NewsRandy Eli Grothe, Guest Lecturer of the 20th Summer Photography Programs Dallas- In its 20th year of presenting the Guest Lecture Series the Artist & Elaine Thornton Foundation For the Arts, Inc. proudly announces that former Dallas Morning News Staff Photographer Randy Eli Grothe is this year's Guest Lecturer. His career spans more than 30 years. He will take the lectern in the Horchow Auditorium at the Dallas Museum of Art on Saturday August 14th beginning at 11:30 Am. The public is invited to attend and check out his fascinating experiences behind the camera. Admission is free, and announcements of this year's winners of the Gordon Parks Young Photographers Competition will happen following the Guest Lecture Series program. The NEW deadline for entries accepted is August 1st. As his biographical information explains: Randy Eli Grothe was born and raised in Pasadena, Texas. He graduated from TCU in 1974, majoring in English and Journalism. He began working as a photographer at The Dallas Morning News in 1975, replacing Jack Beers, who shot the famous photograph of the moment before Lee Harvey Oswald’s death. For 34 years, he worked at The Dallas Morning News as a staff photographer, shooting black-and-white, Kodachrome, color negative and finally digital. Along the way, he also wrote to accompany many of his photo stories. In his last three years at the paper, he shot digital video for the paper’s website. In addition to local coverage over the years, Randy has photographed across Texas and the Southwest, Russia, Mexico, Guatemala, and Nicaragua while on assignment for The Dallas Morning News. Randy’s work has been honored by the Associated Press, United Press International, the Dallas Press Club, the National Press Photographers Association, Pictures of the Year, and World Press. His picture story “The Lone Roll To The Top” about wheelchair-bound climbers traveling to the summit of Texas’ highest mountain won the prestigious Robert F. Kennedy Award for Coverage of the Disadvantaged in 1983. Randy lives in Dallas with his wife Christie, who is a teacher and an occupational therapist. His son Jackson is a musician playing Texas Country around the state. His daughter Elena is a photo editor for Major League Baseball’s website. Randy is currently freelancing photography and video in the Dallas area. In his spare time he writes country music lyrics for his son. Conclusion of 19th Summer Photography Programs with Gail Nogle a Success In a packed Horchow Auditorium at the Dallas Museum of Art award winning photographer Gail Nogle gave an inspiring presentation as this year's Guest Lecturer. Ms. Nogle impressed her audience of students, photographers aspiring artists, friends and admirers with her photographs from her earliest days after she was given a gift of a camera at the age of eight. From that time forward, she knew she was going to be a photographer. She discovered her inclination to work favorably with the youngsters and she drew out of them the best portraits and group photos that anyone can imagine. She instilled into the students of the RC Hickman Young Photographers Workshop and the contestants of the Gordon Parks Young Photographers Competition the common sense and know how to ask people if they can photograph them. Gail traveled the world as she presented through her images Queen Elizabeth of England and Prince Charles and family at Princess Di's homegoing event, photos of the Shakers, people and terrain of India and Africa and many other places around the world. She described how she photographed such memorable photos of mother and child, settings of musicians and dancers, illustrating her gift of talent in the vast world of photography. She proved an inspiration to all. After the lecture presentation winners of this year's Gordon Parks Young Photographers Competition were announced and prizes of $300 for first place, $200 for second place and $100 for third place were awarded to Margalit Slovin, with her photo of movement down river,     Students of the RC Hickman Young Photographers Workshop. Photo taken by Gail Nogle.  Honorable mention went to Keith Jarvis with his photo of an Tanzanian child affectionately reaching to be picked up. The photos of the RC Hickman Young Photographers Workshop and the winning photos of the Gordon Parks Young Photographers Competition will be on display in an exhibition in the Bookends Bookstore at the downtown branch of the Dallas Public Library beginning on August 7th. For more information visit www.artiststuff.com Special thanks go to this year's sponsors of these worthy programs: Bob Malish and Canon, the City of Dallas Office of Cultural Affairs, Mountain View College, Mr. Levi Davis, the Dallas Morning News, the Dallas Examiner and patrons like you. Special thanks go to the finest photography instructors in the Metroplex: Irwin Thompson, Carl Sidle, Charles Little, Milton Hinnant, Jesse Hornbuckle and Beatrice McBride. The RC Hickman Young Photographers Workshop, the Gordon Parks Young Photographers Competition and the Guest Lecture Series is presented each year by the Artist and Elaine Thornton Foundation for the Arts, Inc. The 2nd Annual Irma P. Hall Theater Festival Underway!  