CASSI TONEY
NORMAN – Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art welcomed approximately
600 students and members of the Norman community to the
bi-annual student opening party on campus Tuesday night.
FJJMA hosted a student opening party and a concert for its newest exhibition, “The James T. Bialac Native American Art
Collection.” The collection
is composed of 4,000 pieces of art from indigenous cultures across North
America, according to the website.
“The Bialac Collection is from the later part of
the 20th century,” said Jessica Farling, coordinator of academic
programs at FJJMA. “A lot of the artists are still alive and are coming to campus
this week to speak or have demonstrations.”
Farling said the collector, James T. Bialac, will
also be on campus this week, which is a really rare opportunity.
“I’d love to talk to Vincent Van Gogh about his
work, but this collection is so exciting because it’s contemporary,” Farling
said. “The artists are still
working. For me, that’s really
exciting, and I hope that students see that.”
The museum targeted OU students to get them
interested in the collections of art on campus, Farling said.
“The party is an exhibition opening for students
only, like a sort of sneak peak of our new artwork,” Farling said. “We want to provide an opportunity for
them to enjoy the special exhibit and try to get them to come back.”
She said the event is elegant for students if
they want to dress up and look at art in a formal atmosphere. The two concerts after the party were
more laid back and attracted different kinds of students.
Farling said FJJMA partnered with the Campus
Activities Council for the first time to host two concerts.
Approximately 300 people sat on blankets on the
lawn of the museum to listen to Milo Greene open for The Walkmen at 7 p.m.
He said he went to the student opening party
briefly and then stayed for the concert.
“The concert had a good audience, very small and
personal,” Vo said. “The genre was perfect for this kind of event.”
Jake Smith, an OU alumnus, said he had never
visited the FJJMA, but he enjoyed the concert.
“It was a laid-back, cool audience and an arm-chair
atmosphere where everyone had a good time,” Smith said.
The FJJMA began hosting student opening parties each
semester in 2008, according to Farling.