In his essay “The Power of Place in Art and Literature,” the artist William Dunlap writes, “The one constant in American art and life is the land.” In this talk, William Dunlap and Ralph Eubanks will discuss the connection between the landscape of the American South and the ways light and landscape connect with his art and literature.

William Dunlap is an artist, arts advocate, and writer. The American landscape, its flora and fauna, are essential elements in Dunlap’s art, as are certain iconic Old Masters, such as Rembrandt’s series of self-portraits, from which he quotes in paintings and constructions. In a career spanning more than half a century, Dunlap has exhibited internationally and appears in numerous public and private collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the National Gallery of Art, the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, and the Mississippi Museum of Art.

Ralph Eubanks is the Black Power at Ole Miss Faculty Fellow at the Center for the Study of Southern Culture. He is the author of A Place Like Mississippi: A Journey through a Real and Imagined Literary Landscape, as well as two other works of nonfiction.

This SouthTalk is cosponsored by the University Museum.

SouthTalks is a series of events (including lectures, performances, film screenings, and panel discussions) that explores the interdisciplinary nature of Southern Studies. This series is free and open to the public, and typically takes place in the Tupelo Room of Barnard Observatory unless otherwise noted. Visit https://southernstudies.olemiss.edu for current information about all Center events. During the 2023–24 academic year, the programming theme is “Creativity in the South.”