Dallas - Join us for the second annual Irma P. Hall Theater Festival taking place at A. Maceo Smith High School on Saturday April 19th at 9am. The location is at 3030 Stag Rd. It promises to be an exciting program. Community organizations are partnering with DISD in presenting a day of staged acts of drama, comedy, and tragedy. There will be judging for Best Ensemble, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor and Actress, Best Play, and Best Set. Ms. Mackie Spradley, Instructional Specialist, Fine and Performing Arts and Dr. Elaine Thomas Executive Director Fine and Performing Arts of Dallas ISD, are the coordinators. The first Irma P. Hall Theater Festival 2007 was a golden moment to watch students construct the sets, set up various scenes, perform the scenes and, in the theater term, "strike" the set, that is dismantle the set so that the next student group can take the stage. The awards, called the Irmas were awarded to the winners during a special evening program. Irma P. Hall, a former educator with the Dallas Independent School District, upon retirement took to the stage and ventured into the world of theater which took her to an expanse of venues throughout the U.S, where she won much acclaim for her roles in "A Raisin in the Sun", "Zooman and the Sign", among many more. Irma garnered roles in the television and motion picture industry as well, working with many notable actors like Robert Duvall and James Earl Jones in "A Family Thing", Jamie Foxx and Tom Cruise in "Collateral", Martin Lawrence "Nothing to Lose", "Soul Food" and she worked opposite Tom Hanks in "The Lady Killers", in a role that won her the prestigious Cannes Film Festival award for Best Female Actress. She was recognized by the state for her achievements as an artist when she was inducted into the Texas Hall of Fame. Partnering organizations with the Dallas Independent School District for the Irma P. Hall Theater Festival are Dr. Harry Robinson and the African American Museum, Willie H. Minor, Citizens Committee to Save Our Children, C. B. and Doris Rice, Toothpick productions, independent writers and founders Artist & Elaine Thornton, and the Artist & Elaine Thornton Foundation for the Arts, Inc. There is no admission to the Irma P. Hall Theater Festival, but donations will be accepted. Come on out for an educational and entertaining time. For more information please call 214-565-9026, ext. 311. Aint nothing but a party!Dallas - Caught on the scene at a lively party in Dallas recently. The jazz ambassador trumpet musician Wynton Marsalis and the Thornton Foundation's Dr. Artist Thornton Jr. ham it up at Sandaga Market, a popular art and jazz spotin the Dallas Metroplex.  PHOTO: Courtesy of the Thornton Foundation Gordon Parks Young Photographers Competition Winners Announced:Season of Photography Programs Conclude  The RC Hickman Young Photographers Workshop and the Gordon Parks Young Photographers Competition has concluded the Artist & Elaine Thornton Foundation for the Arts’ summer programming season. Students took photographs of some of Dallas’ historic landmarks and celebrations, enjoying the camaraderie of fellow student photographers at lunchtime. The emphasis this year was on digital photography and how to take the best photos and manipulate them on computer. Students were twice inspired at Guest Lecturer Irwin Thompson, this year’s Pulitzer Prize Winner, who shared his breath taking experiences on his coverage of the New Orleans disaster in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. David Parks shared some poignant moments as a professional in the world of film working with his father the late Sir Gordon Parks. Questions were answered in his frank manner regarding career, choice of equipment, and plain how to’s of film and photography.  Dr.Thornton and First Place Winner: Andrew Hefter This year’s winners of the Gordon Parks Young Photographers Competition are: First place Andrew Hefter, age 16 Second Place Haley Arrington, age 13 and Third place Nick Jordan, 14 years old. Each were awarded prizes of $300, $200 and $100. Congratulations! The 2006 RC Hickman Young Photographer's Workshop Begins Saturday June 3rd at Mountain View College of DCCCD
