Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Fall 2010 newsletter

Our Fall newsletter is available for viewing as a PDF file here

Let us know if you recognize the mystery photo of a school in Bossier Parish. It was designed by Bossier City architect Thomas Merideth.


We have one guess so far of Curtis Elementary School. Does anyone agree?

Monday, September 27, 2010

RELIC Program "Where is North Louisiana?" Concludes

The "Where is North Louisiana" RELIC Program concluded Thursday 23 September with a discussion of Louisiana Power and Light, by John Dufresne. Overall, this book was the least favorite of the four titles that we read for the program. The other books we read were Shreveport Sounds in Black and White; Swaggart, The Unauthorized Biography of an American Evangelist and On My Way, The Arts of Sarah Albritton. Dr. Cheryl White from LSUS led our discussions. She was knowledgeable about the subjects and often presented them with humor. While North Louisiana may often be ignored as being a viable part of our state, with her direction, we re-established our remarkable history and our position of importance in Louisiana's history. Attendance at all 6 meetings was very good and we look forward to the possibility of another Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities RELIC program in the Spring of 2011.

Friday, September 10, 2010

RELIC program - My North Louisiana: Race, Gender and Art in the Life of a North Louisiana Artist

For the 9/16 RELIC session, we will be discussing Sarah Albritton, Ruston native and acclaimed folk artist, who has been described by some as the next Clementine Hunter. Like Hunter, Albritton is an African American artist, a noteworthy painter and cook without formal art or culinary training, born into North Louisiana at a time of racial prejudice and social limitations. Using portions of Susan Roach's On My Way: The Arts of Sarah Albritton, this session examines the special role played by artists in defining what it means to live in North Louisiana.

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

RELIC program - Faith and Religion in North Louisiana

This Thursday's session will build upon the previous one by continuing to explore the religiosity of North Louisiana. The region is sociologically distinct from other areas of Louisiana, bearing the designation as part of the "Bible Belt," geographically and culturally remote from the heavily Roman Catholic regions to the south. There are numerous denominations evident throughout the region, with church attendance and religious participation playing an active and vibrant role in the life of North Louisiana. Is this unique to the region?