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VOLUME 36 NO. 9
OCTOBER 2012
4 th Annual Louisiana Studies Conference
focuses on Louisiana art and artists
By Dr. Shane Rasmussen
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The 4 th annual Louisiana
Studies Conference was held
on Sept. 21-22 at NSU. Dr.
Lisa Abney, provost and
vice president for Academic
Affairs and Student Affairs
and professor of English;
Leslie Gruesbeck, assistant
professor of art and gallery
director, and Dr. Shane
Rasmussen, director of the
Louisiana Folklife Center
and assistant professor
of English, served as
conference co-chairs. Matt
DeFord, associate professor
of art and coordinator of art,
Gruesbeck, and Rasmussen
served as the Conference
Planning Committee.
Rasmussen served as chair
of the Conference Selection
Committee, along with
Dr. James J. Mischler
and Dr. Thomas W.
Reynolds, Jr., both of the
Department of Language and
Communication. Mischler
and Reynolds also served as
conference programmers.
DeFord designed the
conference program cover.
Jason Church (National
Center for Preservation
Technology and Training)
supplied the program cover
photo. William E. Brent,
director of the School of
Creative and Performing
Arts and director of bands,
served as conference host.
Dr. Bill Smith, director of
Marketing and Branding
Surrounded by her artwork in Hanchey Gallery, Louisiana artist
Juanita Leonard was interviewed by Dr. Shane Rasmussen as
the Saturday morning keynote address during the Louisiana
Studies Conference.
and adjunct instructor
of history, documented
the conference keynote
addresses and managed
social media. The staff of the
Louisiana Folklife Center,
administrative assistant
Sharon Sweeters, graduate
intern Kenneth Williams
and students Lauren Carroll,
Kayla Hardy, and Chelsea
Taylor kept the Conference
running smoothly. Chris
Brumley and Charles
Rachal, both from
Electronic and Continuing
Education, served as
conference technical
support. Volunteer Christina
Lake took photographs.
Jason Church and Curtis
Desselles (National Center
for Preservation Technology
and Training) also served as
volunteers.
This year’s conference
theme was “Louisiana Art
and Artists.” The conference
included two keynote
speakers. New Orleans new
media artist Dawn DeDeaux
gave the Friday evening
keynote, titled “Reflections
of Turbulence: The Affect of
Disaster.” DeFord introduced
DeDeaux. The Saturday
morning keynote consisted
of Rasmussen interviewing
self-taught Louisiana artist
Juanita Leonard amidst an
exhibit of her work in the
Orville J. Hanchey Gallery.
Leonard’s Saturday keynote
was titled “Our Gifts Make
Room For Us All.”
The two day conference
was a great success, with
45 scholars and creative
writers participating in 16
separate panels. Conference
participants came from
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