FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Feb. 23, 2005 - Sylvia Bierschenk

SFA to present panel discussion on controversial sculpture

NACOGDOCHES, TEXAS - The 1986 removal of "Night Winds," a sculpture created by SFA art professor John Daniel for Kilgore College's Longview Center, will be the topic of a panel discussion Tuesday, March 1, in W. M. Turner Auditorium.

Moderated by Dr. Bradley C. Bailey, SFA assistant professor of art history, "'Night Winds': the Controversy at Kilgore College" will begin at 6:30 p.m. In addition to Daniel, panel members will be Gary Q. Frields, SFA professor of art who was employed at Kilgore College at the time of the controversy, and Frank Herbert, former chair of Visual Arts at Kilgore College. The event is free and open to the public.

Bailey, who is currently teaching a course titled "Controversy in Art," said when he learned about the events surrounding Daniel's sculpture, he wanted to include a discussion of "Night Winds" in his course.

"This was a great opportunity to use a local event to spark discussion among my students," Bailey said. "The more I learned from John and Gary, the more I realized that the greater East Texas community might be interested in learning more about the controversy surrounding the sculpture."

The 20-foot steel sculpture was erected in 1981 but war ordered removed March 3, 1986, explained Bailey.

"There was strong community opposition to the sculpture and even to faculty and students who supported the sculpture's presence," Bailey said. "Frields received threatening mail and phone calls, and a student was physically assaulted."

Now, almost 19 years later, Bailey hopes the panel discussion can provide an academic and informative exploration of the controversy.

"We have an opportunity to talk about an extraordinary situation, to discuss public art and the destruction of the art," he continued. "We'll look at the facts and possibly explore what could have been handled differently."

Daniel's retirement in May is another reason Bailey opted to make the panel discussion open to the public.

"John may no longer be so accessible to East Texas after this semester, so I wanted to provide an opportunity for the greater community to engage with him," Bailey said.

The panel discussion is a joint presentation of the SFA College of Fine Arts and the Department of Art. The W. M. Turner Auditorium is located in the Griffith Fine Arts Building on the SFA campus.

For directions, call (936) 468-6407 or 888-240-ARTS. For more information on the event, please e-mail Bailey at baileybc@sfasu.edu.