(From May 23-31, 2007)

John Campbell with the N.C. Museum of History would like to know if any NON-PROFIT museum would have an interest in the following de-accessioned item, free of charge, though transportation from Raleigh must be arranged by the accepting museum: Road Grader, ca. 1900-1920 - Horse-Drawn or possibly pulled by a tractor, brown metal frame with extensive support structure; 2 gears at top in rear. A plate on the grader reads: The Russell Standard, The Russell Grader Mfg. Company, Minneapolis, Minn. Used to build and maintain roads. ~18' L x 6 1/2' W x 5' H, is in need of conservation. 1994.57.1. If you have an interest, please e-mail John (john.campbell@ncmail.net) or call him at (919) 807-7864.

The N.C. Division of Tourism, Film & Sports Development's NewsLink e-newsletter mentioned the following media lead that might be of interest to some of you: New or Improved Museums: "Small Market Meetings" is seeking information about new or expanded/ renovated museums that welcome meetings and events for an August feature. Please send general information about the museum and its meeting and event facilities via e-mail to Vickie Mitchell at vmitchell@smallmarketmeetings.com. Deadline: June 21.

In an earlier news-bits e-mail, we mentioned that Diane Howard will give a Gallery Talk at the NCSU Gregg Museum of Art & Design relative to her "It's Not Your Mother's Yarn" exhibit. However, the original release had an error. Ms. Howard's talk will be given on June 14th, a Thursday, at 7 p.m. (NOT June 4 as originally announced).

Western Carolina University, Cullowhee -- the Master of Fine Arts Program will offer a free series of lectures, each beginning at 10:30 a.m. in Room 223 of the Fine & Performing Arts Center, starting on June 14 with Caitlin Perkins, lecturing on printmaking. June 27 - Jason Pierson, visual artist; June 29, Ro Lohin, NYC gallery owner; July 9, Avantika Bawa, Atlanta-based visual artist and curator; July 17, Bob Trotman, figurative sculptor; and July 25, Luke Allsbrook, painter. A Conference organized by the School of Art and Design is also set for Friday, July 13 -- contact Richard Tichich at rtichich@wcu.edu or 828-227-7210.

The Cameron Art Museum, Wilmington, will feature Broadway music on Friday, June 1 at 7 p.m. (fee, reservation required, call 910-395-5999 x. 1000 for details), the Tallis Chamber Orchestra on Friday, June 8 at 7 p.m. (admission by donation), and will have a theater discussion on Costume Design at 3 p.m. on Sunday, June 3.

The Pastimes in the Park topic for June 23 (10-4) and June 24 (1-4 p.m.) at the High Point Museum is Historic Herbal Remedies.

The Orange County Historical Museum's exhibit for July 1-19 wil be "The Natural and Non-So-Natural" by Brydie Palmore, who chiefly works in watercolors.

Free "Friday Flicks for Kids" are being offered on June 8, 15, 22 and 29 starting at 3 p.m. at the Visitor Center Auditorium, Tryon Palace. The Saturday Sampler on June 9 is "The Making of A State."

The next Summer Breeze Concert is set for Sunday, June 17th on the lawn of historic Newbold-White House (free, donations welcomed, 5:30 p.m.).

"A Change Is Gonna Come: North Carolina and the Civil Rights Movement" is the lecture topic for History a La Carte on Wednesday, June 13 at 12:10 p.m. (N.C. Museum of History, Raleigh, www.ncmuseumofhistory.org).

A host of activities are planned for the North Carolina Aquariums during the summer months -- check them out online at www.ncaquariums.com.

Winston-Salem Delta Fine Arts will exhibit "Carolyn Maitland in Retrospect: Works on Paper-Etchings, Watercolors, Prints" from June 1 through July 14.

In conjunction with a current exhibit, Asheville Art Museum will present "A Tale of Two Cities: Music of Paris and New York," by Asheville's own John Cobb. The concert will be at 3 p.m. on Sunday, June 24 ($5 members, $10 non-members, available in advance at 828-253-3227).

Workshop announcements from the AASLH: The Basics of Archives Online Workshop, Date: June 4 - July 6, 2007
Proceed at your own pace through this online workshop covering the basics of archives management and practices including acquiring collections, processing, housing and preservation, and providing access. Cost: $85 members and $95 nonmembers. Registration deadline: June 1.

