Students and alumna in spotlight at VGCC Fine Arts Days
Vance-Granville Community College’s second annual “Fine Arts Days” celebration on Oct. 17 and Oct. 18 featured a variety of talented students, educators and professional artists.
The special guests and keynote presenters for Fine Arts Days were singer-songwriter/fiddler Noah Wall and mandolinist Tommy Norris. Both grew up in Granville County and are now members of , an award-winning, Nashville-based bluegrass group. Wall is also a former VGCC student. They kicked off the college’s arts celebration with a free concert at in Henderson on Oct. 17. The 1,000-seat venue opened earlier this year, and “Fine Arts Days” represented the first partnership between VGCC and the state-of-the-art performing arts center. At one point in the concert, the musicians were joined on stage by Amber Adcock, Wall’s former VGCC classmate who is now a history teacher at their alma mater, South Granville High School.
Wall and Norris then performed on the college’s Main Campus the next day and talked with attendees about their backgrounds and their careers in the music industry. Wall emphasized that it was important to complete a college degree, and there are a wide variety of options available to those who are interested in the arts.
Norris studied musical technology at Western Carolina University. Wall knew as a high school student that she wanted to attend East Tennessee State University, which offered a Bluegrass, Old Time, and Country Music Studies program. Facing the high cost of out-of-state tuition, however, she decided to start at VGCC in the College Transfer program . “It was a fabulous decision to go to VGCC for my first two years and then transfer to ETSU,” Wall said. “I’m proud of the choice I made to come here first. I had supportive faculty here, who wrote letters of recommendation for me. I got scholarships here at Vance-Granville, and then there at ETSU, too.” She also reflected that succeeding in her career today is easier because she is not saddled with debt from student loans.
Wall said that The Barefoot Movement performs throughout the country and even overseas, but it is not often that she and Norris have an opportunity to come back home. They are scheduled to perform nearby in Carrboro on Dec. 17. The band plays not only bluegrass but also blues and other genres, including many original pieces. Asked to offer advice to budding artists, Wall said, “Make realistic goals to follow your passion, stay dedicated, and remember why you love what you do.” She added that “the arts are important for everyone, whether or not it’s your career.”
Another highlight of Fine Arts Days on Oct. 18 was the college’s second annual juried exhibition of art by students. Katie Seiz, the executive director of the Durham Art Guild, served as the judge, while VGCC Art instructor Isaac Talley coordinated the competition. Seiz awarded first place to Lydia Powell of Oxford, a continuing education art student and retired VGCC faculty member, for a portrait of a young girl; second place to curriculum student Chris Nicholson of Bullock, for a landscape; and third place to continuing education art student Nina Cheatham of Oxford, for a painting featuring fish in a pond. Honorable mentions were awarded to J.F. Webb High School student Haley Tuck of Oxford, curriculum student Alli Long of Kittrell, continuing education art student Kelly Nesbitt of Henderson, and curriculum student Kim Prevette of Oxford.
Special guests at Fine Arts Days included Viking Voices, the choral group from South Granville High School; dancer/choreographer Aijia Bryant of Henderson-based Ballet Arts, who taught a master class in hip hop dance; professional photographer and art teacher Carly Cox, who offered a master class on digital photography; actors from Granville Little Theatre, presenting excerpts from their recent production of “Little Women”; and the cast of “Thirteen,” Jason Robert Brown’s hit musical that will premiere at McGregor Hall on Nov. 18. The young cast includes some VGCC students.
Elsewhere on campus, Fred Smith, an adjunct instructor of music for VGCC who has performed with the North Carolina Symphony, presented a master class in trumpet; Isaac Talley taught participants how to make ink prints using the Japanese technique called “Suminagashi”; and VGCC English instructor Maureen Walters led a make-and-take workshop on using everyday items to create works of art.
“I am very proud of all of the students who participated in Fine Arts Days, and I appreciate the wonderful artists and community partners who helped make this event a success,” said Betsy Henderson, VGCC’s Department Chair/Instructor of Humanities and Fine Arts. “It was a special treat to have Noah Wall and Tommy Norris here as wonderful examples of local talent. To see their success grow over the years is inspiring.” She said Fine Arts Days is held in conjunction with National Arts and Humanities Month, a time when artistic and cultural organizations traditionally open their doors to connect with their communities. For more information about the arts at VGCC, contact Betsy Henderson at hendersonb@vgcc.edu or (252) 738-3371.
Above: Former VGCC student Noah Wall performs at McGregor Hall Performing Arts Center in Henderson on Oct. 17. (VGCC photo)
Above: VGCC students were recognized as winners of the juried student art exhibition. From left are Katie Seiz, executive director of the Durham Art Guild and judge for the exhibition; Chris Nicholson of Bullock, who placed second; Alli Long of Kittrell and Kelly Nesbitt of Henderson, who both received honorable mentions; and VGCC Art instructor Isaac Talley, who coordinated the exhibition. Not pictured: artists Lydia Powell (first place), Nina Cheatham (third place) and Haley Tuck and Kim Prevette (honorable mentions). (VGCC photo)
More photos: Check out our album of pictures from Fine Arts Days on Flickr !
