Bishop Black and Blue

Bishop Black and Blue - Cultural Oasis in the Hills

Black & Blue: Cultural Oasis in the Hills celebrates Bishop College’s role in the intellectual and cultural life of Dallas through a series of historical markers commemorating important people and moments, including an interactive web and app component, featuring photographs, a timeline and video interviews. Bishop College was a historically black college founded in Marshall, Texas in 1881 that moved to southern Dallas in 1961 and closed in 1988. The campus is now occupied by Paul Quinn College.

To develop her project, nationally recognized Dallas artist Vicki Meek worked with former Bishop College faculty and alumni, and members of the Highland Hills and Singing Hills neighborhoods around the school. Bishop College played a significant role in the development of academic and cultural life in Dallas, giving birth to important cultural institutions such as the African American Museum and the Dallas Black Dance Theatre. Meek describes the motivation behind her work as a desire “to reclaim African American history, restore our collective memory and illuminate critical issues affecting the Black community through visual communication.”

Special thanks to the Nasher Sculpture Center for making this project possible. Shout out to my Black & Blue Team: Researchers Marilyn Clark, Diane Enobabor and Donald Payton; Artist Assistant Keston McKinnon; Website & App Developer Arif Merritt; Graphic Designer Marquis Washington; Soundscape Developer Malik Dillard; Filmmaker Q Ragsdale. This project couldn’t have happened without the kick-start from community leaders Sandra Crenshaw, Faye Gafford, and Gail Terrell. The staff of Paul Quinn College kept the ball rolling so I want to say thanks to Cecilyn Bryan, Reba Johnson and her staff and Dean Stacey Cherones. The Bishop alumni Ken Rowe, Beverly Lyle Brooks, Dean Hill, Roger Boykin, Wendell Sneed, Jo Long-Williams, Linda Searight, and Leo Hassan gave me invaluable insights into the dynamic cultural climate at Bishop as did former Head Librarian Dr. Harry Robinson and dance program director Mrs. Ann Williams. But probably the loudest shout out goes to President Michael Sorrell who embraced the idea of Black & Blue: Cultural Oasis in the Hills being installed on his campus at Paul Quinn College so that the original Bishop College site can be the home of its remembered cultural legacy.