By: Perry S.C.R. No. 6
(In the Senate - Filed January 28, 2021; March 11, 2021,
read first time and referred to Committee on Administration;
April 23, 2021, reported favorably by the following vote: Yeas 7,
Nays 0; April 23, 2021, sent to printer.)
Click here to see the committee vote
SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, The city of San Angelo has become a vibrant showcase
for the visual arts, featuring a variety of engaging public
artworks as well as a diverse mix of outstanding museums,
galleries, and studios; and
WHEREAS, The hub of the city's arts community is a 200-acre
cultural district along the south bank of the Concho River, which is
anchored by the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts; the recipient of a
number of prestigious national awards, SAMFA includes an extensive
permanent collection and also serves as the headquarters of the
Center for the Advancement and Study of Early Texas Art; in
addition, the museum sponsors an arts education program that draws
over 33,000 children each year, and it hosts several prominent arts
events: the San Angelo National Ceramic Competition,
EnPleinAirTEXAS, and the Richard and Pam Salmon Sculpture
Competition, which brings large-scale works to Sunken Garden Park;
other attractions in the cultural district include the Fort Concho
National Historic Landmark, which has served as the site of the
American Plains Artists juried exhibition; and
WHEREAS, San Angelo also boasts the Pop Art Open Air Museum,
which features free public works by Texas artists; the display is
organized by the Art in Uncommon Places organization, and that
group has partnered with Downtown San Angelo, Inc., to create
another outdoor site, Paintbrush Alley, to exhibit paintings
inspired by Texas culture and the classic motion picture Giant;
other public art projects include some 100 colorful sheep
sculptures found throughout town that have been painted by local
artists and the Historic Murals of San Angelo, which depict iconic
scenes related to the area's past; moreover, the city is one of only
three in Texas to have a permanent "Don't Mess with Texas" mural;
and
WHEREAS, The dynamic arts community in San Angelo encompasses
nearly three dozen galleries and studios; more than 250 sculptures
and statues are displayed at local businesses, schools, parks, and
other locations, and the city is the site of such popular events as
the Chicken Farm Art Center Open House, which has taken place each
year for nearly a half century; and
WHEREAS, San Angelo's art scene has drawn statewide and
national attention from media outlets, including Western Art &
Architecture, Texas Highways, and True West magazines; a further
tribute to the city's cultural riches came in 2019, when the
European Union ambassador to the United States selected 32 pieces
of art on loan from the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts for display in
his home in Washington, D.C.; and
WHEREAS, The city of San Angelo has become an epicenter for
art lovers from across the state and around the nation, and its
unique concentration of talented artists, imaginative exhibits,
and an enthusiastic arts community make it truly deserving of
special recognition; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the 87th Legislature of the State of Texas
hereby designate the city of San Angelo as the official Visual Arts
Capital of Texas; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That, in accordance with the provisions of Section
391.003(e), Government Code, this designation remain in effect
until the 10th anniversary of the date this resolution is finally
passed by the legislature.
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