April 2023 Employee Newsletter

Honoring Hines

The late abstract painter Felrath Hines was commemorated by the Indiana State Museum with an exhibition of his artwork in 2019. On Thursday, April 27, the museum helped honor him again – this time with a historical marker outside his alma mater, Crispus Attucks High School.

THE MARKER READS:

Felrath Hines, Jr.

Black abstract painter Samuel Felrath Hines, Jr. was born in Indianapolis in 1913. He graduated from segregated Crispus Attucks High School in 1931. Trained at the Art Institute of Chicago, Hines moved to New York City, where he became immersed in the modernist movement of the 1950s. Major museums exhibited his pieces, which used geometric forms and radiant color.

Hines participated in the 1963 March on Washington and joined Spiral, a group of Black artists advocating for racial equality. Though passionate about civil rights, he separated his activism from his artwork. Hines restored pieces for Georgia O’Keeffe and served as conservator of the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery, but prioritized painting until his 1993 death. Located at the corner of Oscar Robertson Boulevard and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Street, the marker is the result of two years of work by the museum to research and apply to the Indiana Historical Bureau for approval.

In 2018, former ISMHS Fine Arts Curator

Rachel Berenson Perry wrote the biography “The Life and Art of Felrath Hines: From Dark to Light.” The next year, the museum presented a well-received exhibition called “It’s About Time: The Artwork of Felrath Hines,” showcasing more than 20 of his paintings.

Sometime after the exhibit closed, Perry suggested the idea of a marker to recognize Hines. Museum officials supported the idea.

In a short ceremony unveiling the marker, Kisha Tandy, ISMHS curator of social history, said, “Today, we celebrate his life and work. There are many individuals who have helped and supported this project. We appreciate your time and efforts.” She credited:

-Rachel Perry, fine arts curator emerita, “for your dedication and ongoing efforts in honoring Felrath Hines with this historical marker.”

-Cathy Ferree, the president and CEO of the Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites, “for supporting this project. We are honored to sponsor the historical marker.”

-Crispus Attucks Principal Lauren Franklin, “for allowing the marker to be placed on the grounds of the historic Crispus Attucks High School.”

-The Indianapolis Public Schools facilities team and Greg Stropes for installing the marker; Dr. Patricia Payne, for supporting the marker project; and Robert Chester, curator of the Crispus Attucks High School Museum, for moving the project forward. State historical markers – there are 750 of them across the state – commemorate significant individuals, organizations, places and events in Indiana history. These markers help communities throughout the state promote, preserve and present their history for the education and enjoyment of residents and tourists.

Patricia Payne and Robert Chester unveiling the sign

Mark Ruschman, Kisha Tandy, Susannah Koerber, Cathy Ferree and Rachel Perry

IN THE NEWS

Click on the blue names below to see the news.

WRBI radio in Batesville reported on Joey Smith taking over as site manager of Whitewater Canal State Historic Site, as did the Connersville News Examiner and Whitewater Publications. (The latter two require a subscription to read. Email Marc Allan – mallan@indianamuseum.org – if you’d like to read the stories.)

WFYI wrote about the new Thursday night “History on Screen” film series.

The Indianapolis Recorder included the April 23rd Sensory Friendly Afternoon in their “This Weekend in the Arts” listing.

Lavender, Minneapolis’ LGBT Magazine, included the museum in an article about Indianapolis.

And Visit Indiana included the Levi and Catharine Coffin House in a newsletter on Black history.

How long have you worked for ISMHS?

The first time I worked here from 2008 to 2015. I've been back for a week as I'm writing this.

What’s your title and how do you explain your job to someone outside ISMHS?

I'm the new Whitewater Canal site manager. So new, in fact, that I’m having a hard time answering the second part of this question.

Tell me about your family.

Wife: Angela. Kids: none. Dogs: Bruce and Linda.

When is your birthday?

March 16.

