SR642 - Recognizing the 2026 Texas Commission on the Arts honorees.

          SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 642          WHEREAS, The Texas Commission on the Arts has announced the   2026 appointments for State Poet Laureate, State Classical   Musician, State Nonclassical Musician, State Two-Dimensional   Artist, and State Three-Dimensional Artist; and            WHEREAS, The state's highest accolade for excellence in the   arts, the Texas State Artist designation is conferred on   individuals who represent the best of the rich and diverse   artistic community in the Lone Star State and who inspire others   through their unique creative expression; and            WHEREAS, Kevin Prufer, the 2026 State Poet Laureate, is the   author of the poetry collection How He Loved Them , which received   the Julie Suk Award and was named to the long list for the 2019   Pulitzer Prize; his works have been included in year's best lists   by The New York Times , Booklist , and Publishers Weekly , and his   recent book, The Fears , was the winner of the 2024 Rilke Prize;   his many honors include multiple Pushcart Prizes, selections to   The Best American Poetry series, numerous awards from the Poetry   Society of America, and fellowships from the National Endowment   for the Arts and the Lannan Foundation; he currently serves as a   professor in the creative writing programs at the University of   Houston and Lesley University; and            WHEREAS, The 2026 State Classical Musician is Ana María   Martínez of Houston; she is a Grammy Award-winning soprano and   is best known for her work on stage in Rusalka , Carmen ,   Florencia en el Amazonas , La Bohème , Madama Butterfly , and   Otello ; over the years, she has performed with the   Metropolitan Opera, the Houston Grand Opera, Opéra National   de Paris, the Royal Opera House at Covent Garden, and the   Vienna State Opera, among other companies and venues; she is a   professor of voice at the Shepherd School of Music at Rice   University; and            WHEREAS, Norah Jones has been named the State   Nonclassical Musician for 2026; her debut record in 2002, Come   Away with Me , earned Ms. Jones five Grammy Awards, including   Album of the Year, Record of the Year, and Best New Artist; her   subsequent studio albums have all achieved platinum status,   and over the course of her career, she has sold more than 53   million records; raised in Grapevine, she is a graduate of the   Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual   Arts in Dallas; and            WHEREAS, The work of Letitia Huckaby, the State   Two-Dimensional Artist, combines photographic prints and   fabrics to reexamine history and its contemporary connection   to the Black experience through portraiture; she has been   included in exhibitions at the Amon Carter Museum of American   Art in Fort Worth, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in   Arkansas, the Studio School of Harlem, and Texas Biennial in   Austin, and her pieces are included in the collections of the   Library of Congress and the Samella Lewis Contemporary Art   Collection at Scripps College; she is the cofounder of Kinfolk   House, a collaborative project space in Fort Worth, and in   2022, she was named the Texas Artist of the Year by Art League   Houston; and            WHEREAS, The 2026 State Three-Dimensional Artist, Linda   Ridgway, is based in Dallas and creates bronze wall reliefs that   convey both autobiographical and cultural imagery, with themes   that include femininity, tradition, and heritage; her work   juxtaposes the delicacy of the textures of lace and crochet work   with the monochromatic and industrial fortitude of metalwork;   she has participated in various solo and group exhibitions at the   Museum of Fine Arts Houston, the Dallas Museum of Art, and the   Amon Carter Museum of American Art in Fort Worth; and            WHEREAS, The artists who have been selected to hold these   prestigious posts have all greatly contributed to the vibrant   cultural life of our state, and Texas is indeed fortunate to be   home to these talented individuals; now, therefore, be it            RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas, 89th   Legislature, hereby congratulate the 2026 Texas Commission on   the Arts honorees and extend to them sincere best wishes for   continued fulfillment in their creative endeavors.     Menéndez                 ________________________________          President of the Senate               I hereby certify that the     above Resolution was adopted by     the Senate on May 31, 2025.                 ________________________________          Secretary of the Senate                 ________________________________           Member, Texas Senate