APRIL 2022 EVENTS AND EXHIBITS AT SMU鈥橲 MEADOWS SCHOOL OF THE ARTS AND MEADOWS MUSEUM
Find out what's happening in April at Meadows!
Luis Martín Lecture Series in the Humanities: “Feasting and Fasting in Early Modern Spain”
Jodi Campbell, Associate Professor, Department of History, Texas Christian University
Four Fridays: April 1, 8, 22 & 29, 2022
11 a.m.
Bob and Jean Smith Auditorium – Meadows Museum, 5900 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
Event will also be livestreamed.
$60; free for museum members and SMU students, faculty and staff
Tripe and sweetbread, ginger and cinnamon, figs and pomegranates. Just as early modern Spaniards selected their clothing to project a particular image, so too did they dress their tables with carefully chosen ingredients and elaborate preparations. In the 16th and 17th centuries, food was far more than just sustenance: Spaniards used it to cure disease, solidify connections in the community, perform religious identity and enhance their social status. Different foods were suited to particular people and situations: radishes and cheese were good foods for students, and if one suffered from melancholy, cooked vegetables were a good cure. What one ate was also a moral choice, as a preference for fish was a sign of virtue, while too much indulgence in flesh and wine—as Murillo’s Prodigal Son seems to embrace at his feast—was a sign of wastefulness and gluttony. In exploring the kinds of foods early modern Spaniards ate, this series of lectures will illuminate how food was used for more than nourishment: to compete for social status, as a crucial expression of religious identity, and as a means to solidify connections between individuals and groups. For in-person tickets visit . For virtual tickets visit . For more information, call 214.768.8587 or email meadowsmuseuminfo@smu.edu.
Meadows Wind Ensemble
Friday, April 1, 2022
7:30 p.m.
Caruth Auditorium – Owen Arts Center, 6101 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
The performance will be both in-person and livestreamed; to register to watch online, visit .
$14 for adults, $11 for seniors, $8 for students, faculty & staff
The Meadows Wind Ensemble has performed throughout the United States and Europe and has won the acclaim of leading contemporary composers for thoughtful and brilliant performances of their works. Led by conductor Jack Delaney and composed of the finest winds, brass and percussion from the Meadows School, the Wind Ensemble performs a broad and diverse range of literature. The Ensemble has recorded five CDs on the Gasparo label, including “The Drums of Summer,” which won First Prize in an international recording competition in Austria. To buy tickets, visit . For more information, call 214.768.2787.
Meadows Museum Family Day: Let’s Sculpt!
Sunday, April 3, 2022
1-4 p.m.
Meadows Museum, 5900 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
FREE
Chisel and carve, mold and model, cut and glue. Bring your family to the Meadows Museum to explore the many ways of creating sculpture. Multisensory activities will be happening throughout the museum and healthy snacks will be close at hand. Strollers welcome. Changing tables will be available and Spanish-speaking volunteers will be present. For more information, call 214.768.8587.
Meadows Percussion Ensemble Spring Concert
Wednesday, April 6, 2022
7:30 p.m.
Caruth Auditorium – Owen Arts Center, 6101 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
The performance will be both in-person and livestreamed; to register to watch online, visit .
FREE
The Meadows Percussion Ensemble, under the direction of Jon D. Lee, presents its spring concert with special guest Doug Howard, recently retired professor of percussion at SMU and longtime Dallas Symphony principal percussionist. Howard will be featured as soloist on The Titanic Days by Christopher Deane, a former UNT percussion professor who recently passed away; Deane composed the piece in honor of Howard’s retirement from Meadows in 2019. Also on the program will be Xochiquetzal by Dallas composer Robert X. Rodriguez, featuring Meadows alumna Agata Miklavc (M.M., P.D.) as violin soloist. The ensemble will also present Metallic Origami, a new work by Meadows composition faculty member Robert Frank for percussionists and narrator. Don’t miss what promises to be an outstanding and entertaining evening of percussion! For more information, call 214.768.2787.
BAM...and Then It Hit Me: An Evening with Karen Brooks Hopkins
Thursday, April 7, 2022
6:15 p.m.