STAFF SPOTLIGHT: JOEY SMITH

Joey is the site manager at Whitewater Canal State Historic Site. His duties include overseeing the daily operation of the site, financial planning and budgeting, and various other administrative duties. He supervises full-time and intermittent employees, and helps maintain and repair the canal structure.

If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go and why?

Mallorca, Spain, to climb rocks and shoot photos.

What were your favorite school subjects?

Philosophy and psychology.

What’s your favorite song?

Total Eclipse of the Heart by Bonnie Tyler

How do you spend your free time?

Rock climbing and weightlifting.

Are you a morning or a night person?

Morning person, all day.

Dates to remember

Open through June 25 at ISM

Inspired by the Dunes: Paintings by Frank V. Dudley

Open through Oct. 15 at ISM

Vintage Vision: Cars of the 1920s

Open through Oct. 29 at ISM

Influencing Lincoln

What is your favorite food or meal?

Chicken, brussies and rice!

What’s your favorite quote or song lyric?

"Let be be finale of seem."

–Wallace Stephens

Where did you grow up?

In good ol' Boonville, Indiana.

What do you value most in a friend or partner?

Self-awareness and a good relationship with the truth.

May 2

Primary Election Day (state holiday)

May 14

Mother’s Day

May 29

Memorial Day (all locations open)

NEW TEAM MEMBERS

AMBER BUNNELL

Programs and Education, Engagement Specialist Supervisor

AUSTIN DURBIN

Corydon Capitol, Intermittent

JENNIFER EDWARDS

Whitewater Canal, Intermittent

KATIE NURRENBERN

New Harmony, Intermittent

JOEY SMITH

Whitewater Canal, Site Manager

ALYSON WALBRIDGE

Programs and Education, Public Program Manager

MAY ANNIVERSARIES

TYRIEE LOVE

Director of Security – 11 years

MARK RUSCHMAN

Senior Curator of Fine Arts and Culture – 11 years

GREG BRYSON

Associate Vice President of IT – 10 years

JOHN SPICKLEMIRE

Vice President of System Facilities and Restoration – 4 years

CONSTITUTIONS Dueling

LECTURE BY DR. JAMES OAKES

Dr. James Oakes, Distinguished Professor of History, American Studies and Africana Studies at the City University of New York, will discuss the mid-19th century debate over the meaning of the Constitution at 6 p.m., May 3 in the Indiana State Museum Auditorium. Admission is free, but registration is encouraged.

Oakes’ lecture, “Dueling Constitutions,” will examine the way the national debate over slavery was also a debate over the meaning of the Constitution. The great abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison famously burned a copy of the U.S. Constitution, denouncing it as a “compact with the devil” and an “agreement with hell.” But another great abolitionist, Frederick Douglass, argued the opposite, that the Constitution was an abolitionist document and that it was a mistake for the opponents of slavery to hand the nation’s founding charter over to proslavery forces.

Oakes is a leading historian of 19th-century America, exploring the history of the United States from the Revolution through the Civil War. His books include The Crooked Path to Abolition: Abraham Lincoln and the Antislavery Constitution (W.W. Norton, 2021) and The Radical and the Republican: Frederick Douglass, Abraham Lincoln, and the Triumph of Antislavery Politics. He holds the Humanities Chair at the City University of New York Graduate Center, where he is distinguished professor of history, American studies and Africana studies.

Oakes’ lecture is supported by the Friends of the Lincoln Collection.

THE APRIL 25TH CELEBRATION OF “INFLUENCING LINCOLN”

BY THE NUMBERS:

Total attendance: 140 (21 members & 119 non-members)

49% took some action

53 people indicated an interest in donating at a Steel membership level ($26,500)

10 family memberships (for families in need) were purchased night of ($1,000)

16 guests expressed an interest in purchasing family memberships

Of those who said no to a financial contribution, 18/35 said they would be interested in either joining a committee, volunteering or attending future events.