Arts & Culture

May 2017

Discover the world

Arts & Culture Professional vs Amateur What Makes a Photo Professional?

The Best Songwriters of Our Lifetime

Representing the Rainbow

More than just an Art Show

Why does love have labels?

Texas Heritage Songwriters’ Association

East Austin Studio Tour

Table of

4 Meet the Team Letters from the contributors.

6 Letter From the Editor 8

Professional vs.

Amateur Photography What makes a photo professional?

12 14

LGBT Around The World

Why does love have labels?

More Than Just An Art Show East Austin Studio Art Tour.

18

Contents Types of Texas Tunes Different Texas music influences.

20 Representing the Rainbow Discrimination of the LGBT+ community

24

Cameras Thru History

26

The Best Songwriters of Our Lifetime

A breif history of cameras.

Texas Heritage Songwriters Association.

30 Austin’s Street Art Iconic street murals.

4 Arts & Culture

Meet The Team Oscar Dillon is a 15 year old freshman, who goes to LASA. Oscar enjoys creating music with his friends and graphic design. He has decided to write about photography and the history of movies. He has always had an interest in film and the screen and hopes to continue into a career of film and music.

Archer Saenz (pronounced “signs�) is a seventh generation Texan who enjoys outdoors activities and playing basketball. During the summers he uses paint to paint curbs and listens to a wide variety of music simultaneously. In his future, he hopes to go to the University of Texas.

Alina Aguilar is 14 years old and has lived in Austin her entire life. She lives with her mom and three brother in South Austin. Alina loves playing sports and going to local events.

She decided to write about the East Austin Studio Tour because she attended it with her mom in 2016 and really enjoyed it.

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Note from the Editor

Since the dawn of time, humans have always been looking for a way to creatively express themselves. Now in 2017, the world is blooming with culture, nowhere is that more potent than in the heart of Texas, more specifically Austin Texas. In Austin the art can be shown through all over whether that means taking a snapshot of what you see, or to take time in order to paint every detail. Austin has many exhibits, were many great artists show off their great pieces. In other forms of creativity, Austin is also known for being the musical capital of the world. With many different festivals and events for the creators, Austin’s title is well deserved. Finally for all the art there is the culture behind it. Austin is ripe with culture from all over the world.

While Austin may be known for its music, the rest of texas is also a major mixing pot for the rest of the world

With the culture, comes the people who love the art and creativity of others and the people who live in this culture. Austin has its cultures from the large and popular ones to the less fortunate ones.

This magazine has two major purposes.

The first is too spread awarness for the art in austin and show people what goes into their favorite art. The second is to spread awarness for these cultures that arnt treated as well.

Sincerely

Oscar Dillon

Arts & Culture

Arts & Culture 7

What Makes A Photo Professional?

A dive into the differences between the two labels

By Oscar Dillon

Professional VS Amateur

Arts & Culture 8

T

he average eye can clearly tell that the clear, focused photo is better than a blurry, poorly angled photo.

Every year people everywhere, take around 1 trillion photos. What goes into taking a good photo? This is not an idea that goes through the average photographer’s mind. Generally people think only, “does this look good”, “will this be good to look at”, or “this will hold good memories”.

Most people can tell when a photo looks bad but what makes a good photo, especially from someone who is payed to take photos. And what makes a person special enough to be payed for taking photos?

A bird flys out of the streets of brazil, in front of a house.

(John Langford)

The real thing that differentiates everyday hobbyists and camera crazed parents from being professional really comes down to time and dedication.

Most professionals will have spent lifetimes taking and perfecting pictures. Others will just take photos for memories. Professionals make sure their photos are worth money.

“Over the course of about 50 years, I have taken over 600,000 photos,” Robert Dub says “They include a number of presidents, the Queen of England, countless entertainment stars, breaking news, sports stars, fashion models and over 26,000 events.”

The common mistakes that people make are generally not large enough for most people to notice. Professionals will notice them but, to most a photo can look fine if not just as normal as any other photo.

“Usually composition and timing separates the pro from the amateur.