Bob and Jean Smith Auditorium – Meadows Museum, 5900 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
FREE, but registration for the reception preceding this event is required via .
President Emerita of the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) Karen Brooks Hopkins will talk about her new book, BAM…and Then It Hit Me, an inspiring memoir of her 36 years at the iconic cultural institution, America's oldest performing arts center. She joins Sam Holland, Meadows School of the Arts dean to talk about lessons learned in leadership, innovation, urban revitalization (including the transformation of Brooklyn from Manhattan Outpost to the coolest neighborhood on the planet), and the role cultural fundraising played in the colorful evolution of this world-class cultural juggernaut in the performing arts. A reception with the author precedes the presentation and the book will be available for purchase. Register .
Musical Theater Workshop Performance
Chicago by John Kander and Fred Ebb
April 9 – 10
7:30 p.m.,Sat.; 2:30 p.m., Sun.
Taubman Atrium
FREE but reservations are required by emailing ctigney@smu.edu
Performance by students in the Music Theater Workshop course. Directed by Sara Romersberger, with choreography by Mark Burrell, music direction by Kevin Gunter, and Virginia Dupuy, producer. Set in Chicago in the jazz age, the musical is based on a 1926 play of the same title by reporter Maurine Dallas Watkins, about actual criminals and the crimes on which she reported. Free with reservations by emailing Crystal Tigney.
Meadows World Music Ensemble
Sunday, April 10, 2022
7:30 p.m.
Caruth Auditorium – Owen Arts Center, 6101 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
The performance will be both in-person and livestreamed; to register to watch online, visit .
FREE
The Meadows World Music Ensemble, under the direction of Jamal Mohamed, presents its spring concert. Exploring music from cultures and continents around the globe, the group combines traditional instruments from Africa, Asia and Latin America with standard western orchestral instruments to create unique interpretations of traditional folk melodies as well as original compositions. Hot drumming and imaginative improvisation are hallmarks of the group’s concerts. For more information, call 214.768.2787.
Meadows Museum Virtual Lecture: FURTHER AFIELD | Feminist Art History: Medieval to Museums
Jitske Jasperse, Professor, Humboldt University of Berlin
Tuesday, April 12, 2022
12 p.m.
Livestreaming on Zoom; advance registration required.
$5; free for museum members and SMU students, faculty and staff
Further Afield virtual talks provide broader social, political, economic and historical context for works of art at the museum. This spring Further Afield focuses on women as creators and patrons in Spain from medieval to modern times. In 1962, the art historian H.W. Janson banned women from his famous handbook The History of Art, writing them out of a broadly distributed text that influenced the art historical canon. Today, thanks to the many art historians and artists who have focused on women artists, we have a rich body of scholarship in feminist art history. This talk will focus on women artists—including Francisca Efigenia Meléndez y Durazzo, whose work is in the Meadows collection—and present key ideas within feminist art history. It will also address stunning medieval textiles at San Isidoro de Léon, Spain, demonstrating the multiple ways that medieval women were, in fact, makers of art. To register, visit . For more information, call 214.768.8587 or email meadowsmuseuminfo@smu.edu.
Distinguished Music Series: Easter Week Concert: Haydn’s Seven Last Words of Christ
Wednesday, April 13, 2022
7:30 p.m.
Caruth Auditorium – Owen Arts Center, 6101 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
The performance will be both in-person and livestreamed; to register to watch online, visit .
$14 for adults, $11 for seniors, $8 for students, faculty & staff
Comprising an introduction, seven slow movements corresponding to the seven words, and a musical depiction of the earthquake following the crucifixion, Haydn’s Seven Last Words of Christ for string quartet serves as a powerfully expressive meditation on the gravity of tragedy, as well as on the possibilities of hope and redemption. Honored guests Colonel Allen West and violinist Ayke Agus join Director of Chamber Music Aaron Boyd in this performance of Haydn’s profound masterwork, with readings from scripture before each of the slow movements. To buy tickets, visit . For more information, call 214.768.2787.
Meadows Jazz Orchestra Spring Brown Bag Concert
Thursday, April 14, 2022
12:30 p.m.