Pultizer Prize Winning Photographer: Irwin Thompson Senior Staff Photographer Irwin Thompson joined The Dallas Morning News photojournalism staff in April 1990. Before coming to Dallas, he was a staff photographer for the New Orleans Times-Picayune (1987-90) and the Monroe (LA) News-Star (1984-87). Mr. Thompson has received numerous awards, including recognitions from The Texas Associated Press, the Louisiana Associated Press, the Texas Headliners, the Press Club of Dallas Katie Award and the National Press Photographers Association. He recently was among The News’ team of eight photojournalists that won the 2006 Pulitzer Prize in Breaking News Photography for its gripping images showing the pain, chaos and suffering that ensued after Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans. Mr. Thompson, 45, was born in Lake Charles, Louisiana and grew up in nearby DeRidder. He graduated in 1984 from the University of Louisiana at Monroe with a B.A. degree in photojournalism. The Gordon Parks Center for Culture and Diversity Sir Gordon Parks The Gordon Parks Center for Culture and Diversity is approaching the half way mark in raising the necessary funding needed to complete the facility that will house Gordon's memorabilia, i.e., his books, music, poetry and photos. Your help is needed to achieve this important goal that will inspire and stimulate youth learning of photography and the artistic disciplines that inspired Gordon Parks to achieve his mission in his life. For more information on how to contribute to the Gordon Parks Center for Culture and Diversity please contact:
Jill Warford, Executive Director Thornton Foundation Boardmembers Celebrate Artist & Elaine Thornton Foundation for the Arts boardmembers were celebrating at a special event. Comer Cottrell's new book "Comer Cottrell: A Story That Will Inspire Future Entrepreneurs" is on sale at area bookstores all across the country. Congratulating Comer (c) is Artist Thornton and Dr. Ralph Ferguson, PhD. Gordon Parks: Half Past Autumn Reception At The Dallas Museum Of Art Munson Steed, publisher of Rolling Out Magazine (L) hosted a closing reception recently for the exhibition Gordon Parks Half Past Autumn: Selections From the Corcoran Gallery of Art Collection. Among friends and admirers of Gordon Parks are Betty Switzer, Director of the City Of Dallas Office Of Cultural Affairs, John Paul Batiste, former Executive Director of the Texas Commission on the Arts, and Rosalyn Walker, Dallas Museum of Art. photo by Artist Thornton.  Dr. Roscoe Smith of Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson's Office and Dr. Artist Thornton, Executive Director of the Thornton Foundation, visit during the reception. Winners of the 2005 Gordon Parks Young Photographers Competition Announced!!! Mr. David Parks & Al McKeethen: 1st Place Winner of $300  Elaine Thornton & Michael DeMatteo: 2nd Place Winner of $200  Elaine Thornton & Christina Mullen: 3rd Place Winner of $100 2005 Young Photographer's Workshop Program: A Huge Success!!!! Summer 2005 RC Hickman Students and teachers at the closing ceremonies.    A few outstanding students receiving awards during the ceremonies of the 2005 RC Hickman Young Photographer's Workshop Program. Dr. Artist Thornton presents (from left to right) Jasmine Thornton, Chris Henry, and Devante Jones their photographs and awards for participation! 2005 Young Photographer's Workshop Guest Lecturer Series
Saturday July 30th at 11am to 2pm David Parks, author, film maker and son of famed photographer Gordon Parks, will be this year’s Guest Lecturer for the conclusion of the Young Photographers Programs. The programs comprise the RC Hickman Young Photographers Workshop and the Gordon Parks Young Photographers Competition. Both programs are presented annually by the Artist & Elaine Thornton Foundation of the Arts, Inc. This year’s Guest Lecturer Series will be presented at the Dallas Museum of Art, located at 1700 North Harwood in Dallas. The date and time is Saturday July 30th at 11am to 2pm. The announcements of the winners of the ninth annual Gordon Parks Young Photographers Competition will happen that same day at the end of the program. The deadline for entries is July 23rd. The public is invited to attend the Guest Lecture Series. Admission is free, although donations will be accepted.  