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Hannah Tait -
Carlee Dupuy
Books date back to the 2nd and 3rd centuries, when the Romans created a “codex,” which is an ancient book form with individual sheets of papyrus, parchment, or paper folded in half and sewn together at the fold. The reader would open the pages to reveal two columns of text that shared a page. While many historians fail to agree on the first modern book, one book that has its own place in history is currently on display at the Stark Museum of Art in Orange through July 29.
The Guinness World Record certified largest published book in the world, “I Am Texas,” which is an ode to Texas from the perspective of 1,000 Texan school kids, third grade through 12th grade, from more than 80 school districts through stories, poetry and artwork. The exhibition also features 12 Southeast Texas student artists and authors including Maya Alvarado (Port Neches), Bront Ballew (Port Neches), Carlee Dupuy (Orange), Kaitlyn Figueroa (Port Neches), Riley Gonzales (Deweyville), Lydia Gragg (Port Neches), Ava Huckaby (Port Neches), Kolbe Hughes (Deweyville), Jaydon McConathy (Deweyville), Kari Medlock (Port Neches), Chloe Prettyman (Deweyville), and Hannah Tait (Orange).
“We are delighted to host the ‘I Am Texas’ book at the Stark Museum of Art and celebrate the creativity of Texas students, especially the 12 student artists and authors from Southeast Texas,” said Executive Director of Stark Art and History Venues, Trina Nelson Thomas. “As a museum of Western art, we celebrate the west, and Texas is a big part of that story.”
The 400-page book stands 7 foot tall, with an open width span of 11 feet and weighs 496 pounds.
Tait and her classmate Carlee Dupuy, both 2022 graduates from Little Cypress-Mauriceville High School, were approached by their art teacher, Betsy Bland, about entering the contest, so Tait decided to use her niece, Austin, for inspiration.
“Her parents got her involved in mutton bustin’ and she had homemade chaps and a hat that her grandfather gave her, so I thought it would be adorable to paint,” said Tait.
Starting in November of 2021, Tait said the acrylic painting of her niece took 30 hours to finish. “Acrylic paint dries fast, so I had to add a lot of layers, plus it’s hard to blend everything evenly. I used different techniques to get the values and color corrected.”
Tait, who is studying painting and printmaking at Brigham Young University-Idaho in Rexburg, Idaho, said it was “amazing” to see the book and her painting, which is on Page 49, in person. “This is definitely a major accomplishment and it’s special to my heart because it’s a paining of my niece.”
The brainchild of the book was created by The Bryan Museum and the iWRITE Organization, whose mission is to build student confidence through writing, along with New York Times bestselling author and illustrator team Brad Meltzer and Christopher Eliopoulos, creators of the “Ordinary People Change the World” series. They published “I Am Texas” with the help of Phillips 66, the official sponsor of its production.
“We were ready to do something big for our 13th book, and nothing is bigger or more exciting for kids than getting published plus breaking a world record,” said Melissa Williams Murphy, iWRITE founder and executive director of The Bryan Museum.
For those visiting for the first time, the Stark Museum of Art houses one of the nation’s most significant collections of American Western art and is located in the heart of downtown historic Orange at 712 Green Ave. Paintings, sculpture, prints and rare books interpret the West from 19th century frontier artists to the 20th century artistic colonies in New Mexico and focus on the stunning land, dramatic people and diverse wildlife of the American West.
The museum is open to the public Wednesday through Saturday, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free of charge. For more information about the museum or “I Am Texas,” visit starkmuseum.org or call (409) 886-2787.
-Chad Cooper, Entertainment Editor