Taubman Atrium – Owen Arts Center, 6101 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
FREE
Relax and enjoy a lively midday concert by the Meadows Jazz Orchestra. The MJO explores small ensemble jazz ranging from traditional to contemporary compositions and features SMU students from an array of degree programs and majors across the Meadows School of the Arts and the SMU campus. For more information, call 214.768.2787.
Meadows Jazz Orchestra Spring Concert
Tuesday, April 19, 2022
7:30 p.m.
Caruth Auditorium – Owen Arts Center, 6101 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
The performance will be both in-person and livestreamed; to register to watch online, visit .
FREE
Join the Meadows Jazz Orchestra for an evening of jazz to close the spring semester. The MJO explores the range of ensemble jazz from traditional to contemporary compositions and features students from an array of degree programs and majors across the Meadows School of the Arts and the SMU campus. For more information, call 214.768.2787.
The Rep: Two Contemporary American Plays Performed in Rotation
April 20-24, 2022
8 p.m. Wed.-Sat.; 2 p.m. Sat. & Sun.
Margo Jones Theatre – Owen Arts Center, 6101 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
$14 for adults, $11 for seniors, $8 for students, faculty & staff
The Rep features two plays presented in rotating performance over a five-day period. To buy tickets, visit . For more information, call 214.768.2787. The plays are as follows:
The Moors by Jen Silverman
Directed by Crislyn Fayson
Wednesday, April 20 at 8 p.m.; Friday, April 22 at 8 p.m.; and Saturday, April 23 at 2 p.m.
Two sisters and a dog live out their lives on the bleak English moors, dreaming of love and power. The arrival of a hapless governess and a moorhen set all three on a strange and dangerous path. The Moors is a dark comedy about love, desperation and visibility.
Sender by Ike Holter
Directed by Tyne Dickson
Thursday, April 21 at 8 p.m.; Saturday, April 23 at 8 p.m.; and Sunday, April 24 at 2 p.m.
This whip-smart comedy-drama explores hipster culture, chasing down the truth and asking the question of what it means to be an adult in a world that refuses to grow up.
Meadows Guitar Ensemble
Thursday, April 21, 2022
7:30 p.m.
Caruth Auditorium – Owen Arts Center, 6101 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
FREE
The Meadows Guitar Ensemble will present a concert of music ranging from the Renaissance to modern times. Featured will be works from Italy, Spain, Brazil and Mexico. For more information, call 214.768.2787.
Meadows Museum Gallery Talk: “From Riches to Rags: Fashion and Storytelling in Murillo’s Prodigal Son Series”
Rebecca Teresi, Art Historian
Friday, April 22, 2022
12:15 p.m.
Virginia Meadows Galleries – Meadows Museum, 5900 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
FREE with museum admission: $12 for adults; $10 for seniors; $4 for non-SMU students; FREE for members, children under 12 and SMU faculty, staff and students
Meadows Museum gallery talks feature art research and perspectives from local guest speakers. For tickets, visit . For more information, call 214.768.8587.
Meadows Symphony Orchestra: Concerto Competition Winners’ Concert
April 22 & 24, 2022
7:30 p.m. Fri.; 2:30 p.m. Sun.
Caruth Auditorium – Owen Arts Center, 6101 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
The Sunday performance will be both in-person and livestreamed; to register to watch online, visit .
$14 for adults, $11 for seniors, $8 for students, faculty & staff
The program features winners of the annual Meadows Concerto Competition, who are chosen to perform with the orchestra from a highly competitive field of talented Meadows undergraduate and graduate students. They will be led by two students in Meadows’ master’s degree program in orchestral conducting, Patricio Gutierrez and Nathan Howard. To buy tickets, visit . For more information, call 214.768.2787.
Division of Art B.F.A. Qualifying Exhibition
April 23 – May 7, 2022
Closing Reception: Saturday, May 7, 1-5 p.m.
1 – 5 p.m.
