MMA and Visit Natchez announce ‘Natchez Day’ at the Museum of Art

Event to feature works of Natchez artists and photographers, transportation provided for Natchez residents

By Roscoe Barnes III

Visit Natchez

Natchez artist Joseph W. Johnson is one of several artists whose work will be featured in the "Natchez Day" pop-up exhibition set for Saturday, Aug. 3, at the Mississippi Museum of Art in Jackson. The event is organized by the museum in partnership with Visit Natchez. (Click on image to enlarge.)

NATCHEZ, Miss. -- The Mississippi Museum of Art will partner with Visit Natchez for “Natchez Day,” showcasing a pop-up exhibition featuring the work of Natchez artists and photographers on Saturday, Aug. 3, at 380 S. Lamar St., Jackson, announced Andrea Donelson, the museum’s associate director of communications.

 
The pop-up exhibition will run during the museum’s Access for All: Free First Saturday featuring free access to special exhibitions, thanks to the Art Bridges Foundation. This event is free and open to the public. It will last from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
 
Several local talents have been selected for the August exhibition. They include artists Kate Lee Laird, Joseph W. Johnson, Debra McNeal, and Darryl R. Anderson. Participating photographers are Ben Hillyer, Ben Joiner, Katherine Parker, and J. Philip Larson.
 
“We are excited to partner with Visit Natchez and offer the opportunity to bring Natchezians to Jackson to see the exhibition and artwork from their local artists,” said Elisabeth Callihan, the museum’s director of education.
 
Donelson said transportation will be provided for Natchez residents who wish to travel to Jackson to see the exhibit. A minimum of 40 passengers are required for the transportation. Anyone interested must notify Roscoe Barnes III, the cultural heritage tourism manager for Visit Natchez, at roscoe@visitnatchez.org. Deadline is Thursday, July 25.
 
The artists and photographers are responsible for their own transportation. Donelson said they will need to show up at least one hour before the 11 a.m. opening of the exhibition.
 
The exhibition, a one-day event on the first Saturday of August, is organized by the museum in partnership with Visit Natchez. Generous support is provided by the Art Bridges Foundation’s Access for All. Access for All is a “three-year [$40 million] funding initiative that aims to increase access to museums across America and foster engagement with local audiences,” according to the Art Bridges website.
 
The Natchez exhibition pays homage to the works of Noah Saterstrom, who has ties to Natchez. His exhibition, “What Became of Dr. Smith?” is now shown at the museum. Saterstrom’s work has been described as a large-scale, panoramic narrative painting.
 
His exhibition “envisions the life of his great-grandfather, a traveling optometrist who, according to family lore, disappeared in 1924,” according to museum officials.
 
“Saterstrom’s family is from Natchez and there are several references to the place within his monumental painting,” noted Callihan.
 
For more information on the “Natchez Day” exhibition, contact Jasmine Williams, associate curator of Public Programs and Community Engagement, at 601-965-9912; or Andrea Donelson, associate director of communications, at 601-965-9934.