Ferris In Focus:
The Work of William R. Ferris

Thursday, November 11

Exhibit viewing 5:00 p.m.
Remarks by William Ferris, 5:30 p.m.
Manuscripts Reading Room
4th floor, Wilson Library
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

The career of folklorist William R. Ferris spans four decades. In the 1960s, he began documenting African American traditional arts in his home state of Mississippi. From the 1970s to the late 1990s Ferris taught at Jackson State University in Mississippi. During this time he documented the lives and work of southern artists; and published numerous articles, books and films. He helped found the Center for Southern Folklore in Memphis and the Center for the Study of Southern Culture at the University of Mississippi. In 1997 President Bill Clinton appointed Ferris to serve as chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities, a position he held until 2001. Ferris is currently on the faculty at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and is Senior Associate Director of the Center for the Study of the American South. The artists highlighted in this exhibit represent the breadth of Ferris's work and career.