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Black Mountain College: Outsized Influence and Everyday Life

Click HERE to purchase a 'Black Mountain College All Inclusive' Ticket to attend all 5 BMC presentations and 1 workshop including box lunch for .

Today, Black Mountain College enjoys near-legendary status as one of the most important American art schools of the 20th century. Despite constantly struggling to keep itself afloat financially, Black Mountain College (BMC) attracted a dazzling roster of students, faculty, and guests who would collectively shape the social and artistic attitudes of the United States in the second half of the 20th century. Notable long-term faculty included Josef and Anni Albers, M. C. Richards, Charles Olson, and Max Dehn; students included Ruth Asawa, Robert Rauschenberg, Cy Twombly, Dorothea Rockburne, and Michael Rumaker; and visiting faculty included Robert Motherwell, John Cage, Merce Cunningham, R. Buckminster Fuller, Jacob Lawrence, and Willem and Elaine de Kooning.

But BMC, which survived for a scant twenty-three years, was far more than just the list of its luminaries. Founded in 1933 by a group of rebellious faculty who had left Rollins College searching for academic freedom, Black Mountain stressed a self-determined, experiential education designed to “educate the student as a person and as a citizen.” From its founding in 1933 to its legal closure in 1957, BMC maintained its experimental mission and commitment to interdisciplinary education with the arts at the center.

David Silver, (Atelier Éditions 2024), goes beyond the legend of Black Mountain College to introduce the vibrant, surprising College in all its complexity and contradictions. Weaving together narratives about everyday life at BMC with the broader contours of its history, Silver presents a dynamic, inspiring, and sometimes humorous vision of the life and death of this beyond-influential college.

Photo Credits: Black Mountain College Archives

Location & Attendee Information

  • What are the appropriate ages for this activity?Person Ages 13 and older
  • What type of parking is available?Car Parking & handicap parking available
  • Are restrooms available?Restroom sign Restrooms available
  • Is this an indoor or outdoor activity?Sun Indoor activity
  • What is the policy regarding smoking?Cigarette with smoke No smoking or e-cigarettes
  • What type of ADA accessibility is available?Wheelchair Wheelchair accessible

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