Important Dates in the History of the ARLIS/NA Texas-Mexico Chapter
1973 – The ARLIS/Texas Chapter began as a result of an organizational meeting held on September 15, 1973, at the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth. The meeting presided over by Ilse Rothrock, nominated a slate of candidates, and Shelby Miller became the first Texas Chapter President. The keynote speaker was Judith Hoffman, founder of ARLIS/NA. Hoffman presented the history of ARLIS/NA (then 302 members), and information about the organization. A Chapter constitution was read and ratified. The constitution and a formal request to become an official chapter in ARLIS/NA was submitted by Hoffman (then serving as Secretary-Treasurer of ARLIS/NA), and shortly afterward the Chapter became an official body in ARLIS/NA. (The Medium, Vol. 1, No. 1 January 1974).
1974 – First issue of The Medium was published in January. (The Medium, Vol. 1, No. 1, January 1974)
1983 – Art Documentation was edited in Texas by Erika Esau and George Boeck. (The Medium, Vol. 9, #2, September 1983), and later moved to New Orleans with the editors. (The Medium, Vol. 10, No. 1, May 1984)
1988 – The Texas-Mexico Chapter hosted the 15th Annual ARLIS/NA Conference in Dallas, TX on February 6 – 10. The conference Co-Chairs were Milan R. Hughston (Local Arrangements), and Dr. Lois Swan Jones (Program). (The Medium, Vol. 14, No. 1, July 1988)
1990 – The Chapter created the ARLIS/Texas Professional Development Award. The award provided $200 for travel to the annual ARLIS/NA conference. (The Medium, Vol. 16, No. 2, May 1990)
1991 – ARLIS/Texas and the Arizona and Southern California Chapters held a joint chapter meeting in Guadalajara at the same time as the International Book Fair on November 23rd – December 1st 1991. (The Medium, Vol. 17, No. 3, Summer 1991)
- In late 1991 the ARLIS/Texas Professional Development Award was renamed the Lois Swan Jones Professional Development Award at the suggestion of Milan R. Hughston since Dr. Jones was retiring. (The Medium, Vol 18, No. 1, Winter 1991)
1992 – In May, Dr. Lois Swan Jones retired from the University of North Texas and formed Swan/Jones Productions. Dr. Jones then created several educational videos on Medieval Christian iconography and symbolism and soon after published the 4th edition of her book Art Information: Research Methods and Resources. (The Medium, Vol. 18, No. 4, Fall 1992)
1996 – ARLIS/NA developed their first webpage and chapters could load their homepage on the site. The Texas Chapter formed a task force to decide what to put on their homepage. (The Medium, Vol 22, No. 1, Spring 1996)
1997 – The Texas Chapter hosted the 25th Annual ARLIS/NA Conference in San Antonio on April 4th – 10th. Local Co-chairs were Robert Beebe and Ann Jones. (The Medium, Vol. 23, No. 1, Spring 1997)
- At the fall 1997 Chapter Meeting in Houston, Janine Henri made a proposal to expand the ARLIS/Texas Chapter boundaries by including the country of Mexico. (The Medium, Vol. 23, No.3/4, Fall/Winter 1997)
1998 – In November, Dr. Lois Swan Jones published Art Information and the Internet: How to find it, how to use it and made free updates of her book available on the internet. (The Medium, Vol 24, No. 3-4, Fall/Winter 1998)
1999 – By October, the Chapter’s name had officially changed to the ARLIS/Texas-Mexico Chapter. Janine Henri drafted the proposal to expand the Chapter to include Mexico. She then obtained the approval of the proposal from the Chapter and ARLIS/NA. (The Medium, Vol 25, No. 3-4, Fall/Winter 1999)
- Sam Duncan redesigned the Chapter’s website and began publishing and posting The Medium digitally. This marked the end of a long history of physically mailing newsletters to members. (The Medium, Vol. 32, No. 1, Spring 2006)
2001 – The ARLIS/Texas-Mexico Chapter held its fall meeting in Albuquerque, New Mexico on November 1-3. They also visited Santa Fe. (The Medium, Vol 27, No. 2, Summer 2001)
2003 – The Chapter hosted a joint conference with the Southeast Chapter in New Orleans, LA. On November 13-16. (The Medium, Vol. 30, No. 1, Spring 2004)
2005 – The Chapter hosted the 33rd Annual ARLIS/NA Conference in Houston, TX. Mark Pompelia and Jon Evans served as the Local Arrangements Chairs, and Laura Schwartz and Elizabeth Schaub served as Program Chairs. (The Medium, Vol. 29, No. 3, Fall/Winter 2005)
- On October 20-24, 2005, the Chapter held its first fall chapter meeting in Marfa, TX. (The Medium, Vol. 31, No. 1, Spring 2005)
2008 – In December, the fall Chapter meeting was held in Guadalajara, Mexico. The meeting included a visit to nearby Tlaquepaque. (The Medium, Vol. 34, No. 3, Fall/Winer 2008)
2012 – The fall Chapter meeting was held in Marfa, TX, and included tours of the Chinati Foundation and the Judd Foundation Archives. (The Medium, Vol. 38, No. 2, Fall 2012)
2013 – Tara Spies Smith coordinated the first meeting of the Graphic Novels SIG.
