83R7018 BK-D

By: Geren H.R. No. 407

R E S O L U T I O N

WHEREAS, Citizens of this state and nation lost a highly esteemed leader and patron of the arts with the January 6, 2013, passing of Ruth Carter Stevenson, the woman responsible for the founding of the Amon Carter Museum of American Art; and

WHEREAS, A native of Fort Worth, the former Ruth Carter was born on October 19, 1923, to Nenetta B. Carter and Amon G. Carter, Sr., an oil magnate and philanthropist who became publisher of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram the year of her birth; at age 15, she attended her first art history course at the Madeira School in McLean, Virginia, which included field trips to a number of museums and galleries in the nation's capital; her appreciation for art was further shaped during her years at Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, New York, when she frequently visited the collections in New York City; after graduating from Sarah Lawrence in 1945, she returned to her hometown and served on the board of the Fort Worth Art Association; in one of her initial projects with the association, she helped organize the town's first major American art exhibition; and

WHEREAS, Mrs. Stevenson's father died in 1955, and in granting one of his final requests, she set out to create a museum to house his personal collection of Frederic Remington and Charles Russell paintings and sculpture of the American West; the Amon Carter Museum opened to the public in 1961 in a building designed by eminent architect Philip Johnson; she soon saw the need to expand the scope of the collection to include works in all media and from all of the nation's art movements, and today, the museum is among the most renowned repositories of American art, with masterworks from such greats as Thomas Eakins, Winslow Homer, and Georgia O'Keeffe; in addition, she encouraged the growth of the museum's educational program to help students develop a deeper understanding of art, culture, and related subjects; and

WHEREAS, This illustrious Texan further distinguished herself in a multitude of organizations, including the Fort Worth City Art Commission, where she served a lengthy tenure as chair; in 1963, she founded the Arts Council of Fort Worth and Tarrant County and was appointed to the board of regents of The University of Texas at Austin that same year, becoming just the second woman to sit on the board; along with championing the preservation of historic architecture on the university campus, she was instrumental in the drive to desegregate the entire UT System; influential within the state and beyond, she was active on the boards of the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Trust for Historic Places and became the first female member of the board, and later the first female chair, of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.; and

WHEREAS, An arts and civic leader of great significance and lasting influence, Ruth Carter Stevenson dedicated her life to sharing a rich and vital element of American culture with the Fort Worth community and the world at large, and her remarkable legacy will resonate long into the future; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 83rd Texas Legislature hereby pay tribute to the memory of Ruth Carter Stevenson and extend sincere sympathy to the members of her family: to her children, Sheila Broderick Johnson, J. Lee Johnson IV, Karen Johnson Hixon, Catherine Lehane Johnson, and Mark Lehane Johnson; to her 11 grandchildren and 5 great-grandchildren; and to her other relatives and many friends; and, be it further

RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be prepared for her family and that when the Texas House of Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of Ruth Carter Stevenson.