“The Cones on Blowing Rock: Kultur in the High Country”
Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019
2:30 p.m.
Parkway Ballroom, Room 420, Plemmons Student Union
This event is free and open to the public.
The history of Moses Cone and his art collecting sisters, Claribel and Etta, have long been beloved by High Country locals and visitors alike. Appalachian State University invites the public to learn more of their story, as told by historian, Dr. Leonard Rogoff, in a lecture titled, “The Cones of Blowing Rock: Kultur in the High Country.”
Rogoff is most recently the author of “Gertrude Weil: Jewish Progressive in the New South” (2017), “Down Home: Jewish Life in North Carolina” (2010) and “Homelands: Southern-Jewish Identity in Durham and Chapel Hill” (2004), three publications that explore Jewish society and culture in the U.S. South.
In this talk, Rogoff will emphasize that along with bringing capital and commerce to the South, German Jewish immigrants, like the Cones, also brought their interest and knowledge of art, music and literature. Rogoff’s discussion places the Cone family within a broader context of German-Jewish emancipation and acculturation across the nineteenth century.
Before and after the lecture, Belk Library and Information Common’s Special Collections will host a “pop-up” exhibit on the 4th floor of the Student Union, which will feature artifacts and documents from the university’s Cone Collections. Also, the University Bookstore will be on site at the event for book signing or purchasing of a selection of Rogoff’s works.
Rogoff has written and lectured extensively on the Jewish South. He has a Ph.D from the University of North Carolina, and has taught at North Carolina Central University. He was a contributing writer for The Spectator and The Independent, as well as an editor for The Rambler. His essays have appeared in American Jewish History, Southern Jewish History, “The Quiet Voices: Southern Rabbis and Black Civil Rights,” “Jewish-American History and Culture: An Encyclopedia,” “Handbook to North Carolina History and “The Companion to Southern Literature.” He conceived, researched and wrote text for the exhibit "Migrations: the Jewish Settlers of Eastern North Carolina" and directed a multimedia project, "Down Home: Jewish Life in North Carolina."
This event is sponsored by Appalachian’s College of Arts and Sciences and the Blowing Rock Art and History Museum. In conjunction with Rogoff’s visit, a special art exhibition, a series of events and special guided tours revolving around the Cone sisters and the culture they infused into the High Country will take place at the Blowing Rock Art & History Museum (BRAHM). The art exhibition “Modern Visions, Mountain Views: The Cones at Flat Top Manor” revolves around Moses and Bertha Cone’s enterprise. This exhibition is produced by the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation, in collaboration with the National Park Service and the Blowing Rock Art and History Museum. For more information on the exhibition, visit: https://blowingrockmuseum.org/see-do/exhibitions/current-upcoming-exhibitions.html/title/modern-visions-mountain-views-the-cones-of-flat-top-manor and for other corresponding events, visit: https://blowingrockmuseum.org/see-do/exhibitions/modern-visions-modern-art-the-cone-sisters-in-north-carolina.html.
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About the College of Arts and Sciences
The College of Arts and Sciences is home to 16 academic departments, one stand-alone academic program, two centers and one residential college. These units span the humanities and the social, mathematical and natural sciences. The College of Arts and Sciences aims to develop a distinctive identity built upon our university's strengths, traditions and unique location. The college’s values lie not only in service to the university and local community, but through inspiring, training, educating and sustaining the development of its students as global citizens. There are approximately 6,100 student majors in the college. As the college is also largely responsible for implementing Appalachian's general education curriculum, it is heavily involved in the education of all students at the university, including those pursuing majors in other colleges. Learn more at https://cas.appstate.edu.
About Blowing Rock Art & History Museum (BRAHM)
A non-profit organization located at 159 Chestnut Street (on the corner of Chestnut and Main Streets) in Blowing Rock, North Carolina, a small village nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains. For more information, visit: https://blowingrockmuseum.org.
Ellen Gwin Burnette
Sept. 5, 2019
BOONE, N.C.
Historian Dr. Leonard Rogoff author of “Gertrude Weil: Jewish Progressive in the New South” (2017) and “Down Home: Jewish Life in North Carolina” (2010) . Photo submitted.
Historian Dr. Leonard Rogoff author of “Gertrude Weil: Jewish Progressive in the New South” (2017) and “Down Home: Jewish Life in North Carolina” (2010) . Photo submitted.