Blaine County Museum's "Off-season speaker series" begins October 5th
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Steve Edwards
Blaine County Museum Director Sam French is pictured holding a copy of Mark Vitaris' book titled "Borderlands." Vitaris will be presenting information from his five-year study/photography project of the area along the Canadian-United States border from the eastern slopes of the Rockies to the Dakotas. Copies of "Borderlands" will be available for purchase and Vitaris will be signing his book. The event is Thursday, October 5 at 7pm at the Chinook Senior Center.
The first in a series of diverse presenters and topics will kick-off on Thursday, October 5 at 7pm. Museum Director Sam French said the off-season series begins when the museum's focus can shift from hosting out-of-staters and tourists during the summer to offering more programming and exhibits geared to locals. This particular program will be offered at the Chinook Senior Center (at 324 Pennsylvania).
First off-season speaker lives in Canada
Mark Vitaris earned a B.A. in Communications, from the University of Ottawa (Canada). His award-winning work has been widely exhibited and is included in private and public collections provincially, nationally, and internationally. He resides in Calgary, Alberta. Best known for his work as a 'location photographer' his assignments taught him to use light and conditions to interpret visual concepts. One of the outcomes of his five years of research on a project that studied and interpreted life along the forty-ninth parallel (international border with Canada) resulted in a book entitled "Borderlands."
The book's photographs and commentary cover both sides of the border from "the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains to the grasslands of Saskatchewan and to the western Dakotas." The book is one component of a larger project that sought to interpret the borderlands along the international boundary line. The book, interestingly, includes no pictures of people, only places.
Part of what attracted Vitaris to present in Blaine County was his desire to "exhibit and talk about my work and engage the communities where the work began." He wants to connect with people in smaller communities along the border to "complete the circle of art" and share some of what he has learned about the history and culture of the borderlands. "Borderlands," his book, is one major outcome of the five-year project.
After his presentation copies of "Borderlands" will be for sale. Vitaris will also be signing the book for purchasers. He will donate fifty percent of the proceeds from book sales to the Blaine County Museum, the latter will be used towards future speaker programs.
Mark Vitaris' presentation will be at 7pm, Thursday, October 5. The gathering is presented by the Blaine County Library and will be hosted at the Chinook Senior Center. The presentation is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be served.
What's next...on the "Off-season Speakers" schedule?
Though exact dates and times are not finalized, here are some of the speakers who will be featured in coming weeks and months: in November Austin Haney, Bear Paw Battlefield Ranger, will be speaking about historic railroad surveys in Montana; in December Jack Mattingly, retired minister at Chinook United Methodist church and Harlem's Yoked Parish, will be speaking about the history of the Methodist church and Brother Van Orsdel, a frontier Methodist circuit rider; in February Rod Benson will have a presentation about Blaine County geology and in March Humanities Montana Conversations Speaker and author of "600 Generations", Carl Davis, will be do a presentation about Montana's archaeological history. Details will follow as they become available.
