MARSHALL, TX— The Michelson Museum of Art is pleased to announce the exhibition, Vigil. A collaboration between artist Isabelle Scurry Chapman and environmental lawyer and poet Jim Blackburn.
Chapman and Blackburn have been mixing art and poetry for almost two decades. Together, they started a project early in the pandemic that they named the Virus Vigil. They paired a poem and a painting every day for 365 days and the project continues episodically.
Jim and Princie, as friends call her, have collaborated on self-published book projects: Birds, A Collection of Verse & Vision; Hill Country Birds and Waters: Art and Poems; and Earth Church.
Vigil will showcase artwork and poems from September 15 to October 29, 2022. The opening reception will be held on Thursday, September 15, 2022, from 4:30 pm – 6:30 pm. Engage directly with the works of art and poems through the Gallery Talk led by Jim Blackburn at 6:00 pm. Vigil was organized by the Michelson Museum of Art and is supported by the City of Marshall and our generous members.
About the Artists
Isabelle Scurry Chapman has been painting for over 25 years. Her work is primarily about nature and the connection of all living things and is in the style of visionary and folk art. Much of her works are in a small-scale format on hardback book covers, cigar boxes, and wood panels. Her paintings have been shown in 25 solo exhibitions and in many juried and group exhibitions in the United States and also in Mexico. She has won a number of awards, including a Mid America NEA Fellowship in Painting. She is a Master Gardner and has worked in a donation garden for many years. She also volunteered for Art Bridge, an art program for homeless children, for a number of years and received the Houston Mayor’s Award for Volunteer Work from Mayor Bill White.
Jim Blackburn is an environmental lawyer and Professor in the Practice in Environmental Law in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department at Rice University. At Rice, Blackburn is a Faculty Scholar at the Baker Institute and co-director of the Severe Storm Prevention, Education and Evacuation from Disaster (SSPEED) Center and teaches courses in Sustainable Design and Environmental Law. He is currently CEO and Chairman of BCarbon, a carbon credit certification non-profit entity that was included in two of six finalists in the Glasgow COP26 Climate Cup Challenge in the category of the net zero future. Among other awards, he was designated a Rice University distinguished alumni laureate in 2018, was awarded the International Crane Foundation Good Egg Award in 2015, the Barbara C. Jordan Community Advocate Award from Texas Southern University in 2007, and the Robert C. Eckhardt Lifetime Coastal Achievement Award in 1998 from the Texas General Land Office.
About the Michelson Museum of Art
The Michelson Museum of Art was established in 1985 to accept and care for the life works of Russian-American Artist Leo Michelson (1887-1978). The Michelson Museum of Art has become nationally recognized for its early 20thCentury American Art Collection, African Masks, and Chinese Opera Puppets Collections. The Museum also shows exceptional traveling exhibitions, hosting over 4,000 visitors a year. Thanks to the generosity of members and major donors, the Michelson Museum of Art provides dynamic and innovative educational programs at no cost to the public. The Michelson Museum is open Tuesday – Friday from 10 am to 4 pm and Saturday from 1 pm to 4 pm. Entrance to the museum is free.
