This month’s Community Connection is Vicki Meek, Manager of the South Dallas Cultural Center. I would be hard-pressed to find someone else in Dallas who embodies the words “community” and “connection” more than Vicki. Not only is she a prominent member of the Dallas arts community, but of the Houston arts community as well. Read below to find out more!
Tell us a bit about yourself.
I’ve been involved in the Dallas arts community since 1980. I first actually came here as an artist, coming from being a Senior Program Administrator at the Connecticut Commission on the Arts. I came here to get married and decided I was just going to be an artist. That lasted about 2 years. Then, I had a baby boy and had to get a “real” job again. In summary, from 1977 to the present I’ve had arts administration experience on a state agency level as an Arts and Education Coordinator and then as a Senior Program Administrator. I followed that with multiple positions developing programs for local arts agencies. I am now the Manager of the South Dallas Cultural Center, and have been with the Center since 1980.
Tell us about your work at Project Row Houses in Houston.
Round 31 Life Path 5: Action/Restlessness was designed to celebrate the 15th anniversary of Project Row Houses by taking it back to its original intent: using visual art as an agent for social change and community engagement in that community. I was the curator of Round 31; I selected the artists involved with the project and also did a house myself. My house is the Imani/Nia House. The house is designed to get people to think about how their spiritual selves motivate their activism. I worked on the installation for two weeks, and just returned to Dallas this past Sunday.
What advice would you give to young artists?
Be vigilant in your pursuit of excellence. It’s a very hard field to be in, and if you’re not absolutely passionate about what you’re doing, you will not survive it.
Finish this sentence: In 10 years, I’d like to be…
Happily married in Senegal. I’m actually doing this in three years.
The Dallas Museum of Art partners annually with the South Dallas Cultural Center during their Summer Arts at the Center program. In 2009, DMA staff worked with the teens at the Center to create a presentation on their summer topic, the Middle Passage. The group met twice a week throughout the five-week program, and worked collaboratively on the research, writing, and design of the presentation. In addition, they selected works of art from the DMA’s African collection to help illustrate their topic. Much of their time was spent in the DMA’s Tech Lab, where the teens wrote and built their presentation.
Melissa Nelson
Manager of Learning Partnerships with the Community
