Artist Lonnie Holley: Conversation and Concert

Lonnie Holley, one of the most innovative contemporary artists and musicians working today, will be speaking and performing in concert at the Cantor.

From 5:30–6 PM, Holley will be in conversation with the Cantor’s Assistant Curator of American Art Aleesa Alexander. The conversation will take place inside the exhibition, The Medium Is the Message: Art since 1950, which features four previously unexhibited works by the artist. Born in Birmingham, Alabama in 1950, his experimental practice is driven by a desire to record history, teach others, and create art anywhere and everywhere. His visual art has been exhibited at a number of prestigious institutions, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Smithsonian American Art Museum, and the White House. His first film, I Snuck Off the Slave Ship, premiered as an Official Selection at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival.

At 6 PM, Holley will begin a concert, also in the exhibition gallery. Entirely self-taught, Holley’s musical style is completely improvisational and imbued with personal narrative, with roots in jazz, soul, and funk. His 2018 album, MITH, has garnered wide acclaim and was described by the The New Yorker as containing “hints of Stevie Wonder, Sun Ra, Lou Reed, Alice Coltrane, Gill Scott-Heron, [and] Miles Davis.” As a recording artist, he performs internationally and collaborates with artists such as Animal Collective and Bon Iver.  This program marks the first time Holley’s art and music will be featured at Stanford.

Project supported by the Office of the Vice President for the Arts.

This event is sold out, click here to be added to the waitlist for this free event. 

Image credit: Tamir Kalifa