UNC Asheville Hosts Two Talks by Preeminent Nature Writer Barry Lopez October 19-20

UNC Asheville will host two talks by Barry Lopez, one of America’s preeminent nature writers, October 19-20. Both events are open to the public.

Lopez will be the inaugural speaker in the University’s new Distinguished Speaker Series. He will speak on and read from his 2004 book “Resistance” at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 19, at UNC Asheville’s Lipinsky Auditorium. A book signing will follow. General admission tickets are $12; $8 for UNC Asheville faculty, staff and alumni; N.C. Center for Creative Retirement members; Western Carolina University students, faculty and staff; sponsors and all area students; or $5 UNC Asheville students. To order tickets by phone, call UNC Asheville’s Highsmith University Union Box Office at 828/232-5000.

In addition, Lopez will give the keynote address for UNC Asheville’s “Shaping Reality: Technology’s Impact on Culture and Perception” series at 12:15 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 20, in Lipinsky Auditorium. Lopez will share his keen interest in and observations on the natural world and discuss the sometimes devastating effects of the intersection of science and culture. General admission tickets for this event are $8 and will be sold only at the door.

Lopez has been heralded as “the nation’s premier nature writer” by the San Francisco Chronicle. Often compared to Henry David Thoreau, Lopez’s non-fiction writing examines the relationship between human culture and physical landscape, while his fiction addresses issues of intimacy, ethics and identity. He is best known as the author of “Arctic Dreams,” for which he received the prestigious National Book Award. Among his other non-fiction books are “About This Life” and “Of Wolves and Men,” which was a National Book Award finalist. He is also the author of several award-winning works of fiction, including “Field Notes,” “Winter Count” and “Crow and Weasel.”

For more information, call UNC Asheville’s Highsmith University Union Box Office at 828/232-5000 or click on www.unca.edu/culturalarts/.

Media Contacts:

• Barbara Halton-Subkis, UNC Asheville Cultural & Special Events Director, 828/251-6674
• Jill Yarnall, UNC Asheville Public Information Assistant Director, 828/251-6526