From Left to Right David Parks, Isaac Hayes, Artist Thornton, Elaine Thorntonphoto taken by Kevin Bass David Parks (above left) chats with friends Isaac Hayes, internationally acclaimed musician, Artist and Elaine Thornton, founders, the Artist & Elaine Thornton Foundation for the Arts, whose collaboration with Dallas Museum of Art, presented a concert featuring Mr. Hayes in celebration with other related events honoring Gordon Parks. Parks’ exhibition Gordon Parks Half Past Autumn: Selections from the Corcoran Gallery of Art Collection is on display through September 4, 2005. The concert drew about 20,000 admirers to hear the music, some compositions written by Gordon Parks, performed by Isaac Hayes. Gordon Parks, Half Past Autumn: Selections from the Collection of the Corcoran Gallery of ArtJune 3rd - 5th 2005  Exhibition Will Be June 6 – September 4, 2005 Read More About Mr. Parks & The Exhibit!!!Gordon Parks is a living legend who has mastered many media to express an influential message of hope in the face of adversity. Gordon Parks, Half Past Autumn: Selections from the Collection of the Corcoran Gallery of Art is a retrospective survey of Parks’ photographs drawn from the extensive Gordon Parks Collection owned by the Corcoran. This exhibition presents roughly 130 photographs produced between 1940 and 1997. The result, in the artist’s words, is an autobiographical “tone-poem” that tells his own story. The exhibition will be on view from June 6 through September 4, 2005. Gordon Parks, Half Past Autumn: Selections from the Collection of the Corcoran Gallery of Art records Parks’ creative search for humanity in the face of intolerance. His art is about pressing social issues such as poverty, race, segregation and crime. It also enhances our understanding of beauty, nature, childhood, music, fashion and memory. Parks’ seamless movement between such diverse topics strikes a balance between social and aesthetic concerns, sketching a poetic portrait of post-war culture in the U.S. and abroad. Born in Fort Scott, Kansas in 1912, and the youngest of 15 children, Parks overcame a childhood of racism and poverty to succeed as an artist. He has devoted his life to exposing injustice, revealing beauty and investigating how differences between people can be overcome. Parks made his own experiences—his life and feelings for those around him—central to his work. Following the death of his mother when he was 15, Parks left Kansas for Minnesota. At the age of 25, he began to consider the meaning of photography when he saw images produced by social documentary photographers for the Farm Security Administration (FSA). Struck by the faces of dust bowl refugees in these pictures, and personally hounded by bigotry, Parks chose to fight the poverty and racism of his past, selecting a camera as his principal “weapon.” In 1941, Parks was awarded a fellowship to work in Washington with FSA director Roy Stryker. During his fellowship, Parks met Ella Watson, a government cleaning woman also working at the FSA, who became one of Parks’ most important subjects. His best-known photograph of Watson is American Gothic, 1942, today an icon of American culture. It shows a dignified woman posed like the farmer in Grant Wood’s 1930 composition, holding a broom and mop in place of the farmer’s pitchfork. Behind her hangs the American flag. In the late 1940s, Parks came to Life Magazine armed with the skills he learned at the FSA and as a photographer for the Office of War Information. In what became his trademark style, he focused his lens on individuals and families, illuminating personal human relationships by getting to know his many subjects. His most important assignments for Life include photo-essays about a Harlem youth gang (1948), Paris fashions (1949–50), Portugal (1950), segregation in the South (1956), crime (1957), an impoverished Brazilian family (1961), the Black Muslims (1963) and poverty in America (1967). Parks began to experiment with color photography in the late 1950s. Since that time, he has published many books of color images combined with his poems. His most recent works are abstractions that transcend his traditional subjects; created in his studio using combinations of still-life elements, these works evoke lyrical landscapes. In addition to his career as a preeminent photographer, Parks is also an accomplished filmmaker, writer, musician and composer. He began to make films in the early 1960s and, with his autobiographical The Learning Tree (1969), became the first African American filmmaker to write, direct and score a feature film in Hollywood. He went on to direct Shaft (1971) and a number of other important films. Parks is recognized for his significant contributions in photography, film, literature and music. However, his greatest achievement may be his triumph over both personal and social adversity to fulfill his potential to dream. His art expresses the lessons of his early life and imparts these to future generations. This exhibition unlocks the door to this uncommon and uncompromising vision.
