Weslaco Museum Hosts Meet the Artist Reception

The Weslaco Museum at 500 S. Texas will host a “Meet the Artist” reception for Lenard Brown of Houston on Saturday, February 27, at 2 p.m.  

His art, on display in the museum’s exhibition gallery through March 6, commemorates Black History Month, which is observed in February.  The program is free and the public is invited.  

Brown, a native of Tyler in East Texas, received his Associate degree in art from Lon Morris College of Jacksonville, Texas, his Bachelor’s of Fine Arts from Texas A&M University, Corpus Christi, and his Master’s degree from Ohio State University. 

Since graduating, he taught at Purdue University, the University of Nebraska and Alabama State University in Montgomery, Alabama before teaching at several Texas universities, including the University of Texas-Pan American.        

As he continued teaching, he began to reflect on the stories he had heard of the migration of people as they moved from migrant labor and tenant farming to more settled occupations and better educational opportunities.         

Part of his exhibit deals with the transmigration of people in different parts of America.   He combines local area maps with images of people who live in those areas, or had once migrated through them, including Weslaco.

His larger works are colorful mural-type paintings based on Adinkra symbols of the Akan people of Ghana and Cote’ d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast).    Each of the symbols has a name and meaning related to their history, philosophy and religious beliefs. 

Today, designers use Adinkra symbols to create a wide range of products including clothing accessories, interior decoration, packages and book covers.