Pollock Gallery – Suite 101, Expressway Tower, 6116 N. Central Expressway, Dallas 75206
FREE
The 2022 B.F.A. Qualifying Exhibition is the culmination of four years of intensive work by B.F.A. candidates in the Division of Art and features works in a wide-ranging variety of styles and mediums. For more information, call 214.768.4439 or visit .
Hamon Arts Library Exhibit: In Search of Belonging: LGBT Student Organizing on the Hilltop, From the 1980’s toNnow
April 23rd - May 23rd
Hamon Arts Library, 6100 Hillcrest Ave. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
FREE
In Search of Belonging explores stories of LGBTQ+ organizing — struggles for equality and recognition — through archival documents researched in the SMU Archives and oral history. From the eight-year fight to charter the first Gay and Lesbian Student Support Organization (GLSSO), to the founding of SMU’s first ever gay fraternity, to the present-day work and testimonies of queer Mustangs, these past and present narratives elevate both the roots of the SMU LGBTQ+ community and the truth of what “Mustang Pride” looks and feels like today. For more information, call 214.768.3813.
Horn Studio Recital
Saturday, April 23, 2022
4 p.m.
Caruth Auditorium – Owen Arts Center, 6101 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
FREE
Students in the horn studio will present works of different sizes and scopes in ensemble form. For more information, call 214.768.2787.
Meadows Museum Movie Night – The Sandlot (PG, 1993)
Saturday, April 23, 2022
8-10 p.m.
Arden Forest (across the Boulevard from the Meadows Museum)
$10; $5 for museum members; children under 12 free with paid adult admission
Named “Best Outdoor Film Screening” by the Dallas Observer for 2021! Enjoy a night under the stars with the Meadows Museum. We’ll screen The Sandlot, a family favorite about a group of young baseball players during the summer of 1962. Pull up a blanket or lawn chair and bring a picnic to enjoy.
For tickets, visit . For more information, call 214.768.8587 or email meadowsmuseuminfo@smu.edu.
Digital Drawing from the Masters
Ian O’Brien, artist
Sunday, April 24, 2022
1:30-3 p.m.
Livestreaming on Zoom; advance registration required.
$5; free for museum members and SMU students, faculty and staff
Enjoy afternoons of informal drawing instruction remotely over Zoom as artist Ian M. O’Brien leads you through a work of art in the Meadows Museum’s collection. Each session will provide an opportunity to explore a variety of techniques and improve drawing skills. Designed for adults and students ages 13 and older, and open to all abilities and experience levels.
For tickets, visit . For more information, call 214.768.8587 or email meadowsmuseuminfo@smu.edu.
Meadows Choral Concert: Singing Forward
Sunday, April 24, 2022
7:30 p.m.
Caruth Auditorium – Owen Arts Center, 6101 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
The performance will be both in-person and livestreamed; to register to watch online, visit .
FREE
In our final performance of the 2021-2022 season, we explore what it means to both renew and reimagine our creativity as we continue to emerge from the challenges of the past two years. As part of that exploration, we are proud to present the world premiere of “Singing Forward,” a setting by composer William Averitt of a poem written especially for this project by his longtime collaborator, Robert Bode. In lieu of admission, please make a donation to Phoenix House (either in person at the concert or online at ). For more information, call 214.768.2787.
Meadows Chamber Music Honors Concert
Wednesday, April 27, 2022
7:30 p.m.
Caruth Auditorium – Owen Arts Center, 6101 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
FREE
This biannual concert features Meadows’ most distinguished, jury-selected chamber music ensembles in dynamic and passionate performance. For more information, call 214.768.2787.
Senior Dance Concert
April 29-May 1, 2022
8 p.m. Fri. & Sat.; 2 p.m. Sat. & Sun.
The Saturday and Sunday 2 p.m. performances will be both in-person and livestreamed; to register to watch online, visit .
Bob Hope Theatre – Owen Arts Center, 6101 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
$14 for adults, $11 for seniors, $8 for students, faculty & staff
The annual Senior Dance Concert features works choreographed and produced by seniors in the Division of Dance. Two different programs will be presented. Program 1 is 8 p.m. Friday and 2 p.m. Saturday; Program 2 is 8 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday. To buy tickets, visit . For more information, call 214.768.2787.
