Penn State Institute for the Arts and Humanities

Programs & Initiatives

Recognizing Pennsylvania Black Art/Artists

List of Honorees and Projects

Fall 2006
Three Decades of American Printmaking: The Brandywine Workshop Collection from Philadelphia at the Penn State Robeson Gallery
http://www.brandywineworkshop.com/
April 2006
Ahmad Jamal ~ internationally acclaimed jazz pianist, born in Pittsburgh; one of Miles Davis’s favorite pianists and a key influence on the trumpeter’s “First Great Quintet”; admired for his use of rhythm, space and dynamics as well as for his innovative use of multi-tonal melodic lines and the element of surprise
February 2006
Lamont Steptoe ~ poet, photographer and publisher born and raised in Pittsburgh
April 2005
August Wilson ~ Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright; his singular achievement and literary legacy is a cycle of ten plays, each set in a different decade of the 20th century, depicting the comedy and tragedy of the African-American experience. All but one of the ten plays takes place in his hometown of Pittsburgh.
February 2005
Dane Tilghman ~ one of the premier painters of African American Golf Art and Negro League Baseball images
November 2004
Bebe Moore Campbell ~ Philadelphia native and internationally acclaimed bestselling author, writer, and mental health advocate
April 2004
McCoy Tyner ~ legendary Philadelphia-born jazz pianist with over 75 recordings, including a number of highly influential albums, and four Grammys; best known for his work with the John Coltrane Quartet.