Amateurs, in general, don’t shoot tight enough and don’t know the precise instant to push the button.” Dub says.

“Is the subject obvious, is the subject portrayed accurately in the moment and does it need a caption to explain the image. If the first two answers are ‘yes’ and the last one ‘no’, it’s probably a good image.”

Robert dub

Every photographer has the ability to take average photos, the experienced photographer will take better than average photos, but everyone has to fail at some point. For professionals most photos are generally close to standard if not better.

“There are thousands of [bad photos] only 10% or less of the images I shoot meet my standards for the public to see. The rest will never see the light of day.” Michael Broughton, a well known photographer, who takes photos for events and is for his photos at conventions and gatherings, says.

And deciding which photos to discard and which to keep can be a pain as well. But this can usually be avoided by trying to take the correct photo from the beginning. Taking just a frame out of life can be more than just aiming the instrument and pressing a button.

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Photo of boats in [location], photo taken by John Langford

“When taking the image there is a sense of rightness about the image as your looking through the viewfinder. There is almost a click in one’s mind’s eye when things are right. Afterwards it’s a throw of the dice if what you see in the print matches with your vision at the time of the image capture,” Broughton explains.

Besides physical aspects of the photo hobbyists also need to know how to use the instrument known as a camera. When using the camera hobbyists need to know how to use things such as: angling, lighting, and composition.

“This is where understanding the “Art Of Photography” can come into play. With someone who knows what they are doing there are countless cues that can be seen in the finished print.” Broughton says Other problems are items in frame, not just the atmosphere that surrounds the picture. A photobomber

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or a poorly light setting can ruin the final product of the photo. Framing can make or break a photo, and will be one of the most important factors for the quality of the photo.

“Amateurs almost always take a photo from too far away. Often there are distracting elements in the background like tree branches, utility poles, pedestrians etc.

Amateurs tend not to give as much consideration to proper exposure… their photos are too light or too dark, and often the focus is not crisp.” John Langford, a big traveler and photographer, who has been to over 38 countries and has shared his findings from each country, says Even if you try your hardest a photo can still not work for you as things like blur and other problems can affect the photos ability for it to come out as clear as possible. Other things can occur such as a bad flash or a person, unintentionally in the background “I’ve taken so many bad photos it would be hard to choose just one!

On a recent shoot for a client which involved hiring models, driving to a location, paying an assistant, hiking a long distance with a lot of equipment, I rented a lens and discovered after the fact that the lens was defective and that a third of the photos were slightly out of focus. Those are some of my least favorite photos.” Langford, explains A good photo can be taken by anyone, anywhere, with any kind of camera. The photos taken by professionals, only look so good, because they’re one in hundreds of attempts. They can stand around and take bad photos for hours but only need to get a good photo once, so taking hundreds of photos raises the chances. Most people don’t have the patience to wait for the perfect photo which is why for most a good photo only comes once.

picture of a popular camera [ZLE-1] by Roselin Chang

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LGBT: Around the World 21 countries that legalize same-sex marriage: Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Columbia, Denmark, Finland, France, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom, United States, and Uruguay.

Punishable by a death penalty in eight countries: Brunei, Iran, Maurita-

nia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Yemen, and parts of Somalia and Nigeria.

Criminalized but not given a death sentence: Algeria, Angola,

Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, Comoros, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Libya, Malawi, Morocco, Namibia, parts of Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, parts of Somalia, South Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Burma, India, Kuwait, Malaysia, Maldives, Oman, Pakistan, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Syria, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, Dominica, Guyana, Jamaica.

Zambudio’s Funeral. Photo by Jorge Barrios Riquelme.

Legal Illegal with death penalty Illegal with other penalties National Debate Ambiguous Legal to an extent* *Differs within each country

Chile:

Chilean President Michelle Bachelet stated that she would introduce a same-sex marriage bill during the Chilean Congress, and in January she initiated the start of a public discussion, the purpose to pass an effective bill. In 2012, a hate and anti-discrimination law was passed due to the murder of Daniel Zamudio, a young gay man whose body had swastikas carved on it.

