole Concert Hall on the SFA campus.

Mix’n Matches is the professional local group comprised of SFA School of Music faculty members Larry Greer on guitar, Brad Meyer on drums and J.D. Salas on bass. Special guest for this performance will be Eric Chin on keyboards.

The first half of “Mix’n Matches Live” will feature the core group performing some of the all-time jazz standards and some original compositions, according to Salas. The second half of the concert will include Gary Wurtz, trumpet, Deb Scott, trombone, and Bolingbrook, Ill., graduate student Kyle Glavanovits, saxophone. This portion of the program will include selections arranged by the late Darrell Holt, a noted jazz musician and former associate professor at SFA.

Mix’n Matches program selections will include the jazz standards “Autumn Leaves” by Joseph Kosma, “On Green Dolphin Street” by Ned Washington and “Just Friends” by John Klenner, along with Greer’s original “Recuerdos De Mexico.” The second half will include selections like “This Masquerade” and “On a Clear Day,” among other favorites out of Holt’s dance band book for three horns and rhythm section.

This is the first faculty jazz recital on the SFA campus, according to Salas. Additional information on the group can be found at http://mixnmatchesjazz.com.

Tickets are $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and $3 for students and youth. For tickets or more information, call the SFA Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407 or visit www.finearts.sfasu.edu.

The Mix’n Matches jazz trio, featuring, from left, Brad Meyer, Larry Greer and J.D. Salas, along with special guests will perform at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 10, in Cole Concert Hall on the SFA campus.

Grammy Award-winning Texas-born singer, composer and actor Lyle Lovett will be the featured guest at the 2014 installment of the Archie McDonald Speaker Series at Stephen F. Austin State University. Lovett has broadened the definition of Americana music in a career that spans 14 albums and more than four million records sold. Coupled with his gift for storytelling, the Texas-based musician fuses elements of country, swing, jazz, folk, gospel and blues in a manner that defies convention and breaks down barriers.

SFA’s speaker series was created in spring 2010 by the College of Liberal and Applied Arts to honor and preserve the legacy of Dr. Archie McDonald as a distinguished scholar, educator and community commentator. In the tradition of McDonald’s writings and oral presentations, a prominent national figure is hosted annually at SFA to discuss contemporary cultural issues. The speaker series is sponsored by SFA’s Student Government Association, and the event is free and open to the public. Passes may be obtained at the Involvement Center on the first floor of the Baker Pattillo Student Center or at the Nacogdoches Convention and Visitors Bureau downtown. For more information, call (936) 468-5406.

7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 10

Grand Ballroom, Baker Pattillo Student Center, SFA campus

Jerome Witkin, considered one of America’s most important living figurative artists, will serve as juror for the 20th anniversary of Texas National, Stephen F. Austin State University’s annual art competition and exhibition.

“We are very honored to have a juror of such stature as Mr. Witkin for the 20th anniversary of the Texas National,” said John Handley, director of SFA galleries. “The art critic Kenneth Baker has said of Mr. Witkin that his only peer was the British painter Lucian Freud. That’s quite a compliment.”

A highlight of the April 12 opening of Texas National 2014 will be the simultaneous opening of an exhibition of Witkin’s own works, both in The Cole Art Center @ The Old Opera House, 329 E. Main St., downtown Nacogdoches.

“Witkin’s exhibition demonstrates why he is so critically acclaimed,” Handley said. “His art is not for the faint of heart. Although he renders in pencil and paint as skillfully and theatrically as Caravaggio or Rembrandt – he is a modern master of drama and light – his work often carries the blunt force of a wartime journalist or a tabloid reporter.”

Two special events are planned prior to the exhibitions’ openings. On Friday evening, April 11, a 20th anniversary fundraiser party is planned, according to Handley.

“Attendees will be treated to a fantastic spread of food and drink, as well as performances by master magician Rodney Roberts and singer/songwriters Brad Maule and New York City’s Monica Passin,” he said. Tickets for this event are $85 single or $150 per couple and can be purchased through SFA’s Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407. Proceeds from this event go toward continuing to bring important contemporary art and artists to East Texas. The party is at 6:30 p.m. at Karon Gillespie’s El Atascossa Ranch.

On Saturday, April 12, Los Angeles art dealer Jack Rutberg will interview Witkin at 5 p.m. in Morning Glory Yoga Studio, 207. E. Main St., which is a block west of the art center. The Witkin exhibition has been provided courtesy of Jack Rutberg Fine Arts. Texas National 2014 and “Jerome Witkin: Paintings and Drawings” will open with a reception at 6 p.m. in the art center. Texas National Winners will be announced at this reception.

