Way Out West: Celebrating the Gift of the Hugh A. McAllister Jr. Collection

Way Out West: Celebrating the Gift of the Hugh A. McAllister Jr. Collection marks the transformational bequest of over twenty examples of art related to the American West and Southwest to the Ackland Art Museum. Displayed together with artworks already in the Museum’s own permanent collection, the exhibition features nearly eighty works spanning over 150 years, by artists such as Albert Bierstadt, Thomas Moran, Ansel Adams, Awa Tsireh, Dorothea Lange, Edward Weston, and Allan Houser, among others, that chart how artists have responded to the landscape and culture of the American West since the late nineteenth century. Exceptional paintings, prints, photographs, sculpture and decorative art are displayed thematically, with a special section devoted to the collector, his taste, and his understanding of the role of art in our daily lives.

Way Out West: Celebrating the Gift of the Hugh A. McAllister Jr. Collection has been made possible by UNC Medicine in honor of Hugh A. McAllister Jr.

Click here to download press release.
Click on the arrow below to hear the radio commercial.

Way Out West Public Programs 

2nd Friday ArtWalk: Curator’s Keynote
June 14 | 6:00 p.m. An illustrated introduction to Way Out West by its curator Dana Cowen, Sheldon Peck Curator for European and American Art before 1950. RSVP HERE!

The galleries will remain open until 9 PM for the Museum’s monthly 2nd Friday ArtWalk evening hours.

Music in the Galleries: Ryan Dial-Stanley
June 16 | 2-3 p.m.

Ryan Dial-Stanley, a member of the Lumbee Tribe, is a well-known flutist, performing artist, and educator. Mr. Dial-Stanley is currently a student in the UNC School of Medicine majoring in Clinical Lab Science. He has traveled across the state of North Carolina presenting programs on the history and culture of the Lumbee Tribe. He is also the co-chair of the Carolina Indian Circle and President of Phi Sigma Nu, the first Native American Fraternity.

Free, seating is first come first served.

Family and Friends Sunday: Cartography
June 23 | 2-5 p.m.

Learn about how maps served the artists of Way Out West.

• Listen to stories about exploration chosen by Chapel Hill Public Library children’s librarians
• See maps of the U.S. and meet cartography expert Renée Bosman from UNC Libraries
• Watch the first of three selections from PBS’ National Parks documentary series to glimpse some of the natural wonders featured in the works of Way Out West
• Enjoy exploring the art on view with a themed scavenger hunt and hands-on art-making activities for all ages

Free and open to the public.

Guided Tour: Way Out West
June 28 | 1:30 p.m.
Free, drop-in tour of Way Out West, led by an Ackland docent

Guided Tour: Way Out West
July 5 | 1:30 p.m.
Free, drop-in tour of Way Out West, led by an Ackland docent

2nd Friday ArtWalk
July 12 | Open ’til 9 p.m.

Experience Way Out West after hours during the Chapel Hill-Carrboro 2nd Friday ArtWalk.

• 6-8:30 p.m. | Art Library Pop Up @ the Ackland
  View rare and unique items from the Sloane Art Library’s special collections relating to themes in Way Out West

Free and open to the public.

Art Adventures: “Painting” the Landscape with Pastels
July 13 | 10:30 a.m., 1:00 p.m., 3:00p.m.
$5 per child; free for members at the Household level and above. RSVP by selecting the session time above!

Guided Tour: Way Out West
July 18 | 1:30 p.m.
Free, drop-in tour of Way Out West, led by an Ackland docent

A Reader’s Guide to Way Out West
July 21 | 2 p.m.
From Louis L’Amour to Cormac McCarthy, the American West has inspired writers and captivated readers, including Chapel Hill Public Library Director Susan Brown. She has wandered through the exhibition and in this lively talk, she will share suggestions for books that pair well with Way Out West (and she will most likely work in a movie recommendation or two as well). The result will be a westward expansion of your TBR pile! Free and open to the public.

Missed the talk? Find the books at the Chapel Hill Public Library!