Fortunately, Chile has taken positive steps to improve protection of LGBT members living in the country.

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Afghanistan:

In Afghanistan, same-sex marriage is banned, and can be punishable by 5 to 15 years in jail. The law also provides no protection against any discrimination against LGBT people in Afghan, so LGBT members were at risk of facing harassment if they didn’t hide their identity. Gay men have been physically abused, and some were even killed by their own family members. Unfortunately, the British immigration officials would not accept the Afghan refugees in the UK.

Cameroon:

In 2013, Eric Ohena Lembembe, was found at home in Yaoundé, the capital of Cameroon.

Lembembe was one of Cameroon’s most notable LGBT rights activists and openly gay – an astonishing act of bravery in a country where homosexuality is punishable with prison and violence against LGBT people. He had been tortured – his neck and feet broken, his body burned with an iron – and murdered. There was no arrests made, causing many to fear and denounce that no political authority was willing to seek justice for the homicide. Michel Togue, a lawyer in Cameroon, received threatening calls and text messages telling him to stop supporting the LGBT community or else his family would get killed. He requested help from the authorities and the Lawyer’s Association, but they offered no support nor protection. The death threats continued to the point where his family had to seek asylum, and fortunately the US granted them refugee status during the Obama administration. Togue, however, chose to remain in Cameroon, stating that LGBT people there needed lawyers to represent them. Both Togue and Alice Nkom are the only lawyers in Cameroon who have represented the LGBT community for many years, and as a result of their relentless work, the amount of gays and lesbians arrested has decreased over the past years.

Chechnya:

Netherlands:

Since 2001, Netherlands was the first country to legalize samesex marriage, and it’s known for LGBT-friendly policies. But recently, as a gay couple held hands and walked home, a group of teenagers verbally (saying slurs) and physically assaulted them. One of the victims was even hit with a bolt cutter. Four of the teens turned themselves in (three were 16, and one is 14).

Though homophobic violence is taken seriously by the authorities, incidents still occur regularly. It seems anti-discrimination in the country, as well as other countries, need to be intensified to prevent incidents like this.

Japan:

March 14, Japan’s bullying prevention policy was revised to include prevention against students based on their sexual orientation or identity. A Human Rights report found that LGBT students faced abuse, harassment, and insults from their classmates and teachers. Although some schools and staff members tried to support those students getting bullied, they weren’t well-informed about LGBT issues and what those students were specifically going through. Additionally, they must also pass a policy regarding legal recognition of transgender people since current laws go against basic human rights and could potentially negatively affect transgender students.

In Chechnya, a Russian republic, an anti-LGBT campaign took place. Dozens of men suspected of being gay were rounded up, tortured and humiliated by authorities and officials under the control of Ramzan Kadyrov, the head of the republic. Some have “forcibly disappeared”, while others returned to their families, wounded. Three men have already died from this horrific incident.

Due to the news being publicised on April 1st, the spokesperson for Interior Ministry labeled it as a “joke” and Kadyrov’s secretary stated there were no gays “because their relatives would send them somewhere from which there is no returning.” Though Dmitry Peskov stated that law officials would look into the matter and those inflicted should file a complaint, most people are too fearful to inform, much less file complaints, in the off chance that they won’t receive the protection needed. Unfortunately, they are very vulnerable, living in an extreme homophobic place where their own relatives might commit “honor killings” for dishonoring the family. These types of conditions aren’t something a person should be exposed to.

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More than just an Art Show People attend an event that takes place on the eastside of Austin Texas.

By: Alina Aguilar

T

he East Austin Studio Tour, EAST, is not just any ordinary art show, this bizarre event takes place in November for two weekends. The East Austin Studio Tour is an event that only focuses on art.

EAST is an art event that takes place on the East side of Austin where local Austin artist show off their artwork and people come to admire their artwork. The unique part about this event is that there is boundaries. If your studio in within the boundaries of the event you can sell you work right from there. If not, you can rent a little room in the main building and set up your artwork inside the building. Not only that, it is not anything like you would expect!