EXHIBITION ORGANIZATION
EXHIBITION CURATORS
Exhibition will be on View June 6 – September 4, 2005 Screening of the films “Shaft” and “The Odyssey Of Solomon Northrop will be Saturday June 4th. More news to come. If you have any questions please call 972-325-4290. Thank you for your support. Saturday's Events For The Gordon Parks, Half Past Autumn ExhibitThe opening weekend will be filled with celebration and tribute.
Come out and view “Half Past Autumn: Selections From The Collection of the Corcoran Gallery of Art” and enjoy the events during opening weekend: June 3rd - 5th!!! Proceeds from these events will benefit the Gordon Parks Center for Culture and Diversity, the Artist & Elaine Thornton Foundation for The Arts and the Dallas Museum of Art. For tickets and information, please call 972-325-4290. Dreams Realized
Photo by Miguel Cassanova Dallas - Over twenty five years ago, Artist and Elaine Thornton gathered names of concerned citizens and supporters on a petition and presented it to City Hall in pursuit of four cultural centers for the good benefit of Dallas. It took years of lobbying, and the Thorntons worked with several mayoral/city council administrations, the Division of Cultural Affairs which later became the Office of Cultural Affairs, and with the Park and Recreation department. In the early 1980’s the Bath House Cultural Center opened. In 1986 the South Dallas Cultural Center opened. Now the latest center of their pursuit is realized with the opening of the Latino Cultural Center. The grand opening for the Latino Cultural Center was held on September 15th through the 21st. The opening of the three centers is the dream realized by Artist and Elaine to help benefit the whole of Dallas. Support The Petition To Request The Renaming Of The South Dallas Cultural Center To The Arthello Beck Jr. Cultural Arts Center Whereas, Arthello Beck Jr.’s love of art radiated through his paintings on canvas. He was folksy, reflective, vivid, charismatic and familiar were his works of art. Reflecting his world through pencil, charcoal, acrylic, and watercolor, his paintings were of people, of country landscapes, depictions of celebrations, and market places from around the world. Arthello Beck achieved recognition for his art early in his life, because he illustrated his visions of art with exceptional talent. Whereas, Arthello traveled and painted, giving us images of the Caribbean Islands, South America, Africa, China, Southeast Asia and Europe. He has exhibited in many places around the world, earning recognition as THE personified artist. He received news coverage about his art in various media, from newspapers and magazines to television, but through it all Arthello remained humble and always true to himself. Whereas, Arthello Beck Jr. achieved recognition for his art early in his life. He was recognized as being among the leading artists in the Southwest by the City of Terrell Civic and Business Leaders. He received the special merit award from the State Fair of Texas in 1974. He placed third at the Temple Emmanuel Annual Art Show in Dallas, Texas in 1974, 2nd place at the Southwestern Ceramic show. He won first place recognition at the Black Art Exhibit in Fort Worth, Texas, and many more honors, awards and commendations over the past thirty years. Whereas, Arthello Beck Jr. served as artist in residence at the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta, Georgia and at Paul Quinn College in Dallas Texas. For many years he served as a board member of the Artist and Elaine Thornton Foundation for The Arts, Inc. He was appointed Ambassador of Goodwill by Texas Governor Mark White. Therefore, be it now respectfully requested that the South Dallas Cultural Center be named in the honor of Arthello Beck Jr. Cultural Arts Center.
Humbly Submitted, Here is The Petition |
At left: Artist and Elaine Thornton stand in front of the Latino Cultural Center in its final phase of construction near downtown Dallas. They launched the effort to have the facility along with two others built.The Latino Cultural Center is the third arts facility to open to the public.