Guided Tour: Way Out West
July 24 | 1:30 p.m.
Free, drop-in tour of Way Out West, led by an Ackland docent

Family and Friends Sunday: The Great Outdoors
July 28 2019 | 2-5 p.m.

Consider the physicality of creating art featuring mountains, cliffs, and canyons.

• Learn about rock climbing in our courtyard with Triangle Rock Club Durham
• Learn how art and nature intersect and inspire at North Carolina State Parks with Anjanée N. Bell, Director of Arts in the Parks
• Hear from Johnny Randall, the NCBG Director of Conservation.
• Catch the next selection of our PBS National Parks screenings in ART&.
• Enjoy exploring the art on view with a themed scavenger hunt and hands-on art-making activities for all ages

Free and open to the public.

Guided Tour: Way Out West
August 1 | 1:30 p.m.
Free, drop-in tour of Way Out West, led by an Ackland docent

“The Way Out West: Desert Landscapes” Artist Talk by Michelle Van Parys
August 1 | 6:00 p.m.

RSVP HERE for the Talk!

Guided Tour: Way Out West
August 8 | 1:30 p.m.
Free, drop-in tour of Way Out West, led by an Ackland docent

2nd Friday ArtWalk
August 9 | Open ’til 9 p.m.

Panel: Perspectives on Way Out West
August 9 | 6 p.m.

• Elizabeth Broun, Director Emerita of the Smithsonian American Art Museum
• John Coffey, Deputy Director for Art and Jim and Betty Becher Curator of American and Modern Art at the North Carolina Museum of Art
• Dana Cowen, Sheldon Peck Curator for European and American Art before 1950 at the Ackland Art Museum

How the West Was Told: An Evening of Art and Literature at the Ackland
August 9 | 7 p.m.

Register for a book discussion program with Carolina Public Humanities that pairs Way Out West with Leslie Marmon Silko’s The Storyteller. The discussion of the book and a look at the art will be facilitated by UNC lecturer Jennifer Howard and Ackland Director of Academic Programs Carolyn Allmendinger.

$38 per person (includes a copy of the book, light refreshments, and a reserved seat at the Panel: Perspectives on Way Out West). RSVP required.

Art Adventures: Way Out Weaving
August 10 | 10:30 a.m., 1:00 p.m., 3:00 p.m.
$5 per child; free for members at the Household level and above. RSVP by selecting the session time above!

Guided Tour: Way Out West
August 16 | 1:30 p.m.
Free, drop-in tour of Way Out West, led by an Ackland docent

Music in the Galleries: Brian and Mary Lewis
August 18 | 2-3 p.m.
Vintage Country Music by Brian and Mary Lewis, with Nancy Bierman (bass)

Free, seating is first come first served.

Guided Tour: Way Out West
August 21 | 1:30 p.m.
Free, drop-in tour of Way Out West, led by an Ackland docent

Guided Tour: Way Out West
August 22 | 1:30 p.m.
Free, drop-in tour of Way Out West, led by an Ackland docent

Guided Tour: Way Out West
August 23 | 1:30 p.m.
Free, drop-in tour of Way Out West, led by an Ackland docent

Family and Friends Sunday: Protecting Our Environment
August 25 | 2-5 p.m.

On the final day of Way Out West explore the natural environments depicted with an eye towards protecting them for the future.

• Meet Alan Weakly, the Director of Herbarium at the North Carolina Botanical Garden, to learn about North Carolina’s native plants.
• Watch the last selection from PBS National Parks in ART&
• At 3:30 PM, join Way Out West curator Dana Cowen for a Last Look Tour.
• Enjoy exploring the art on view with a themed scavenger hunt and hands-on art-making activities for all ages

Free and open to the public.

Last Look Tour
August 25 | 3:30 p.m.

Last Look Tour led by exhibition curator Dana Cowen, Sheldon Peck Curator for European and American Art before 1950. Free, no RSVP needed.

Image Credit: Thomas Moran, American, born in England, 1837-1926: Virgin River, Utah (detail), 1908,oil on canvas, 20 x 30 in. Ackland Art Museum, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, The Hugh A. McAllister, Jr., M.D. Collection, 2019.15.22.