Historian and folklorist William Ferris will take the audience on a journey through the American South, focusing on its rich traditions of music, literature and storytelling. He will share his photographs of Southern artists and talk about his travels through the worlds that inspired their work.

In addition, he will show his film, "Four Women Artists," giving viewers an intimate portrait of Eudora Welty and three folk artists from the South. Finally, Dr. Ferris will bring Southern music to life as he performs blues, country and rock and roll songs with his guitar.

Lecturer:  William R. Ferris is the Joel R. Williamson Eminent Professor of history at UNC and an adjunct professor in the curriculum in folklore. He is the senior associate director of the Center for the Study of the American South, and is widely recognized as a leader in Southern studies, African-American music and folklore. Dr. Ferris served as chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities (1997-2001), and prior to his role at the NEH, he was the founding director of the Center for the Study of Southern Culture at the University of Mississippi, where he was a faculty member for 18 years. Dr. Ferris has written and edited 11 books and created 14 documentary films dealing with Southern topics, many of which focus on African-American music and Mississippi Delta arts and culture. He co-edited the Pulitzer Prize-nominated "Encyclopedia of Southern Culture," which contains entries on every aspect of Southern life and is widely recognized as a major reference work linking popular, folk and academic cultures. His most recent book "Give My Poor Heart Ease: Voices of the Mississippi Blues" (to be published fall 2009 by UNC Press) features stories, photographs, field recordings and films from Ferris's work with artists including B.B. King, Willie Dixon and James Thomas during the 1960s and ´70s.  William Ferris and his wife, Marcie Cohen Ferris, will serve as enrichment lecturers on our America's Historic Shores and Canada's Maritime Provinces trip.

For more information, to be added to our mailing list or to register by phone, contact Ann-Louise Aguiar '76 at (919) 962-3574 or ccll@unc.edu.