News

The Menil Collection Library Gifts

The Menil Collection Library is pleased to announce the recent arrivals of three gifts of artbook collections from the following gracious donors:
1. The late David Whitney, life partner of the late Philip Johnson, independent curator, and a Menil Foundation trustee: his second marvelous gift (35 boxes) of books (first was in 1998) concentrating on United States artists of the post-World War II period. Many of the books are inscribed by the artists, to whom David was a fervent supporter—it includes my favorite “find” so far while pawing through the boxes: an Andy Warhol monograph inscribed on one page “To David with love” and on the following page “To David with hate”. Classic Warholian scampishness!

On May 29, the Dallas Public Library will begin using its new Polaris ILS. Library staff and patrons alike are pleased at the prospect of moving to a new system that offers so much flexibility and control. This system is used in, among others, Plano, Texas, and Maricopa County, California, but Dallas Public Library is its biggest client so far. Dallas Public Library and Polaris were mentioned in an ARLIS session, What’s New in Technology---because Polaris provides graphics.

Those not mastering Polaris will not be provided with a password. This has given your non-technie, Luddite correspondent a powerful incentive to learn the new system. So far, it has seemed simple to use, and that has frightened me.

A Trip Through Denver Parks and Neighborhoods
Friday, May 2, 2008

Guide Carolyn Etter, a former co-manager of the Denver Parks and Recreation Department, was an expert guide for this trip.

Let me first explain “co-manager.” Mrs. Etter had experience in non-profit and charitable managing. Her husband, Don Etter, had just retired from law practice. While reading the Denver Post once morning she said to her husband, “Wouldn’t it be fun for us to co-manager the Parks and Recreation Department?” A few phone calls later the newly elected Mayor Frederico Pena, later head of the Department of Transportation in the Clinton administration, made a dual appointment of this couple to head the department. They were among the highest executives in the country to have this arrangement.

As many of you know, the ARLIS/NA year-of-transition began at the end of last year’s annual conference in Atlanta and came to a close at this year’s conference in Denver. Now, at the dawn of a new era in the Society’s history, the Regional Representatives have been replaced by functional liaisons who will be providing a conduit for communication between the Board and the groups who are carrying out the important work of the Society.

The new Board liaisons are as follows:

Canadian Member at Large: Liv Valmestad (term ends post conference 2010)

Chapter Liaison: Cate Cooney (term ends post conference 2009)

WHEN THE SOUTHWESTERN Writers Collection was
founded at the University Library in 1986, its collecting
activities focused on the literature, film, and music of the
region. Several years later Bill Wittliff and Connie Todd
began to collect photographs, and in 1996 the Wittliff
Gallery of Southwestern & Mexican Photography was formally
christened at the Alkek Library.
Although sharing facilities and operating as one
organization within the university, each collection continued
to function separately for the most part in terms of
archival activities, exhibitions, and public programming.

Remember Dr. Michael Duty the soft-voiced and scholarly head of the Dallas Historical Society? He invited us into a back office and graciously showed us a collection of small Frank Reaugh paintings owned by the Hall of State in Fair Park. Soon after he spoke to our regional Arlis meeting as a panelist on collecting Texas art, he took a new job as the Texas art expert for Heritage Galleries in Dallas. In February he spoke at a well-attended lecture on his subject in Heritage Galleries’ new and supplemental space on Slocum Street. Even after power point failure he went on without illustrations.

Annual Report
ARLIS/NA, Texas-Mexico Chapter
March 5, 2008

Submitted by Gloria Selene Hinojosa, Chapter President

gh14@txstate.edu
Tel. (512) 245-1843
Fax (512) 245-3002

ARLIS/NA, Texas-Mexico Chapter met for our annual conference in Dallas, Texas, October 25th (Thursday) through October 28th (Sunday), 2007. We had a full itinerary that included visiting several fine art museums, the state fair grounds, SMU and the studio of Pam Nelson, working artist and member of the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts. On Sunday October 28th we had our chapter business meeting.

The Little Heroes online exhibit, created by Tara Spies for the Wittliff Collection of Southwestern & Mexican Photography at Texas State University – San Marcos, was recently awarded a merit citation in the Mitchell A. Wilder award category for Non-Print Media from the Texas Association of Museums.
The list of all the Mitchell A. Wilder awards can be found on the TAM website .

The Texas chapter of the Visual Resources Association met February 21-22, 2008 to coincide with the annual meeting of the College Art Association in Dallas.

Thursday's activities took place on the campus of Southern Methodist University and included a presentation on XML, an Ask-the-Export roundtable, and business meeting. Friday's agenda featured a CCO metadata workshop, hosted at the Dallas Museum of Art. The CCO workshop was generously co-sponsored by the Visual Resources Association, the Texas-Mexico chapter of the Art Libraries Society of North America, and Archivision, Inc.

The Architecture and Planning Library at the University of Texas at Austin has elected to reorganize its library staffing. Beth Dodd now serves as Head Librarian, charged with the unit's administrative duties. She also continues to serve as the Curator of the Alexander Architectural Archive. The other librarian position, now vacant, has been re-shaped into a subject specialist role, with additional emphasis on shepherding digital projects and resources. The subject specialist's more traditional roles will emphasize a strong liaison with faculty. This is expected to focus more attention on