Collections Management and Practices, Date: June 28-29, 2007. Host: Utah's Office of Museum Services and Utah State Historical Society, Salt Lake City, UT.
Learn how to be better stewards of your historical resources in this two-day workshop that includes discussion of your institution's responsibility to its collection, policies and procedures, and best practices in collections care. https://www.aaslhnet.org/collwork.htm Cost: $250 members and $300 nonmembers. SAVE $20! Early Bird Deadline: May 31, 2007.
Questions: Please contact Bethany Hawkins, Program Associate at or 615-320-3203 if you have any questions about these or other upcoming workshops.

Other museum-related news from across North Carolina:

The Rosenzweig Gallery's current exhibition in Durham is "Jewish/Polish Cultural Posters, Polish School of Posters, 1950s-present," now through August 18. The opening reception will be from 3-5 p.m. on Sunday, June 24.

A number of special summertime programs have been set at the N.C. Maritime Museum, Beaufort (for more info, e-mail jeannie.kraus@ncmail.net), including youth and adult classes, Night at the Museum programs (July 13 and August 10), and Cinema by the Sea at Olde Beaufort Seaport, including "Night at the Museum" on June 2 and "Eragon" on June 16.

"PassAges of Time," an exhibition of the works of artist Jim Brown, opens June 1 at the Tobacco Farm Life Museum, Kenly, and continues on display through August 12. The opening reception for the exhibit will be from 5-7 p.m. on Thursday, May 31.

NCSU Gregg Museum of Art & Design will host "It's Not Your Mother's Yarn: Knitted Works by Diane Howard" from June 4-29, with a gallery talk by the artist at 7 p.m. on June 4.

"Point Of View IV" opens to the public Saturday, June 2 at the Mint Museum of Craft + Design, Charlotte. The additions to the museum's permanent collection, made possible by the Windgate Charitable Foundation, include innovative European jewelry forms, Japanese bamboo sculptures, a Judith Schaecter wall-mounted stained glass light box and an Eva Hild ceramic sculpture.

"Wild Music: Sounds & Songs of Life" is set to open on June 30 at the N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences, Raleigh, and run through September 16. A series of musical events are also planned.

Duke Homestead, Durham, will hold its Herb, Garden & Craft Festival from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, June 2.

ATLANTA, GA - The Southeastern Museums Conference (SEMC) announces the availability of scholarships for their 2007 Annual Meeting in Little Rock, Arkansas (October 2-6.) The amount is $500 which includes a $250 registration fee and a $250 allowance for travel and accommodations. They are available in the following categories: Students, Minority Museum Professionals, Entry Level Professionals, and Small Museum Professionals who are current Individual or Institutional Members of SEMC at time of application and would otherwise be unable to attend SEMC 2006 Annual Meeting.
The following factors may be considered by the committee while judging applications: 1) Financial need (not necessarily based on institutional need); 2) Evidence that the annual meeting program specifically answers needs and concerns of the applicant; 3) History of involvement in museums; 4) Dedication to the museum profession in the southeast; 4) Professional references; and 5) Clarity of the application.
Applications must be postmarked or faxed to the SEMC Central office by Friday, July 6, 2007. Applications will be reviewed by members of the Scholarship Committee and all applicants will receive notification in the mail by Friday, August 17. The application can be accessed on the SEMC website at:
http://www.semcdirect.net/education_and_programs/2007_annual_meeting/PDF/semcScholarship2007.pdf
For further information, contact Elise V. LeCompte, Coordinator, SEMC Scholarship, Mentor, Student Committee, 352/392-1721x236 or lecompte@flmnh.ufl.edu. The Southeastern Museums Conference, begun in 1951, is a nonprofit membership organization that serves 12 states throughout the Southeast - Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia - and Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The Country Doctor Museum, Bailey, N.C., will celebrate the many contributions of eastern North Carolina's African American physicians with a new event from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. this Saturday, May 26th (free).

