My Last Night in Black Mountain

     I drove over to the Black Mountain College Museum in Asheville this afternoon.  The poet Jonathan Williams was in one documentary there in which he described what it was like being a student at the College. Also watched the dvd, Fully Awake which had Arthur Penn, Charles Stix, Merce Cunningham, and many others sharing their memories about the school.

     Lunch was at the Sprouted Seed then headed over to the Thomas Wolfe museum.  I really should read :  "Look Homeward, Angel."  The guide, Mr. Spivey, was excellent and told us that a film is coming out called Genius about Wolfe in December.

     Ended the evening with a book reading and signing at Malaprops.  David Payne read from Barefoot to Avelon.  Perfect end to a literary day.

The List

The List

Black Mountain College

a place where teachers, 

students, and  families 

lived together on 

a campus that they helped 

to build, nurture, and grow.

Shared meals,

conversations begun

in the classroom 

continued at dinner and

into the night.

No grades

Students accepted into 

grad school with no 

questions asked

John Cage

Merce Cunningham

Willem de Kooning

(looking like Marlon Brando)

Buckminster Fuller

Ray Johnson

Robert Raschenberg

M. C. Richards

Arthur Penn

Changed the face of 

American art.

Black Mountain

Black Mountain College in North Carolina was a creative place frequented by Alan Ginsburg, and other Beat poets.   Here's a bit of info:

Visiting scholar, David Silver appears at the NCSU Libraries, for a multimedia happening that chronicles the rise and fall of Black Mountain College, founded in 1933 near Asheville, North Carolina. Using the entire Hunt Library as a storytelling building and featuring never-before-seen photographs, this dynamic event will examine the most experimental college in American history. Focusing on the College’s farm and work program, Silver will lead an exploration of the College’s lesser-known but vitally important participants. David Silver is associate professor of media studies, environmental studies, and urban agriculture at University of San Francisco. 

Free and open to the public.