Chronicles of Courage: Very Special Artists
Encyclopedia
Chronicles of Courage: Very Special Artists was written by Ambassador Jean Kennedy Smith
with George Plimpton
(co-founder of the Paris Review
) and published by Random House
in April 1993. In 1974, Smith founded Very Special Arts, an educational affiliate of the Kennedy Center that provides opportunities in the creative arts for persons with disabilities in the United States and around the world. In February 2011, President Obama awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom
, the nation’s highest civilian honor, for her work with people with disabilities.
The 272 page book profiles 16 artists with disabilities who discuss how art has made a difference in their lives despite their unique challenges. Artists include Chuck Close
, Mary Verdi-Fletcher (the first professional wheelchair dancer in the United States), Mark Di Suvero
, Jack Hofsiss
, Tony Meléndez
, Howie Seago
and Randy Souders
. The book also includes a "disability awareness guide," a list of disability organizations and other resources. It was published in both hardcover and paperback editions.
Jean Kennedy Smith
Jean Ann Kennedy Smith is an American diplomat and a former United States Ambassador to Ireland. She is the eighth of nine children born to Joseph Patrick Kennedy, Sr. and Rose Elizabeth Fitzgerald and is their last surviving child. She is the sister of the 35th U.S. President, John F. Kennedy,...
with George Plimpton
George Plimpton
George Ames Plimpton was an American journalist, writer, editor, and actor. He is widely known for his sports writing and for helping to found The Paris Review.-Early life:...
(co-founder of the Paris Review
Paris Review
The Paris Review is a literary quarterly founded in 1953 by Harold L. Humes, Peter Matthiessen and George Plimpton. Plimpton edited the Review from its founding until his death in 2003. In its first five years, The Paris Review published works by Jack Kerouac, Philip Larkin, V. S...
) and published by Random House
Random House
Random House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...
in April 1993. In 1974, Smith founded Very Special Arts, an educational affiliate of the Kennedy Center that provides opportunities in the creative arts for persons with disabilities in the United States and around the world. In February 2011, President Obama awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom
Presidential Medal of Freedom
The Presidential Medal of Freedom is an award bestowed by the President of the United States and is—along with thecomparable Congressional Gold Medal bestowed by an act of U.S. Congress—the highest civilian award in the United States...
, the nation’s highest civilian honor, for her work with people with disabilities.
The 272 page book profiles 16 artists with disabilities who discuss how art has made a difference in their lives despite their unique challenges. Artists include Chuck Close
Chuck Close
Charles Thomas "Chuck" Close is an American painter and photographer who achieved fame as a photorealist, through his massive-scale portraits...
, Mary Verdi-Fletcher (the first professional wheelchair dancer in the United States), Mark Di Suvero
Mark di Suvero
Marco Polo "Mark" di Suvero is an American abstract expressionist sculptor born Marco Polo Levi in Shanghai, China in 1933 to Italian expatriates. He immigrated to San Francisco, California in 1942 with his family. From 1953 to 1957, he attended the University of California, Berkeley to study...
, Jack Hofsiss
Jack Hofsiss
Jack Hofsiss is an American theatre, film and television director. He received a Tony Award for his direction of The Elephant Man on Broadway, the youngest director to have ever received it at the time...
, Tony Meléndez
Tony Melendez
José Antonio Meléndez Rodríguez is a Nicaraguan American guitar player, composer and singer and songwriter who was born without arms. His mother took Thalidomide while pregnant, which caused his disability. Meléndez has learned to play the guitar with his feet.-Career:Meléndez began playing and...
, Howie Seago
Howie Seago
Howie Seago is an American deaf actor and director. Born deaf, he first began to develop his mimic abilities as a child with the help of his mother. He began his serious acting work in college, when he joined the National Theatre of the Deaf. His break-out role was in Peter Sellars' production...
and Randy Souders
Randy Souders
Randy Souders is an American painter in the realistic and magic realism traditions. He is best known for highly detailed works painted with acrylic on wood panel , and sometimes on canvas...
. The book also includes a "disability awareness guide," a list of disability organizations and other resources. It was published in both hardcover and paperback editions.
External links
- Publisher’s Weekly: Nonfiction Review “Chronicles of Courage: Very Special Artists” http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-394-57003-7
- Book announcement on the VSA ArtsVSA artsVSA is an international organization on arts and disability which was founded in 1974 by former U.S. Ambassador to Ireland Jean Kennedy Smith...
website http://www.vsarts.org/x210.xml