2015 – The Texas-Mexico Chapter hosted the 43rd Annual ARLIS/NA Conference in Fort Worth on March 19-23. The theme was “New Frontiers on the Old Frontier.” (The Medium, Vol. 40, No. 1, Spring 2014 and The Medium, Vol. 41, No. 1, Spring 2015). Beverly Mitchell and Beverly Carver served as Local Arrangements Co-Chairs.
2016 – Craig Bunch published the book The Art of Found Objects: Interviews with Texas Artists. (The Medium, Vol. 41, No. 2, Fall 2015)
- On October 12-15, the Texas-Mexico Chapter held its fall meeting in Mexico City. Jon Evans stated that the Chapter plans to visit Mexico at least once every five years. (The Medium, Vol. 42, No. 2, Fall 2016)
2020 – In the spring, a Chapter Archivist position was approved and a few months later Katy Parker became the Chapter’s first archivist. The idea for the need of an archivist was first brought forth by 2019 President Sunyoung Park and carried forward by 2020 President Jenny Stone. (The Medium, Vol 46, No. 2, Fall 2020).
- In spring 2020, a proposal for the Texas-Mexico Chapter to host the 51st Annual ARLIS/NA Conference in Mexico City was accepted. The proposal was written by Jon Evans and Mark Pompelia. (The Medium, Vol 46, No. 2, Fall 2020). Co-Chairs are Jon Evans, Fernando Corona, Gabrielle Reed, and Lauren Gottlieb-Miller. (The Medium, Vol. 47, No. 1, Spring 2021)
- On November 12-13, the Texas-Mexico Chapter meeting that was to take place in Dallas, TX, took place virtually on Zoom due to COVID-19. The conference was free, and sixty members registered, including a good number of MLIS students. (The Medium, Vol. 46, No. 2, Fall 2020).
2021 – Sha Towers and co-author Ellen Filgo’s book, Liaison Engagement Success: A Practical Guide for Librarians was published in June. (The Medium, Vol. 47, No. 1, Spring 2021)
- The Janine Henri/Lois Swan Jones Professional Development Challenge fundraiser took place during the spring and early summer. (The Medium, Vol. 47, No. 2, Fall 2021)
- During the summer, a Texas-Mexico Chapter Land Acknowledgement Statement and Map was created by Rebecca Barham, Helen Lueders and Kate Alleman. (The Medium, Vol. 47, No. 2, Fall 2021)
- The Spanish translation the ARLIS/NA Conference Manual and Code of Conduct was proposed in June 2020 by the Mexico City conference chairs and was completed by Sarah Stanhope and Fernando Corona in September 2020. This update was discussed in The Medium, Vol. 47, No. 1, Spring 2021.
- During the fall, the Lois Swan Jones Professional Development Committee, under the leadership of Lauren Gottleib-Miller decided to award member sponsored student memberships in ARLIS/NA and the Texas-Mexico Chapter in addition to the professional development award in spring 2022. Member Sunyoung Park donated three of the four student memberships that will be awarded. (The Medium, Vol. 47, No. 2, Fall 2021)
- On November 4 – 5, the Chapter held its first hybrid fall chapter meeting (due to COVID-19) in Denton, TX. In-person tours and a virtual option for the business meeting and roundtable presentations were offered. Approximately one-fourth of the members attended in person and three-fourths attended virtually. (The Medium, Vol. 47, No. 2, Fall 2021)