Artist-Lecture Series: Fulbeck, Echo-Hawk Bring Knowledge in Diverse Ethnic Heritage
The fall Artist-Lecture Series season concludes in November with two speakers known for their rich experience in ethnic heritage matters. Artist, author, filmmaker, and performer Kip Fulbeck will speak Friday, Nov. 11, in conjunction with an exhibit of his photographs of mixed ethnic heritage subjects at the Juanita Harvey Art Gallery. Native American attorney Walter Echo-Hawk will speak Tuesday, Nov. 15. Both lectures will be at 7 p.m. in Akin Auditorium.
The hapa project, Fulbeck's multimedia exhibition of photographs, includes a book, the traveling exhibition, and satellite and online presentations. The Juanita Harvey Art Gallery will host an opening reception for Fulbeck and the Kappa Pi Honorary Art Fraternity exhibit from 3-5 p.m. before the Artist-Lecture event Nov. 11.
As a speaker, Fulbeck has been described as part poet, part comedian, and part pop culture critic. Fulbeck moves past "diversity" as a conversation only about race, instead inspiring audiences to tackle the larger questions of who we are as individuals, how we define ourselves, and how we engage with those around us. Audiences worldwide have called him inspirational, motivational, and eye-opening.
Fulbeck has been featured on CNN, MTV, PBS, and NBC's Today Show, and has performed and exhibited in more than 20 countries and throughout the U.S. His books include Mixed: Portraits of Multiracial Kids; part asian, 100% hapa; and Permanence: Tattoo Portraits. He has directed short films such as banana split, which has been called a landmark film on hapa identity, and lilo & me.
Fulbeck is Professor of Art at the University of California, Santa Barbara, where he received the university's distinguished teaching award and has been named an outstanding faculty member five times. In recognition for his work promoting multiracial awareness, he was awarded the inaugural Loving Prize at the 2009 Mixed Roots Film & Literary Festival and also named a Cultural Pioneer at Harvard University. In 2014, he was named a local hero by Southern California's KCET public broadcasting service and also received the Community Builder Award at Vancouver's Hapa-palooza festival. He is an avid surfer, guitar player, ocean lifeguard, dog lover, and multiple-time national champion in U.S. masters swimming.
Echo-Hawk is a tribal judge, professor, activist, and author, in addition to being an attorney. His topic will be "Cultural Sovereignty: Protecting Endangered Cultures." He represents Indian tribes on important legal issues, such as treaty rights, water rights, religious freedom, prisoner rights, and repatriation rights. He speaks extensively and appears in film and on radio to educate the American public about tribal life, culture, and indigenous justice. He appeared in The Development of NAGPRA, a film about the Native American repatriation movement produced by the National Park Service in 2010.
As a Native American rights attorney since 1973, Echo-Hawk worked at the epicenter of a social movement alongside visionary tribal leaders, visited tribes in indigenous habitats throughout North America, and was instrumental in the passage of landmark laws such as the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (1990) and the American Indian Religious Freedom Act Amendments (1994).
His career spans the pivotal years when Indian tribes reclaimed their land, sovereignty, and pride in a stride toward freedom. He litigated in many of the epic struggles and wrote about the rise of modern Indian nations as a Native American author with first-hand experience in his groundbreaking 2010 book, In the Courts of the Conqueror: The 10 Worst Indian Law Cases Ever Decided.
The Artist-Lecture Series was established in 1964 to bring noted lectures and quality programs in the performing arts to the MSU campus and the Wichita Falls community.
Admission is $20 to general public; $18 for senior citizens, active-duty military, and MSU alumni; free to MSU students with ID. Tickets are available at the Clark Student Center Information Desk two weeks prior to the event. For tickets or more information, contact the Office of Student Affairs at (940) 397-7500 or student.affairs@msutexas.edu. Call 940-397-4264 for more information.