“EAST is a really great event where artists, art lovers and patrons all come together.

It’s so much fun because it brings together so many different groups of the Austin art community” said Ms.Rebecca Gordon. This non-profit

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“EAST is a really great event where artists, art lovers and patrons all come together. It’s so much fun because it brings together so many different groups of the Austin art community” event allows artist to connect with the people in their community.

“There’s nothing quite like it. Its spread out over a wide section of the city and its free.

And it’s all about ART. Not tied into music or food or other festivals” said Ms.Kiah Denson.

People, especially art lover and artist, look forward to this event all year. Austin has many events going on throughout the year, but most of them are either music events, or events that have a blend of things; not just art based.

Most artist rent a room in the Canopy to display their work. The Canopy is located on the eastside of Austin.

Photo by: Alina Aguilar

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The Canopy is a two story building and is very busy while the event is taking place. The building is full of visters, artist, and artwork.

Photo by: Alina Aguilar

When you usually hear the word “Art Showcase” or “Art Museum” the idea of a quiet, and formal environment comes to mind. People who are not really into that, usually get the wrong idea about EAST.

“I think I expected it to be more like a museum where you’re quiet and are i guess admiring pieces you’re not even sure of the meaning of them are” said Ms.Samantha Flores. Samantha Flores attend the 2016 East Austin Studio Tour for the first time. There is a lot of interaction at the event and you will never find it quite!

EAST is very beneficial to artist as well in many ways.

“It has been good to put myself out there and to get involved with the community. It serves as a way to stay relevant as well as having a 16 Arts & Culture

“There’s nothing quite like it.

Its spread out over a wide section of the city and its free.

And it’s all about ART. Not tied into music or food or other festivals” reason to make new work” said Ms.Rebecca Gordon.

The artist sell a lot of their work at this event, and even get feedback on what people are interested in. They get a view on what artwork is selling and what is not.

The art show, is not just any art show.

There is not just one set location for it, although there are rooms you can rent at Canopy and Bolm Studios, and little umbrellas outside as well.

“I thought it was nice to see art that people produce in their homes, or in their own environment” said Ms. Samantha Flores.

There are boundaries for this event. It is called the “East” Austin Studio Tour, because it is an event that takes place in the eastside

of Austin. The exact locations are East of I-35, West of Hwy 183, South of Hwy 290, and North of Riverside Dr.

“I’m not really one to go to art shows and I went to this one with my friends because they wanted to go and I actually enjoyed it more than I thought I would” said Samantha Flores.

Overall, the East Austin Studio Tour is very abnormal, and because of that is a very successful event.

Local high school student, Samantha Flores just entered the main enterance at the Canopy. Samantha and her friend first look at the big mural located on the right side of the room. Photo by: Christine Rodriguez

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Types of Texas Tunes

By Archer Saenz

country

There are many different styles of music, and Texas is the birthplace for most of these styles.

Outlaw country, popularized by Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Jerry Jeff Walker and more, is based primarily out of the Texas hill country. Honky-tonk music is also widely known. Kenny Rogers, from Houston, sold over 35 million copies of his album The Gambler and George Strait, aka “The King of Country,� has had the most #1 hit singles in the history of music of all genres.

Austin, aka The Live Music Capital

of the World, is home to historic 6th street, Austin City Limits (ACL) and South by Southwest (SxSW) music festivals. The ACL Live Theater has hosted brilliant artists, from Willie Nelson to Cee Lo Green to the Gypsy Kings for various events.

In the mid-1840s, there was a mass immi-

gration of Germans to Texas. They brought their foods and music through the ports in Galveston up into the hill country.

German polka music has been derived and incorperated into many styles of Texas music.

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Texas music is ever-changing and evolving. The variety of influences make Texas culture unique.

Many worldwide hip-hop artists hail from Texas. Beyonce, Jamie Foxx, Chamillionare and Travis Scott were all born in Texas. Did I mention Beyonce is from Texas?

