Wichita State University's Ulrich Museum of Art is partnering with various Wichita organizations to host events throughout February, including a community symposium showcasing Gordon Parks' work; a Writing Now, Reading Now author; and local filmmaker R. G. Miller. The events are free and open to the public.

Friday, Feb. 12:

• 3 p.m., 210 McKnight Art Center: Bob Workman, director of the Ulrich Museum of Art will begin the community symposium showcasing three Wichita museum partnerships with exhibitions devoted to Gordon Parks. Parks, a Kansas native, is one of the most celebrated African American artists of his time.
• 3:15 p.m., 210 McKnight Art Center: Houston-based artist Jamal Cyrus will present “When Images are Deployed,” a description of his understanding of the political, psychological and spiritual deployment of imagery within our society.
• 4:15 p.m., 210 McKnight Art Center: Julia Brown, assistant professor of painting at George Washington University, will discuss work from her current exhibition at the Ulrich Museum of Art, “The Swim.”
• 5:15 p.m., Ulrich Museum of Art: Reception and exhibition viewing.
• 6 p.m., CAC Theater: John Edwin Mason, associate professor of history at the University of Virginia, will illustrate the ways Parks employed photography and prose as tools through which he attempted to collapse the space between the promise and the reality of the “American Dream.”

Saturday, Feb. 13:

• 2 p.m., Wichita Art Museum, 1400 W. Museum Blvd.: Patricia McDonnell, director of the Wichita Art Museum, will begin the second portion of the community symposium showcasing three Wichita museum partnerships with exhibitions devoted to Gordon Parks.
• 2:15 p.m., Wichita Art Museum: Galyn Vesey, retired WSU professor of public affairs, presents “Black Wichita,” discussing his current research for the book project, “Black Wichita: 1945-1958.”
• 3 p.m., Wichita Art Museum: Karen Haas, curator of photography at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, will examine Parks’ photographs and their meaning.
• 4 p.m., Wichita Art Museum: Martin A. Berger, professor of history, art and visual culture at the University of California at Santa Cruz, will explore the change of discriminatory practices through action; a crucial aspect of the Civil Rights era.
• 5-6 p.m., Wichita Art Museum: Reception and exhibition viewing.

Wednesday, Feb. 17:

• 10:30 a.m., Ulrich Museum of Art: DIY filmmaker R. G. Miller will speak on his life-long passion for filmmaking. Miller won the Golden Strands Vanguard Award for Dedication to the Craft of Filmmaking and the subject of his documentary “Double Digits: The Story of a Neighborhood Movie Star,” which showed at the 2015 Tallgrass Film Festival. Refreshments will be served at 10 a.m.

Saturday, Feb. 20:

• 1-3 p.m., Ulrich Museum of Art: Children of all ages are invited to explore the photographs of Kansas-born photographer Gordon Parks through story, music and art projects.

Sunday, Feb. 21:

• 1 p.m., 233 Rhatigan Student Center: The Ulrich Museum is partnering with KMUW FM and the WSU Department of History to celebrate the 50th anniversary of poet Allen Ginsberg’s 1966 trip through Wichita. A panel discussion on the history and importance of Ginsberg’s three-week stay will precede the first reading of his poem, “Wichita Vortex Sutra.”

Wednesday, Feb. 24:

• 3:30 p.m., Ulrich Museum of Art: Beauvais Lyons, chancellors’ professor at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, will speak about contemporary artists who have mocked the authority of the academy, the museum, science, history and commerce through painting, print, sculpture, ceramics, photography and design.

Thursday, Feb. 25:

• 6 p.m., Ulrich Museum of Art: Michele Battiste, WSU alumna and author of six volumes of poetry, will speak for Writing Now, Reading Now on her published work.