Author Archives: Abe Villarreal

The forgotten sounds of the Mongolian culture will come to life through a unique presentation of throat singing by AnDa Union on Wednesday, September 21 at 7:00 p.m. in Light Hall Theater. AnDa Union is a ten-member group that combines instruments with vocals to deliver sounds considered old and forgotten. The group describes itself as music gatherers, digging deep into Mongol traditions to unearth lost music. A mission of the group is to inspire young Mongols to connect to their past cultures. Many young Mongols do not speak their native language. The group has released two albums, the most recent titled Homeland which was recorded with 14-time Grammy award-winning producer and sound engineer Richard King. Together for 12 years, Anda Union regularly headlines world music events. AnDA Union’s performance will be a special preview of their upcoming participation in the Globalquerque festival on September 23. For more information on Globalquerque, visit...

The drama and unrest that came with the Black Patch Tobacco War of the early 20th century provides the setting for a new novel published by Western New Mexico University history professor Bruce Wilson. A signing will take place at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, September 21 at Tres Rosat restaurant on 304 N. Bullard Street where the title will be available for purchase. Death in the Black Patch is historical fiction and tells the story of a Kentucky-based family in 1906. In a time when tobacco farming was essential for the care and protection of the working family, troubles began when one man created a monopoly forcing others to establish a growers’ association. Wes Wilson is the main character and his interactions with other family members and towns people are loosely based on the author’s real-life relatives who grew up and worked in the small town of Lynnville. “My siblings and I used to love listening to my father tell us stories,” said Wilson. “There was one story that...

Western New Mexico University will be celebrating Homecoming with several days of events culminating with the Mustang Football game on Saturday, October 1. Area organizations including businesses, non-profits, political candidates and schools are invited to register for an entry in the Homecoming Parade, taking place Saturday, October 1 at 10:00 a.m. Lineup for the event begins at 9:00 a.m. at the Grant County courthouse, making its way through historic downtown and ending at the Juan Chacon Building parking lot on campus. Organizations can register by contacting 575-538-6336 or news@wnmu.edu. A tailgate will precede the football game from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Free of charge, groups including restaurants and food vendors can register to sell food and drink items during the three hour event. The Mustang football team will be taking on Midwestern State University at 1:30 p.m. in Ben Altamirano Field. During the game’s halftime activities, alumni from the Athletic Hall...

  A nine-foot red chile pepper sculptor with a big smile is happily greeting visitors at the Miller Library on the Western New Mexico University campus. ‘Ramel’ is the name of the steel and bronze sculpture that is made out of material from ten car hoods found across New Mexico. On loan from Linda Joanou, a metal artist residing in Silver City, Ramel is described by Joanou as quintessentially New Mexican. “I was inspired by living in New Mexico,” said Joanou. “It’s bright, colorful and spicy.” Joanou regularly uses recycled materials in artwork. The steel and bronze were cast on the university campus. The vehicle parts were collected from junkyards throughout the state. Ramel is for sale and accessible to the public during regular Miller Library hours. For more information on the artist, visit...

Western New Mexico University is establishing a new cultural event tradition called The President’s Chamber Music Series with an inaugural event on Tuesday, September 20 in Light Hall at 7:00 p.m with an artist Meet and Greet immediately following the performance. The first event will feature acclaimed violist Willy Sucre and Friends, his string quartet. Sucre is a member of the New Mexico Philharmonic and is the driving force behind the Willy Sucre and Friends concert series. Born in La Paz, Bolivia, Sucre studied at the Conservatorio Nacional de Musica in La Paz; Colby College Chamber Music Institute in Waterville, Maine; Mannes School of Music in New York; and the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore, Maryland. Sucre has been the conductor and music director of the Albuquerque Philharmonic Orchestra, and assistant conductor and principal violist of the Canada Symphony Orchestra in Montreal. His experience also includes extensive chamber music concerts, lectures, school...

Faculty members of the Expressive Arts Department will be showcasing artwork at the McCray Gallery in a new exhibit that will open on Thursday, September 15. The Faculty Art Talk begins at 6:30 p.m. with an Opening Reception at 7:30 p.m. At least seven professors including two emeritus faculty will be showcasing artwork. Current WNMU faculty to display work includes John Abbott, Stacey Heim, Michael Metcalf, Jim Pendergast and Jessica Wilson. The mediums include sculpture, ceramics, painting, printmaking and photography. Emeritus faculty Claude Smith and Cecil Howard will have work on display. The McCray Gallery is located behind the Fine Arts Center...

Acclaimed filmmaker Elise DuRant will present a screening of the award-winning movie Eden on Thursday, September 8 at 7:30 p.m. in Light Hall Theater. Eden is a bilingual film telling the story of nine-year-old Alma, an orphan who is forced to leave Mexico with her artifact-smuggling father, John. Years later, after her father’s death, she returns to Mexico to confront the man responsible for their emigration. The film is loosely based on DuRant’s quest to return to Mexico and find the answers about her father’s life. The film was released in 2014 and received wide acclaim including awards by the Gabriel Figueroa Film Fund and the New York Foundation for the Arts. Eden is the debut feature film by Elise DuRant, a Mexican filmmaker who has edited films directed by Spike Lee and Woody Allen. Since it’s release, Eden has been selected to appear in seven film festivals including the Montclair Film Festival where it received the Grand Jury Prize for the Future/Now...

Mariachi music will be the focus of a three-day event in the Fine Arts Center Theater beginning September 15 on the Western New Mexico University campus. Mariachi workshops will take place on September 15 and 16 for community members to learn about the history and culture of Mariachi music. Area talent will be on hand facilitating the workshops including members of Mariachi Plata of WNMU. The Thursday workshop begins at 9:30 a.m. and the Friday workshop begins at 10:00 a.m. Registration to attend is $45 and includes lunch and admission to concert. Two concert performances on Saturday, September 17 at 2:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. will culminate the weekend. Performers include Mariachi Plata and Raices de America, an El Paso based group. Admission to the concert is $15 for adults, $10 for 12-year-olds and younger, and free to WNMU students with Mustang Card. Tickets are available for purchase at all Food Basket locations, Fort Bayard Credit Union, The Bed Shoppe, Smoke Shoppe, First...

The Board of Regents at Western New Mexico University met on Tuesday at the Silver City campus for one of its four quarterly meetings of the year. Regent members discussed several items including the university’s plan to address accreditation in 2018. WNMU’s accreditation was reaffirmed in 2014 and has now begun a ten-year process for its next accreditation affirmation under the Open Pathway option for accreditation. WNMU is accredited through the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) and is preparing for an initial assurance argument document report to the organization in September of 2018. A presentation by Dr. Jack Crocker, Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs, included information on the university’s new distinction goals. Regent members previously established new areas of distinction and enhancers. The areas of distinction are (1) logistics/delivery, (2) drone certification and (3) applied liberal arts. The enhancers are (1) rural healthcare, (2) rural education,...

A recently presented review study on the relationship between news coverage and mass shootings in America has garnered international attention to a Western New Mexico University professor and graduate student. The 25-page review was originally presented at the annual American Psychological Association convention in August by Dr. Jennifer Johnston, WNMU Professor of Psychology, and Andrew Joy, graduate student in Interdisciplinary Studies. “More than summarizing, we unified a number of bodies of research to argue for the existence of homicide contagion,” said Johnston. The review sampled research from five fields of study: criminology, psychology, sociology, communications, and public health. They arrived at the conclusion that there is a probable connection between the rise of mass shootings and the media coverage of those events. “We began by defining the term mass shooter as an individual that either attempted or successfully killed three or more people,” said...