Archaeology & Photography

Ortwin Dally, secretary general of the German Archaeological Institute in Berlin, will lecture on "Archaeology and Photography" Friday, Jan. 15, at 6:30 p.m. in Sage Chapel.

Dally is director of the Taganrog field expedition in southern Russia, and since 2005 has been conducting a field project in cooperation with the Berlin Collection of Antiquities in the Faustina Baths at Miletus, Turkey.

His talk is presented by the Department of the History of Art and Visual Studies and the Archaeological Institute of America, Finger Lakes Chapter. The lecture is open to the public; a reception will follow in the Ruth Woolsey Findley History of Art Gallery, G22 Goldwin Smith Hall.

New at the Johnson

The Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art will highlight recent work by artist James Siena '79, one of several new exhibitions opening this month.

"James Siena: From the Studio," on display Jan. 16-April 18, features a personal selection of work from Siena's studio; works by contemporaries he has traded for and bought; examples from his collection of antique typewriters and calculating machines; and a series of sculptures in progress. Siena will discuss his work on campus and receive the 2009-10 Eissner Artist of the Year Award from the Cornell Council for the Arts April 16.

Also opening Jan. 16: "In Your Face: Contemporary Portrait Photography" through March 21, featuring work by Thomas Ruff, Nikki Lee and Sally Mann; "forever is never" by Sam Jury, M.F.A. '98, featuring her larger-than-life-size animated portraiture through March 28; "Carolee Schneemann: Interior Scroll," through April 11; and "An Earthly Paradise: The Art of Living at the French Renaissance Court," through April 18, with prints, books, manuscripts and portraits from Cornell Library's Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections.

Upcoming exhibitions include "Modern Japanese Studio Ceramics," Jan. 30-March 21; and "Topography in Translation: Navigating Modern Chinese Landscapes," Feb. 13-March 28.

Ending soon: The biennial Cornell Art Faculty exhibition, through Jan. 17, and video artist Omer Fast's "Looking Pretty for God (After G.W.)," through Jan. 24. Admission is free. Two Naked Guys Café is closed for winter break and reopens Jan. 25.

Light in Winter highlights

Cornell will host several events during the 2010 Light in Winter Festival, being held Jan. 21-24 at multiple locations in Ithaca.

The festival celebrates science and the arts, showcasing cutting-edge ideas with more than 20 events.

Highlights include "Of Sound Mind," Jan. 23 in Statler Auditorium, with Frederic Chiu demonstrating a holistic understanding of the art of piano playing on a unique hybrid piano. "Living with Chance," Jan. 24 at 3 p.m. in Statler, with natural resources researcher Jody Enck and musician Ron Riddle, explores the bond that Riddle and his wife, Andrea, formed with a timber wolf they adopted. Tickets for these events are $10.

"Sexing the Demon" entwines chance, choice and the future of nanotechnology in a presentation by Cornell physicist Paul McEuen and electronic music by microbiologist Sharinne Sukhnanand (aka DJ Laika), Jan. 24 in Statler.

The State Theatre hosts contemporary Jewish music group The Klezmatics on Jan. 23 ($25); and Spherus on Jan. 22, with juggler (and Cirque de Soleil member) Greg Kennedy and two aerial acrobats ($20). Kennedy, a trained engineer, will present "The Kinetics of Juggling" Jan. 23 at 11 a.m. in Statler Auditorium ($10).

National Audubon Society conservationist Steve Kress (who teaches a popular Cornell field ornithology course) presents "The Sweet Voiced Bird Has Flown," Jan. 23 at the Lab of Ornithology, with artwork by local artists showing 20 bird species in decline; free. "Structural Intuitions in Art, Science and Technology," with art historian Martin Kemp, Jan. 23 at 1 p.m. in Statler, is also free.

Other free events include the Hall of Wonders, Jan. 23-24 in Statler; "Flowers in Winter," art and a lecture, Jan. 24 in Mann Library; "The Calculus of Friendship" with applied mathematics professor Steve Strogatz, Jan. 23 in Statler; "One of a Kind," showing how nature creates beauty out of thin air, Jan. 24 in Statler; and Johnson Museum tours Jan. 21-22.

Information and tickets: http://lightinwinter.com/.

Soup and Hope

Community members will share stories of hope and compassionate efforts toward lasting social change in the free series "Soup and Hope," every other Wednesday at noon in Sage Chapel, beginning Jan. 20 with guest speaker Moji Olaniyan.

The series is offered as an opportunity to come in from the midday cold and find nourishment for mind, body and spirit. The public and the Cornell community are invited to bring a bowl and come inside for steaming soup with hearty bread and to hear guest speakers and musical interludes. Scheduled speakers include Paula Younger, Feb. 3; Kate Speizer, March 3; James Casey, March 17; Edward Arnold, March 31; and Kathleen Rourke, April 14. There is no program Feb. 17. For information, e-mail jh115@cornell.edu or visit http://www.curw.cornell.edu/SoupandHope2010_1.html.

The events are co-sponsored by Cornell United Religious Work (CURW), Cornell Dining, the Center for Transformative Action, CU Wellness, the Department of Music, Division of Human Resources, the Employee Assembly and Gannett Health Services.

Go no Furthur

All tickets for Furthur, a concert Feb. 14 in Barton Hall with Bob Weir and Phil Lesh of the Grateful Dead, are sold out. The Cornell Concert Commission has announced The Flaming Lips for April 18 in Barton; tickets go on sale to students Feb. 16. Information: http://www.cornell-concert.com.