Lyric Free For All: Call Me Old-Fashioned
Friday, April 29, 2022
1 p.m.
Taubman Atrium – Owen Arts Center, 6101 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
FREE
We invite you to come along on a romantic, high-spirited and sparkling musical tour of Vienna, London and New York at the turn of the 20th century as we present beloved scenes from the Golden Age of operetta and musical theatre, featuring the works of Jacques Offenbach, Johann Strauss Jr., Gilbert & Sullivan, Sigmund Romberg, Victor Herbert, Franz Lehár and Jerome Kern! For more information, call 214.768.2787.
Meadows Wind Ensemble
Friday, April 29, 2022
7:30 p.m.
Caruth Auditorium – Owen Arts Center, 6101 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
The performance will be both in-person and livestreamed; to register to watch online, visit .
$14 for adults, $11 for seniors, $8 for students, faculty & staff
The Meadows Wind Ensemble has performed throughout the United States and Europe and has won the acclaim of leading contemporary composers for thoughtful and brilliant performances of their works. Led by conductor Jack Delaney and composed of the finest winds, brass and percussion from the Meadows School, the Wind Ensemble performs a broad and diverse range of literature. The Ensemble has recorded five CDs on the Gasparo label, including “The Drums of Summer,” which won First Prize in an international recording competition in Austria. To buy tickets, visit . For more information, call 214.768.2787.
Musical Theater Showcase
May 1, 2022
8 p.m. Sat. & Sun.
Caruth Auditorium – Owen Arts Center, 6101 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
FREE
Students in the Musical Theater Workshop class present songs and ensembles from favorite musicals. For more information, call 214.768.2787.
Virtual Theatre Event: New Visions, New Voices
May 2-3, 2022
7 p.m.
Both performances will be livestreamed only; to register to watch online, visit .
FREE
New Visions, New Voices features the original work of student playwrights in full-length plays presented as staged readings. With directors from the Dallas theatre scene and student actors, these plays showcase the voices, conflicts and concerns of millennial playwrights. For more information call 214.768.2787.
Meadows Museum Virtual Lecture: FURTHER AFIELD | In the Service of the Queen: Isabel of Castile as Patron and Collector
Jessica Weiss, Associate Professor of Art History, Metropolitan State University of Denver
Tuesday, May 10, 2022
12 p.m.
Livestreaming on Zoom; advance registration required.
$5; free for museum members and SMU students, faculty and staff
Further Afield virtual talks provide broader social, political, economic and historical context for works of art at the museum. This spring Further Afield focuses on women as creators and patrons in Spain from medieval to modern times. Isabel of Castile (1451–1504) was an incredibly active patron and collector. In addition to her sponsorship of architectural projects, the Spanish queen also accumulated a large collection of paintings, tapestries, metalwork, illuminated manuscripts and other luxury goods. Like many other rulers, Isabel manipulated her personal collection into sumptuous displays visible to a wide audience that included both local courtiers and international diplomats. Because the goal of such spectacles was self-promotion, the study of the spaces and objects associated with Isabel reveals her political agenda and persuasive strategies. To register, visit . For more information, call 214.768.8587 or email meadowsmuseuminfo@smu.edu.
In-person Drawing from the Masters
Ian O’Brien, artist
Sunday, May 15, 2022
1:30-3 p.m.
Meadows Museum, 5900 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
Enjoy afternoons of informal drawing instruction as artist Ian O’Brien leads you through the Meadows Museum’s galleries. Each session will provide an opportunity to explore a variety of techniques and improve drawing skills. Designed for adults and students ages 15 and older, and open to all abilities and experience levels. Drawing materials will be available, but participants are encouraged to bring their own sketchpads and pencils.
FREE with museum admission: $12 for adults; $10 for seniors; $4 for non-SMU students; FREE for members, children under 12 and SMU faculty, staff and students
For tickets, visit . For more information, call 214.768.8587.
Children’s Drawing from the Masters
Ian O’Brien, artist
Sunday, May 15, 2022
3:30-4 p.m.
