FORT WORTH, Texas (Jan. 29, 2014) – Christopher Blay, curator at Tarrant County College Southeast Campus, recently received the Moss/Chumley Artist Award. The award is presented annually by the Meadows Museum to an outstanding North Texas artist who exhibits professionally for at least 10 years and has a proven track record as a community advocate for the visual arts.
“Christopher is very socially minded in his art and his community projects center around art,” said Nicole Atzbach, curator for the Meadows Museum at Southern Methodist University.
Sometimes called a “curator of the people,” Blay is known for creating community-centered projects, such as an oral history project that included a number of DFW communities. He received grants from the Arts Council of Northeast County for his oral history projects on Haltom City and Keller.
“I’m thrilled to join this list of esteemed artists,” said Blay, a 1998 graduate of Tarrant County College. “I thank the Meadows Museum for honoring me with an award named after Frank Moss and Jim Chumley, who made so many contributions to the arts community in North Texas.”
Blay’s recent works include the sculpture series, Art Depreciation, which views the “cult of personality that develops around art and artists” with parodies such as Donald Judd Apatow, Samuel L. Jackson Pollack, L’il Wayne Thiebaud and Steely Dan Flavin.
“Mr. Blay’s award from the Meadows Museum is a testament to his involvement with local art efforts,” said Southeast Campus President William Coppola, Ph.D. “We are truly fortunate to have such a creative artist and tireless advocate as a member of the Southeast staff.”