The exhibition and competition

Texas National is a joint presentation of the SFA College of Fine Arts and School of Art and is sponsored in part by the SFA Friends of the Visual Arts and Nacogdoches Junior Forum.

SFA’s annual juried competition and exhibition attracts entrants from across the nation, providing artists an opportunity to have their work juried by highly acclaimed artists and critics.

John Handley, SFA galleries director, confers with Eloise Adams, former galleries director, regarding the entries to be included in 2014 Texas National, which opens Saturday, April 12, in Cole Art Center in downtown Nacogdoches. Texas National celebrates its 20th year, and this year’s event coincides with an opening of an exhibition of paintings and drawings by Jerome Witkin, this year’s juror.

Eloise Adams, a former SFA gallery director and creator of Texas National, is especially proud to see the event reach this 20-year milestone. She remains an active supporter of the event and the School of Art.

“It has given me great joy to work with SFA faculty and community volunteers in the production of this event,” she said, adding that Texas National “gives us national recognition and the prestige of presenting upscale, well-marketed competitions with famous jurors. Our students get hands-on experience helping produce the event, and we all have the opportunity to meet the juror.”

An exhibition of Witkin’s work was presented in Griffith Gallery in 1990, “and we welcome him again,” Adams said.

“He is a major artist, and we appreciate his gift of time,” she said. “It will be exciting to have him in town for the second time.”

This year’s juror

Witkin is revered for his “penetrating psychological portraits and haunting political narratives,” according to information at openfiguredrawing.com. Both an artist and teacher, his first job was at Maryland Institute’s College of Art in Baltimore in 1961. Since then has held teaching positions and been appointed as visiting artist at many universities, among them Manchester College of Art, Manchester, England; American College of Switzerland, Leysin; National Academy of Design, New York, N.Y., and Syracuse University School of Art, N.Y., where he has taught since 1971.

His work can be found in many public collections, including the American Academy of Arts and Letters, New York, N.Y.; Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown, Ohio; Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, Ohio; Delaware Art Museum, Wilmington, Del.; Everson Museum of Art, Syracuse, N.Y.; Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence, Italy; and many other museums in New York, Ohio, Connecticut and Pennsylvania.

He is the recipient of numerous awards and honors, among them the Cooper Union President’s Citation Award; Cooper Union Lifetime Achievement Award; Fund Purchase Prize, American Academy of Arts and Letters; Paul Puzinas Award, National Academy of Design; Ford Foundation Grant; Julius Hallgarten Prize, 148th Annual Exhibition, National Academy of Design; and a Guggenheim Fellowship.

Texas National 2014 features the work of 47 artists from 20 states. More than 1,000 entries were received for this year’s competition.

The Ledbetter Gallery in Cole Art Center will house the Texas National exhibition, while the upstairs Reavley Gallery will showcase Witkin’s exhibition. Both exhibitions will be displayed through June 14.

All SFA art exhibitions, receptions and gallery talks are free and open to the public. Cole Art Center hours are from 12:30 to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday. For more information, call (936) 468-1131.

Tickets are still available for the award-winning SFJAZZ Collective’s performance at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 3, in W.M. Turner Auditorium on the campus of Stephen F. Austin State University.

The SFJAZZ Collective is an all-star jazz ensemble comprised of eight of the finest performer/composers at work in jazz today. The 10th Anniversary Tour highlights the group’s greatest arrangements and original compositions. This “best of” performance includes material from each of the Collective’s tribute composers, such as Ornette Coleman, John Coltrane, Herbie Hancock, Thelonious Monk, Stevie Wonder and Chick Corea. SFJAZZ Collective is represented by Opus 3 Artists.

Prior to the concert, there will be a 7 p.m. informative talk about the artists and their music to be presented by Dr. Gary Wurtz, professor of trumpet and jazz studies at SFA, in Griffith Gallery located across the hall from Turner Auditorium. The audience is invited back to the gallery for a post-performance reception to recognize the event corporate sponsor, BancorpSouth.

Tickets range from $20 to $40, with discounts available for seniors, SFA faculty/staff, students and youth. For tickets or more information, visit www.finearts.sfasu.edu or call (936) 468-6407 or (888) 240-ARTS.