New York University will host this year’s Marshall McLuhan Lecture for the first time, featuring David Byrne, visual artist and musician, formerly of the group Talking Heads. The Marshall McLuhan Lecture celebrates the intellectual legacy of the Canadian media guru and scholar who declared “the medium is the message.” A visionary himself, Byrne will deliver “I Love PowerPoint,” homage to the medium as a visual art form and creative tool.
The Marshall McLuhan Lecture is presented by NYU Steinhardt’s Department of Culture and Communication, the Canadian Consulate General, and the McLuhan family. The event will take place Wednesday, March 2, at 6:30 p.m. at NYU’s Kimmel Center, Eisner and Lubin Auditorium, 60 Washington Square South between Thompson Street and LaGuardia Place. The event is free and open to the public; RSVPs are required by calling 212.596.1660. Better known as the co-founder of the group Talking Heads, Byrne has been creating visual art for more than 25 years and has exhibited at the Pace/McGill Gallery in New York City. Byrne has been described as having the ability to elevate “the mundane to the level of art, creating icons out of everyday materials to find the sacred in the profane.” Previous McLuhan lecturers include prize-winning Canadian filmmaker Atom Egoyan, Harper’s Magazine editor Lewis P. Lapham, author Tom Wolfe, feminist academic and author Camille Paglia, former California Governor Jerry Brown, and high-tech inventor and thinker Alan Kay.
Media interested in attending the 2005 Marshall McLuhan Lecture should contact Kristin Wallace of Todomundo, Ltd. at todomundo@attglobal.net or 212-255-2408.
Editor’s note
NYU’s Steinhardt School is a rich source of ground-breaking scholarship on issues of national and global significance and innovation in research, teaching, practice, and performance. The School prepares students to be educators, health professionals, counselors and psychologists, academics, musicians, artists, communication specialists, and policy analysts. The Steinhardt School values its location in New York City, where it is engaged in research, partnerships, and community service aimed at improving urban life and the city’s institutions.