Black Mountain and Beyond: The Modernist Movement in North Carolina, 1930-1970

Though North Carolina is often thought of as part of the “traditional” Old South, a vibrant and influential Modernist Movement in art, architecture, and design flourished in the state during the mid-twentieth century. Fostered by institutions such as Black Mountain College, NCSU, UNC-Greensboro, UNC-Chapel Hill, the North Carolina Museum of Art, and Research Triangle Park, the movement reflected aesthetically the dynamic tension in the state’s society and culture as it emerged to become a leader of the so-called “New South.” As important nationally and internationally as the Modernist Movements in New York, the greater Chicago are, and Southern California, this influential period in North Carolina’s history has the added significance of coinciding with the Civil Rights Movement and fundamental socio-economic change in the state. This profusely illustrated presentation provides a fascinating overview of North Carolina’s Modernist Movement within the context of the era, including images of numerous Modernist houses and public buildings by architects such as George Matsumoto, Eduardo Catalano, Milton Small, and Edward Loewenstein; works by award-winning artists including George Bireline, Claude Howell, Edith London, Gregory Ivy, and others; furniture designs by Frank Lloyd Wright and Milo Baughman manufactured by Heritage Henredon and Thayer-Coggin; and even Modernist ceramics made by the traditional Cole pottery families of Sanford and Seagrove.