Meadows Museum, 5900 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
Enjoy afternoons of informal drawing instruction with artist and elementary art teacher Ian O’Brien. Each session provides children ages 5-12 with the opportunity to explore a variety of techniques and improve drawing skills. Drawing materials will be available, but participants are encouraged to bring their own sketchpads and pencils.
FREE with museum admission: $12 for adults; $10 for seniors; $4 for non-SMU students; FREE for members, children under 12 and SMU faculty, staff and students
For tickets, visit . For more information, call 214.768.8587.
Movies with the Meadows Museum: Fortuny. La muerte del pintor/Fortuny: The Death of the Painter (NR, 2002)
Katharine Boswell, Adjunct Professor of Women’s and Gender Studies, SMU
Thursday, May 19, 2022
6 p.m.
Bob and Jean Smith Auditorium – Meadows Museum, 5900 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
FREE; advance registration required.
Movies with the Meadows pairs scholar and screen; these in-person film screenings are followed by a short talk in the museum’s auditorium. In celebration of the fifth anniversary of the acquisition of Mariano Fortuny y Marsal’s 1874 painting Beach at Portici, the Meadows Museum presents Fortuny. La muerte del pintor (Fortuny: The Death of the Painter), directed by Emiliano Cano Díaz. This film tracks the artist from the peak of his career to the effect of his untimely and sudden death on his family. The fascinating story of his sister-in-law, Isabel, also comes to light. Following the film, join Dr. Katharine Boswell for a talk that gives historical context to Isabel’s life and fate. To register, visit . For more information, call 214.768.8587 or email meadowsmuseuminfo@smu.edu.
Digital Drawing from the Masters
Ian O’Brien, artist
Sunday, May 22, 2022
1:30-3 p.m.
Livestreaming on Zoom; advance registration required.
$5; free for museum members and SMU students, faculty and staff
Enjoy afternoons of informal drawing instruction remotely over Zoom as artist Ian M. O’Brien leads you through a work of art in the Meadows Museum’s collection. Each session will provide an opportunity to explore a variety of techniques and improve drawing skills. Designed for adults and students ages 13 and older, and open to all abilities and experience levels.
For tickets, visit . For more information, call 214.768.8587 or email meadowsmuseuminfo@smu.edu.
Meadows Museum Gallery Talk: “Early Modern Spain at the Meadows”
Olivia Turner, Curatorial Assistant, Meadows Museum
Friday, May 27, 2022
12:15 p.m.
Meadows Museum, 5900 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
FREE with museum admission: $12 for adults; $10 for seniors; $4 for non-SMU students; FREE for members, children under 12 and SMU faculty, staff and students
Meadows Museum gallery talks feature art research and perspectives from local guest speakers. For tickets, visit . For more information, call 214.768.8587.
CONTINUING
Division of Art M.F.A. Qualifying Exhibition
March 26 – April 9, 2022
Opening Reception: Saturday, March 26, 1-5 p.m.
1:00 – 5:00 p.m. daily
Pollock Gallery – Suite 101, Expressway Tower, 6116 N. Central Expressway, Dallas (75206)
FREE
This 2022 M.F.A. thesis exhibition is the culmination of two years of intensive work by M.F.A. candidates in the Division of Art and features works in a wide-ranging variety of styles and mediums. For more information, call 214.768.4439 or visit .
Hawn Gallery Exhibit: Narrative as Reality: A World Reimagined/ Selections from the Jessica and Kelvin Beachum Family Collection
February 17 – May 22, 2022
Hawn Gallery – Hamon Arts Library, 6100 Hillcrest Ave. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
FREE
A glimpse into works from the Jessica and Kelvin Beachum Family collection reveals an artistic world of hope, Black joy, reality and aspiration. Each composition within the collection offers a unique story. These non-linear narratives on the Black experience, with their own distinct actualities, exhibit a reality not often portrayed, yet a collective lived experience that strives to represent a livelihood untouched. Narrative as Reality: A World Reimagined presents the work of artists Dominic Chambers, Ryan Cosbert, Robert Hodge, Nelson Makamo, Delita Martin, Sungi Mlengeya, Mario Moore, Robert Pruitt, Athi-Patra Ruga and Ferrari Sheppard. Artist as storyteller and aesthetic elegance collide in this breathtaking collection of work that showcases a world where narratives hold power and imagery conveys truth. The exhibition is curated by Dr. Valerie Bennett Gillespie. For more information, call 214.768.3813.
