University, Crystal Bridges to Host Southern Intellectual History Circle

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Rachael DeLue, Princeton University

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The University of Arkansas and Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art will host the 26^th meeting of the Southern Intellectual History Circle, an annual gathering of scholars studying the history and literature of the American South.

The meeting will begin at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 20, and end at 4 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 22, and include discussions of two topics: writers and journalists in the 20^th century and new histories of race, class and politics in Arkansas.

Rachael DeLue, an associate professor in the department of art and archaeology at Princeton University, will deliver the meeting’s keynote address at 4 p.m. in the Great Hall at Crystal Bridges in Bentonville. The topic of her talk, which is free and open to the public, is titled, “The Problem and Promise of a Southern Art History.”

DeLue’s area of specialization is the history of American art and visual culture, with particular focus on intersections between art and science and the history of African American art. 

This is the first time the meeting will be held at the University of Arkansas. Previous meeting hosts have included Cambridge University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the University of Florida, the University of Richmond and Vanderbilt University.

“This is a very interesting, small, informal group of people who get together to discuss ideas,” said Beth Schweiger, an associate professor of history at the U of A who was instrumental in bringing the meeting to the university. “It is very, very important for humanities scholars to be in conversations with each other and that is what this meeting is about. Hosting a gathering of top humanities scholars is a wonderful way to spread the word about the great research that is being done here at the university and in Arkansas generally.”

Todd Shields, dean of the Graduate School and International Education and interim dean of the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, complimented Schweiger on persuading the group to meet in Arkansas.

“Dr. Schweiger is a staunch supporter of the humanities and she deserves a lot of credit for putting together a conference of this caliber,” Shields said. “Also, to be able to co-sponsor this event with Crystal Bridges — a world-class museum — is a win-win situation for everyone involved.”

The Southern Intellectual History Circle includes 175 people from more than 150 institutions. The definition of “intellectual history” includes many facets of Southern culture. The final day of each annual meeting features roundtable discussions held in an informal setting in which participants share ideas, critiques and new directions. The roundtables typically lead to fascinating cross-disciplinary discussion between critics and historians.

Scholars from Arkansas who will present papers at the meeting are Michael Pierce, an associate professor of history at the U of A; John Kirk, the Donaghey Professor of History at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock; and Story Matkin-Rawn, an assistant professor of history at the University of Central Arkansas.

The following campus entities helped fund the meeting: the office of the provost, the office of the vice provost for research and economic development, the Graduate School and International Education, Fulbright College, the Honors College, the department of history, the Diane D. Blair Center of Southern Politics and Society and the Center for Arkansas and Regional Studies.

“The university has been incredibly generous in helping make this happen,” Schweiger said. “I’m thrilled to be able to bring it here.”