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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, The Texas Commission on the Arts has announced the |
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2017 appointments for the positions of State Poet Laureate, |
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State Musician, State Two-Dimensional Artist, and State |
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Three-Dimensional Artist; and |
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WHEREAS, The state's highest accolade for excellence in the |
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arts, designation as a Texas State Artist is conferred on those |
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individuals who represent the best of our rich and diverse artistic |
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community and who inspire others through their unique creative |
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expression; the nomination process for the awards is overseen by |
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the TCA, and the final selections are made by a committee whose |
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members are appointed by the governor, the lieutenant governor, and |
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the speaker of the house of representatives; and |
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WHEREAS, The 2017 State Poet Laureate is San Antonio native |
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Jenny Browne; the author of three collections, At Once, The Second |
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Reason, and Dear Stranger, she uses poetry to explore language, |
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landscape, and the complexities of being human; she is also an |
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educator who has worked as a poet-in-residence at schools, |
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libraries, and community centers throughout the state; this |
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celebrated writer has received fellowships from the National |
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Endowment for the Arts, the Artist Foundation of San Antonio, and |
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the Writers' League of Texas, in addition to the Cecil Hemley Award |
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from the Poetry Society of America; after earning her MFA from the |
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Michener Center for Writers at The University of Texas, she joined |
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the English department at Trinity University; and |
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WHEREAS, Known as the "King of Country Music," legendary |
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singer-songwriter George Strait was selected as the 2017 State |
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Musician; the only act in history to have a Top 10 hit every year for |
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over three decades, he has released a staggering 60 No. 1 singles, |
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and he claims 33 platinum and multiplatinum albums, the most of any |
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country music artist ever; to date, he has earned more than 60 major |
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entertainment industry awards, and he was honored with induction |
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into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2006; his final performance |
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in Arlington on his 2014 The Cowboy Rides Away Tour drew a |
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record-shattering attendance of more than 100,000 fans, and he went |
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on to perform six sold-out shows in 2016 as part of his Las Vegas |
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concert series; and |
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WHEREAS, The 2017 State Two-Dimensional Artist is Kermit |
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Oliver, a Refugio native who has earned international recognition |
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as one of the finest artists of our time; replete with biblical |
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symbolism and references to Greek and Roman mythology, his |
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masterfully executed paintings and drawings have been exhibited at |
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the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and |
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Culture as well as at the Nave Museum in Victoria and the Martin |
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Museum of Art at Baylor University; a graduate of Texas Southern |
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University, he was presented with the first ever Lifetime |
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Achievement Award from Art League Houston in 2013, and the Museum of |
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Fine Arts, Houston, exhibited a major retrospective of his work in |
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2005; moreover, he holds the distinction of being the first |
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American artist to create scarf designs for the iconic French |
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fashion house of Hermès; and |
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WHEREAS, Beverly Penn, the 2017 State Three-Dimensional |
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Artist, creates delicate and captivating cast-bronze sculptures |
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from weeds that she gathers in the Texas Hill Country, and these |
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pieces invoke humanity's impulse to control the natural world |
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through art and science; her work appears in collections at the |
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Cooper Hewitt Museum in New York, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, |
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and other institutions across the country, and she has been |
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commissioned for several public art projects; a tenured professor |
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in the School of Art and Design at Texas State University, Ms. Penn |
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is the recipient of nine faculty research grants as well as numerous |
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fellowships, among them a Fulbright Fellowship in Barcelona, Spain; |
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and |
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WHEREAS, The artists who have been selected to hold these |
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prestigious posts have all greatly contributed to the vibrant |
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cultural life of the Lone Star State, and Texas is indeed fortunate |
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to be home to these talented individuals; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 85th Texas |
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Legislature hereby congratulate the 2017 State Artists and extend |
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to them sincere best wishes for continued fulfillment in their |
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creative endeavors. |