Meadows Museum Exhibition: Murillo: Picturing the Prodigal Son
February 20 – June 12, 2022
10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tues.-Sat.; 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Thurs.; 1-5 p.m. Sun. Closed Mon.
Virginia Meadows Galleries – Meadows Museum, 5900 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
$12 for adults; $10 for seniors 65+; $4 for non-SMU students; FREE for members, children under 12 and SMU faculty, staff and students; FREE Thurs. after 5 p.m.
During the 1660s, Sevillian artist Bartolomé Esteban Murillo (1617–1682) set out to paint the biblical parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11–32). Many artists tackling this subject focus on the story’s conclusion—that is, the prodigal son’s return from squandering his inheritance to be welcomed by his father’s forgiveness rather than his wrath. Murillo’s depiction, however, draws out the drama into a narrative cycle of six large canvases. Remarkably intact as a group centuries after their production at the height of the artist’s career, and having recently undergone conservation that reveals the mastery of the artist’s technique, the series makes its U.S. debut at the Meadows Museum, marking a rare opportunity for American audiences to view an important painting series by Murillo in its entirety, as it was meant to be seen. For more information, call 214.768.8587; to purchase tickets, visit .
Meadows Museum Exhibition: Masterpiece in Residence: Juan Sánchez Cotán’s Still Life with Quince, Cabbage, Melon, and Cucumber
March 6 – June 26, 2022
10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tues.-Sat.; 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Thurs.; 1-5 p.m. Sun. Closed Mon.
Virginia Meadows Galleries – Meadows Museum, 5900 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
$12 for adults; $10 for seniors 65+; $4 for non-SMU students; FREE for members, children under 12 and SMU faculty, staff and students; FREE Thurs. after 5 p.m.
This spring the Meadows Museum launches the “Masterpiece in Residence” loan series, an exciting new loan program featuring singular masterpieces of Spanish art from American collections. The series offers a special, focused look at key works from the history of Spanish art, with each loan accompanied by a scholarly monograph featuring a single essay by a specialist in the field. The first painting in the series is Juan Sánchez Cotán's Still Life with Quince, Cabbage, Melon, and Cucumber (c. 1602) from the collection of the San Diego Museum of Art. The extraordinary work is among the earliest and best of its kind in the history of European art, the type of painting credited with defining a genre, and among the last paintings executed by the artist before he took monastic orders in 1603. For more information, call 214.768.8587; to purchase tickets, visit
Meadows Museum Exhibition: Meadows/ARCO Artist Spotlight: Ignasi Aballí
March 6 – June 26, 2022
10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tues.-Sat.; 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Thurs.; 1-5 p.m. Sun. Closed Mon.
Virginia Meadows Galleries – Meadows Museum, 5900 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus, Dallas (75205)
$12 for adults; $10 for seniors 65+; $4 for non-SMU students; FREE for members, children under 12 and SMU faculty, staff and students; FREE Thurs. after 5 p.m.
The Meadows Museum presents an exhibition of work by the Spanish conceptual artist Ignasi Aballí (b. 1958), the first artist selected as part of the MAS: Meadows/ARCO Artist Spotlight program. Established in 2019, MAS is a six-year partnership between the Meadows Museum and Fundación ARCO, the leading organization behind Spain’s premier contemporary art fair, ARCOmadrid. Aballí’s series Palabras Vacías (Empty Words) (2020) confronts the viewer with 27 individual, galvanized iron plates hung at eye level. Cut into the metal plates are words such as “INVISIBLE” and “ABANDONED”—and other adjectives that reference being invisible or forgotten—thereby imbuing the negative space with meaning; what he refers to (both literally and figuratively) as “empty words.” The resulting tension between the form and meaning of the words creates a dialogue between language and image, between signified and signifier. For more information, call 214.768.8587; to purchase tickets, visit