Texas Blues migrated from the

Mississippi delta ninto the oilfields of Baytown, Houston, and other nearby areas around the time of the Great Depression. In the 1970s, ZZ Top brought this style back into popular culture and set the stage for people like Stevie Ray Vaughn.

A mixture between German polka, Mexican rancheras, jazz and other influences,

Tejano music has been prominent in

the modern Texas music scene. People like Flaco Jimenez and Freddie Fender opened the doors for stars like Selena Quintanilla to become legendary figures.

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Representing the Rainbow Flag swaying in San Francisco, California. Credited to Benson Kua

Why does love have labels?

By Mark Wang

20 Arts & Culture

R

aised with a Catholic background, Grace Goetz, a 12-yearold girl living in Austin, goes against the customs and spills the truth. Her friends call it “being yourself”, but her parents call it a disfunction. Not wanting to throw away her identity, but scared of the complete rejection and disappointment she thinks she will receive from her family in exchange for it causes her to go back into the closet for two years.

“They told me it was a disfunction to like the same gender as me, and homosexuals perverted the rainbow sign because it was a promise from God, and that they would go to hell for that,” said Goetz. She is among the many 10,000 youths who identify as being LGBT. The majority start realizing their identity and sexuality around the ages of 10 to 15 and despite being so young, they are

subject to harsh treatments by others who disapprove of such behavior.

Similar to Goetz, Ruby Frey, a 13-year-old, was raised by a religious mother who believes that being gay is both a sin and a choice and a less religious father who avoids anything relating to LGBT. “It would be so much easier if I was straight. Just in general, less hate possible, less discrimination,” said Frey. She came out once to an internet friend who started spewing about how being gay was a sin and that she would go to hell unless she asked for forgiveness--fortunately that was the most direct hate she’s gotten.

There are more than 5,000 churches that support LGBT, and 54 percent of Christians believe

Group of high school students at LASA Pride Alliance gathering.

Photo by author.

that laws should protect them from discrimination, but it should not stop there. Studies indicate that 40 percent of homeless youth are on the streets because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. “If you are low and heartless enough to kick out your child, potentially endangering them, just because they want to love someone-you don’t deserve the same love they want to give you,” said Jess Brenneman, a 13-year-old living in Ohio who has had to deal with classmates that would debate with her on such topics and claim that she is wrong.

it was a crush!” said Brenneman. She came out to her mother, who believes she is wrong and that it is ‘just a phase’, a common misconception, but perhaps with more awareness, they would realize that people are born this way and there is nothing wrong with that.

According to her, when she saw how boys treated girls in real life compared to the media, she knew she could do much better, then realized she did not have to be a boy to do that. “I knew that wasn’t just a yearning to be like the Disney princesses,

Even without external experiences of violence, LGBT people are exposed to getting negative social views towards themselves. This internal oppression leads to devaluing oneself, and it is unlikely to disappear even after the person accepts their identity.

“At our core, we are just like them: human. There is nothing in our genetic makeup that makes us any different than every single other human being who exists,” said Frey.

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“It complicates it about the fact that you’re...going through normal human things but it makes it feel like you’re not normal,” said wellness counselor, Megan Butler.

Riley Elder is another youth who grew up in a homophobic household in which being anything but a cisgender--one’s gender and identity is the same as their birth sex-- heterosexual was unacceptable. “Most people accepted me, but a few kids became a bit cruel-some made snide comments or even go out of their way to make me feel horrible,” said Elder.

Unfortunately, 68 percent of LGBT youths hear negative messages

about being LGBT from elected leaders.

“Because of externalized homophobia because of the heteronormative society we live in, people feel that they don’t belong and so that puts a lot of anxiety, and a lot of depression,” said Butler. There has not been an increase in schools offering LGBT curriculums because of reasons such as unsupportive administrators and parents, and simply not knowing where to start.

“I believe that our support and acceptance has created a very safe, comfortable, and happy environment that students feel welcomed to be in. It should be like this at not only every school, but all over the world!” said Goetz.

Grace Goetz, a 14-year-old, sitting peacefully in the sunshine. Photo by author.

