TITLE: Congratulating Rick Lowe of Houston on his selection as the 2015 Texas Medal of Arts honoree for Visual Arts by the Texas Cultural Trust.

SUMMARY: Congratulating Rick Lowe of Houston on his selection as the 2015 Texas Medal of Arts honoree for Visual Arts by the Texas Cultural Trust.

FULL TEXT:
WHEREAS, Rick Lowe of Houston has been named the 2015 Texas Medal of Arts honoree for Visual Arts by the Texas Cultural Trust; and WHEREAS, The Texas Medal of Arts program pays tribute to residents of the Lone Star State who have made significant contributions to a variety of artistic disciplines in the state, either through personal achievement or through generous support; and WHEREAS, A native of Alabama, Mr. Lowe attended Columbus College in Georgia and subsequently studied visual arts at Texas Southern University; in 1993, he cofounded the nonprofit Project Row Houses, which brought together local artists and volunteers to restore 22 dilapidated shotgun-style houses in Houston's historic Third Ward and to transform that two-block site into an arts venue and community support center; over the years, the scope of the initiative has been dramatically expanded to provide youth arts education programs, exhibition spaces and studio residences for artists, housing for young mothers, and even an organic gardening program; and WHEREAS, In addition to his achievements in his own community, Mr. Lowe has helped establish arts-driven redevelopment efforts in a number of other cities, including the Watts House Project in Los Angeles, the post-Hurricane Katrina rebuilding project Transforma in New Orleans, and a community market in Dallas; he has also assisted with such community building efforts as the Arts Plan for the Seattle Public Library, the Borough Project for the Spoleto Festival in Charleston, South Carolina, and the Delray Beach Cultural Loop in Florida; and WHEREAS, The work of this world-renowned artist has been exhibited in the Contemporary Arts Museum and the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, the Gwangju Biennale in South Korea, and the Venice Architecture Biennale; appointed to the National Council on the Arts by President Barack Obama in 2013, he also serves today as artist-in-residence at the Nasher Sculpture Center in Dallas and as a Mel King Community Fellow at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; in recognition of his visionary efforts, he was selected as a 2014 MacArthur Fellow; and WHEREAS, Rick Lowe has touched countless individuals through his art and has used his extraordinary gifts to enhance the quality of life in his community and in cities across the nation, and he is most deserving of this prestigious accolade; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 84th Texas Legislature hereby congratulate Rick Lowe on his selection as the 2015 Texas Medal of Arts honoree for Visual Arts by the Texas Cultural Trust and extend to him sincere best wishes for continued success; and, be it further RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be prepared for Mr. Lowe as an expression of high regard by the Texas House of Representatives. Coleman Speaker of the House I certify that H.R. No. 709 was adopted by the House on March 12, 2015, by a non-record vote. Chief Clerk of the House