So What!
The Artistry of Miles Davis

March 12-June 4, 2016

Opening Reception: 
Saturday, March 12, 3:00-6:00pm

So What! 

Featuring live opening concert on Saturday 3/12 from 3:30-5:30pm by Project World Drum bringing together drummers and trumpeter Dr. Alfonse White, along with  electronic instruments to experiment with the Miles sounds during his fusion years in the 70s and 80s.

8th Annual Exhibition in WGSAC’s African-American Composers Exhibition & Music Education Series

Gallery Hours: Tues-Sat 12-5pm beginning 3/15

A creative innovator, Miles Davis is an improviser and composer, a painter and master practitioner of the trumpet—an artist whose work evolved with the times to influence multiple genres, from jazz to funk to hip-hop to rock and roll. This exhibit of archival recordings, magazine articles, concert posters, original photographs, and a significant discography covers the life, work, and innovation of jazz master Miles Davis across eras from bebop and the birth of cool to electric experimentation and beyond. The materials are drawn from the significant Alden Kimbrough Collection including a discography of over 107 LPs, as well as 15 78s and 8 33s. There are selected items from the collection of Billie Green as well as artwork by Ramsess, Norm Maxwell, and ShirtKingFade.

Mural portraits by AISE and Patrick H. Johnson, and walls by the show’s curator, Ami Motevalli, create an immersive environment for the archival display. 

Miles Davis is this year’s focus for The Center’s Annual African-American Composers Series. Now in its 8th year, the series celebrates the life and work of African-American composers each spring. Combining community archives with original artwork and music education, past exhibitions include Love You Madly: A Portrait of Duke Ellington (2015), Arkestry of the Cosmos: The Universe Language of Sun Ra (2013), Deeds Not Words: The Life and Work of Max Roach and Abbey Lincoln (2012), and A New Day: Nina Simone (2011)

The music of Miles Davis is also being presented as So What! African-American Heritage Music and Art Education Program. The 8-week free education series begins March 15. Visit our Classes page for details.