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Two women pledging their love for each other. Photo from Pexels.

Schools that are not LGBT friendly will be difficult for such youths to attend at, yet LGBT students at schools with comprehensive policies on bullying and harassment are much more likely to report harassment to school authorities who, in turn, were more likely to respond effectively.

Though coming out can result in negative consequences, sometimes it can be a positive experience. Elder’s advice to his closest friend, who was curious about finding out if he was homosexual, has helped his friend be in a safe relationship with his partner.

Then a couple weeks later they cut their hair and came out as transgender, and thanked Elder for helping them out. “I’m glad to help someone become who they’d want to be,” said Elder.

Common issues can be solved, simply if people learn to accept and embrace them. “I want children unafraid to come out, because they know they’ll be safe; a girl unafraid to call her girlfriend her girlfriend; the boy with two dads to hug them at the same time instead of watching them sneakily come up to him as if they’re in a James Bond movie,” said Brenneman.

A future like that is not unattainable, and someday there would be no need for a ‘straight mode’.

The preferred response to coming out is a reassurance that their relationships have not changed in a negative way, and once they find that support they will be able to get through life with confidence and pure happiness. “Start brave and find that one person in your life who’s gonna treat you the way you deserve to be treated. Start with one friend. Start with one person,” said Butler.

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History of

Photography A brief history of the photo throughout history

The first camera was designed in 1685 by the man named Johann Zahn. John was a german writer in the late 1600s. He designed a small box like camera that used a series of lenses in order to form a picture. The small box started a movement which would eventually make the world we have today, with modern cameras and an ability to form pictures.

The first camera was invented in 1814 by a man named Joseph Nicephore Niepce, who based his great invention was based on the early patents of Johann Zahn from 1685 and an early scientist named Ibnal- Haytham, who was around in 1021.

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The first camera with color was invented in 1861

by James Clerk Maxwell who had been making a camera since 1855. The first camera was

Film was first invented in 1885 by George Eastman. George was an early movie pioneer and used film in order to create movies. These were black and white films that were very popular back in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century.

The first broadcast television program was made in september 7th 1927. The camera used a mechanical disk and flying spot scanner, and part of the RCA TK-40/41 series.

The first digital camera was invented in december 1975.

This camera was made by a man named Eastman Kodak. The camera was invented to make 0.01 megapixel photos, and was very, very big.

The first color tv camera came out in the late 1940s and was later put into work in the 1950s. These cameras were used by the television channels CBS and the RCA.

Ultra-High-definition or as its more commonly known as 4k, is the invention allowing video and picture to be more high quality that what our eyes can detect. The idea was first put into action in 2011 after seven years of preparation work. This was invented by NHK, a research group from the Japanese Broadcasting Corporation

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The Best Songwriters of Our Lifetime

By Archer Saenz

The Texas Heritage Songwriters’ 2016 Hall of Fame ceremony took place at the ACL Live Moody Theater on Willie Nelson Blvd.

Heritage Songwriters Association (TxHSA). Some select few are awarded the Darryl K. Royal Award.

The 2016 Hall Of Fame Ceremony was held at the ACL Live Moody Theater. TxHSA was started in 2005 to honor our Texas music icons and preserve their legacies in this Hall of Fame. People like Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Kris Kristofferson, and Robert Earl Keen have been inducted.

“Well that is crazy, it really is. Because those guys are definitely on a pedestal to me and I don’t think of myself in that group,” says Bruce Robison, 2007 inductee. “Though on the other hand I am really proud to be from Texas and to be from Austin and to have the success that I did in the realm other than that of commercial radio.”

Enriching Texas’ culture is what drives Robison to be the great songwriter that he is. Texas culture, however, is a hard concept to describe simply.

Texas songwriters are all inspired by different influences and come from different backgrounds, but come together to contribute to Texas music.

Photo by Pexels

M

illion-dollar voices bounce around the Moody Theater. The small room is filled with Texans, most of who just happen to be some of the most iconic songwriters of our lifetime.

