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a12 people & arts
Saturday 7 May 2022

How does it f-e-e-e-e-l? Bob Dylan

museum opening in Tulsa

life's work end up in Okla-
homa?
He's never seemed the nos-
talgic type, but Dylan rec-
ognized early that his work
could have historical inter-
est and value, Jenkins said.
Together with his team, he
put aside boxes full of ar-
tifacts, including photos,
rare recordings and hand-
written lyrics that show how
his songs went through revi-
sions and rewrites.
With use of those lyrics, two
of the early displays will
Steven Jenkins, director of the Bob Dylan Center and archive,
poses for a photo at the archive wall, Thursday, May 5, 2022, in focus on how the songs
Tulsa, Okla. "Jokerman" and "Tangled
Associated Press Up in Blue" took shape
— the latter with lyrics so
By DAVID BAUDER nedy assassination and ce- elastic that Dylan was still
AP Media Writer lebrity, is as quietly stunning changing verses after the
NEW YORK (AP) — El- as "Like a Rolling Stone" was song had been released.
vis Costello, Patti Smith nearly a half-century ago, Dylan sold his archive in
and Mavis Staples will be even if he's no longer at the 2016 to the Tulsa-based
among the dignitaries ex- center of popular culture. George Kaiser Family Foun-
pected in Tulsa, Oklaho- The center offers an immer- dation, which also oper-
ma, this weekend for the sive film experience, per- ates the Woody Guthrie
opening of the Bob Dylan formance space, a studio Center — a museum that
Center, the museum and where visitors can play pro- celebrates one of Dylan's
archive celebrating the ducer and "mix" different musical heroes and is only
Nobel laureate's work. elements of instrumenta- steps away from the new
Dylan himself won't be tion in Dylan's songs and a Dylan center.
among them, unless he sur- curated tour where people Dylan likes the Guthrie mu-
prises everyone. can take a musical jour- seum, and also appreci-
The center's subject and ney through the stages of ates Tulsa's rich holdings of
namesake has an open his career. The archive has Native American art, Jen-
invitation to come any- more than 100,000 items, kins said. Much of that is
time, although his absence many accessed only by on display at another new
seems perfectly in charac- scholars through appoint- facility, the Gilcrease Muse-
ter, said Steven Jenkins, the ment. um, which is also the world's
center's director. Oddly, Museum creators said they largest holding of art of the
Dylan was just in Tulsa three wanted to build an experi- American West.
weeks ago for a date on his ence both for casual visi- "I think it's going to be a true
concert tour, sandwiched tors who might not know tourist draw to Tulsa for all
in between Oklahoma City much of Dylan's work and the right reasons," said Tulsa
and Little Rock, Arkansas. for the truly fanatical — the Mayor G. T. Bynum. "This is
He didn't ask for a look skimmers, the swimmers one of the great musicians
around. and the divers, said design- in the history of humankind
"I don't want to put words er Alan Maskin of the firm and everyone who wants
in his mouth," Jenkins said. Olson Kundig. to study his career and see
"I can only guess at his rea- The museum hopes to cele- the evolution of his talent
soning. Maybe he would brate the creative process will be drawn to it."
find it embarrassing." in general, and at open- Bynum hopes that it also
It's certainly unusual for a ing will have an exhibit of encourages others who
living figure — Dylan is due the work of photographer may someday want to put
to turn 81 on May 24 — to Jerry Schatzberg, whose their archives on display,
have a museum devoted 1965 image of Dylan is em- and make Tulsa a center
to him, but such is the shad- blazoned on the building's for the study of modern
ow he has cast over popu- three-story facade. American music.
lar music since his emer- Since Dylan's still creating, Dylan designed and built
gence in the early 1960s. "we're going to continue a 16-foot-high metal sculp-
He's still working, perform- to play catch-up" with him, ture that will be displayed
ing onstage in a show de- Jenkins said. at the entrance to the
voted primarily to his most So for a figure who was museum. Otherwise, he
recent material. born and raised in Minne- had nothing to do with the
And he's still pushing the sota, came of musical age museum's design and de-
envelope. "Murder Most in New York and now lives clined, through a spokes-
Foul," Dylan's nearly 17-min- in California, how does a man, to offer a comment
ute rumination on the Ken- museum devoted to his about the opening.q