ARTS
Master Artist Edward Everett Parker and the EEP Arts Complex WRITTEN BY
PHOTOGRAPHED BY
Tyisha Blade
Max Torres
A museum of art in East Cleveland showcases work done by master artist and students
T
ake a ride up Euclid headed through Uptown and you will soon find East Cleveland. Go a little further, just beyond the border and you will find The Edward E. Parker (EEP)
Arts Complex. Nestled on the corner of Rosalind and Euclid Ave., East Cleveland’s museum of art was established by Master Artist Edward E. Parker founder and retired professor of art. After years of rehabilitation, the complex now has an event center, art gallery, hair salon, classroom space, meeting rooms and apartments ideal for college students. A Pennsylvania native born in 1941, Parker relocated to Toledo with his family where he studied at the Toledo Museum of Art. Parker recalls starting his love of art in elementary school where he attended Lincoln Elementary School. He graduated from Scott High School then earned his bachelor’s degree in art from Central State University in Art Education Administration. Continuing his education, he studied for his master’s degree in Art Education at Kent State University. A skilled and cultured artist, Parker has also studied across the world in countries such as Africa, Mexico and Ecuador. Since then, the master artist has sustained a life of work in arts and art education. As an educator, Parker taught and worked in the Cleveland Metropolitan School District as the head of the art department at Audubon Jr. High for several years. He later taught at Cuyahoga Community College’s western campus for 20 years as a professor of art and the arts department coordinator.
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