Every other year the amazing songwriters of our state get recognition from the Texas

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“I think the thing that really defines it is how diverse it is. There are so many different cultures that feed into Texas music that it’s kinda hard to classify. When you look at great artists from Texas, whether it was Willie Nelson, Flaco Jimenez, or Little Joe, they were always adding different sorts of influences to what they did to make it new and so, you know, that’s what I really think Texas music is. We are all we are really a melting pot of different things here, in between a really lot of powerful influences that are all coming in our borders.” says Robison.

In a state where almost 40 percent is Hispanic or Latino, and almost one fifth of the population is foreign born, there is certainly an abundance of different cultures to add.

“There are so many different cultures that feed into Texas music that it’s kinda hard to classify.”

Bruce Robison, alongside Kris Kristofferson, was part of one of the first TxHSA Hall of Fame classes.

Photo provided by Bruce Robison

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Texas Heritage Songwriters Association tions with B.B. King, Mariah Carrey, Jimmy Buffett, and Roy Orbison.

“Texas songwriters, they are the essence of our culture, they are the poets of our time, they are symbolic to our state.” says Bolton.

There are many musicians and songwriters to come out of Texas that are not only considered state treasures, but also national and worldwide treasures.

“It takes a special kind of person to be able to really do creating and be out there and be part of that world without being hung up on commercial aspects of it or critical aspects of it, things that I don’t put a whole lot of stock into,” says Robison.

These songwriters work to put as much of their soul into their craft as possible and dedicate their life to it.

“I’ve met a lot of amazing people and everyone here, they love our state, they want to recognize these outstanding songwriters.” says Bolton.

Although other artists may take the song to the top of the charts, TxHSA recognizes the original songwriter.

Photo by Archer Saenz

TxHSA was founded to preserve Texas culture and give the songwriters of some of the biggest musical compositions their due recognition.

“It’s great to honor these Texas Songwriters, who sometimes no one knows who they are, but you know their songs,” says chairwoman Miranda Bolton, “Sometimes our Hall of Famers are the artist and the songwriter, and other times its they are just the songwriter and no one’s ever heard of them, but they’ve written the biggest hits of our lifetime.”

Will Jennings, the writer for the theme from Titanic, “My Heart Will Go On,” was inducted in 2016. Among his other works are collabora-

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TxHSA is not just a placecard for the names of these icons. It is a time capsule to engrave the culture of Texas music forever.

“Texas songwriters, they are the essence of our culture, they are the poets of our time, they are symbolic to our state.”

Established in 2005, TxHSA has inducted 36 songwriters into the Hall of Fame.

Photo by Archer Saenz

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Austin’s Street Art

Austin is known for having art murals throughout the city. Some of the most visited murals are shown below with background information as well as, the date they were created and the location they can be found.

By: Alina Aguilar

The Greetings from Austin mural first appeared in the Austin community in 1998 and is located at 1720 S. First Street. It is a extremely popular mural to visit and appears on many postcards. The mural has been restored because of the weathering.

1983

1998

In 1983 Daniel Johnston created the Jeremiah the Innocent mural, also known as the “Hi, How Are You?” frog and is located near the UT, at the corner of 21st and Guadalupe.

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2010

In 2010 the artist Federico Archuleta recreated the Til Death Do Us Part mural in downtown Austin because of the amount of attention it was receiving. The mural is located on the corner of 7th and Waller.

In 2012 Sanctuary Printshop created the Welcome To Historic 6th as a gift to Austin. The mural wecomes vistors to the well known 6th street entertainment district. The mural in located on 6th street and I-35 Frontage Road.

The I love you so much mural was brought to the Austin community in 2010 by Amy Cook. Thousands of pictures are taken in front of this mural by tourist and locals and is located on the side of Jo’s Hot Coffee building. Sadly the mural has been vandalized three time but has been restored by locals.

2010

2012

2012

Located on 2000 E. MLK Jr. Blvd is the You’re My Butter Half mural. The mural was created by the Creative Suitcase team in 2012. This mural is a great spot to take a picture with any loved one.

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