The Hickory Museum of Art will open "American Light: From the Hudson River to the Blue Ridge" this weekend, running through October 14. A joint reception for this show and "Hickory Selects: From the Permanent Collection of the Hickory Museum of Art," opening June 23, will be held Friday, June 22 from 6-8 p.m. (free for members, $5 for non-members).

In an earlier edition, we noted that Dr. Deborah Brosnan will speak at the N.C. Aquarium at Fort Fisher on Friday, June 1 -- however, her talk -- which is free with museum admission -- has been moved up to 4 p.m. on Friday afternoon (www.ncaquariums.com). She will also speak at Pine Knoll Shores at 12:30 p.m. on June 2, and at Roanoke Island at 3 p.m. on Sunday, June 3.

During June, Old Salem Museums & Gardens, Winston-Salem, will have a Hidden Treasures talk on Moravian-Cherokee Cultural Exchange (12:30 p.m., MESDA Auditorium, June 6); celebrate Flag Day with historic flags on display throughout the district (June 14); celebrate the Families of Salem on June 16; and host The Carolina Chamber Symphony Players with "It's De-Lovely" at 7:30 p.m. on June 23 (see website for ticket info).

Advance tickets are now on sale for the N.C. Transportation Museum's 30th Anniversary Family Rail Days, to be held in Spencer from 9-5 on June 9. Also in Spencer: Big Boat Show, July 14 from 10-3, and Antique Wireless Show, 8 to noon on the same day.

The Diggs Gallery, at Winston-Salem State University, will open "Continuity and Change: Three Generations of Ethiopian Artists" at 3 p.m. on May 26th (www.wssu.edu for more information). The exhibit remains through December 8.

The Asheville Art Museum's Make it New artist take features HaSahai Prouty at 12:15 p.m. on Friday, June 8; a panel discussion with photographers Ralph Burns, Robin Dreyer and Alice Sebrell is set for 3 p.m. on Sunday, June 10 (www.ashevilleart.org).

Upcoming weekend demonstrations at High Point Museum include Blacksmithing (June 2, 10-4 and June 3, 1-4) and Cooking with Herbs (June 9, 10-4).

The McColl Center for Visual Art, Charlotte will open its "Eight: Work by Summer and 11-Month Affiliate Artists" exhibition with an opening reception from 6-9 p.m. on June 1. The exhibit will remain through September 1.

The Museum of Anthropology, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem will exhibit "Rosebud Sioux: A Lakota People in Transition" from June 17 to August 18, with an opening at 7:30 p.m. on June 18th. July 21st will be a free Native American Family Day (1-4 p.m.) and Dr. Peter Wood will lecture on Native American Cultural Continuity at 7:30 p.m. on July 26 (336-758-5282).

The Health Adventure, Asheville, will open Scholastic's The Magic School Bus Kicks Up a Storm traveling exhibit on May 26th -- the hands-on exhibit runs through September 23.

The N.C. Museum of History, Raleigh, will have a talk by M. Ruth Little on "The Town and Gown Architecture of Chapel Hill, N.C., 1795-1975" at 3 p.m. on June 3. Music of the Carolinas will feature Nixon, Blevins and Gage at 3 p.m. on June 10.

The N.C. Maritime Museum, Beaufort, is showing the "Ship Models by Frank Gaskill" exhibit through August 26.

Tryon Palace, New Bern, has a lecture on "Contested Commemoration: The Birth of the American National Cemetery System, 1865-1870" at the Visitor Center Auditorium at 7 p.m. on Thursday, May 24 (free). Upcoming performances of "Box & Cox: A One-Act British Farce" are set for 11 a.m. at the Visitor Center Auditorium on June 2 and 16; and "A Historical Punch & Judy Puppet Show" will be given on June 9, 23 and 30, also at 11 a.m., in the Carriage Bay of the Stable Office. On Tuesday, June 5, the South Lawn Concert Series features the North Carolina Symphony (gates open for free seating at 5 p.m., concert begins at 7 p.m.

Coming up at the Mint Museum of Art, Charlotte, is a three-day Adult/Child Workshop, "A Little Blue," for children ages 3-5 with an adult. The dates are June 12-14, from 10-11:30 a.m. each day; a fee is charged -- call 704-337-2098 or visit www.themintmuseums.org. The next Adult/Child Workshop theme is "Figure This;" dates are June 19-21.