Background
Theisen, Olive Jacobson Jensen was born on June 4, 1931 in Faribault, Minnesota, United States. Daughter of Edward Clarence and Pearl (Holt) Jacobson.
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book
Walls That Speak: The Murals of John Thomas Biggers by Olive Jensen Theisen (15-Nov-2010) Hardcover
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B013J9PDNW/?tag=2022091-20
Walls That Speak: The Murals of John Thomas Biggers
( John Thomas Biggers (1924–2001) was one of the most sig...)
John Thomas Biggers (1924–2001) was one of the most significant African American artists of the twentieth century. He was known for his murals, but also for his drawings, paintings, and lithographs, and was honored by a major traveling retrospective exhibition from 1995 to 1997. He created archetypal imagery that spoke positively to the rich and varied ethnic heritage of African Americans, long before the Civil Rights era drew attention to their African cultural roots. His influence upon other artists was profound, both for the power of his art and as professor and elder statesman to younger generations. Olive Jensen Theisen’s long-time commitment to the art of John Biggers resulted from the serendipitous discovery of an early Biggers mural in a school storeroom in the mid-1980s. Theisen immediately recognized the artist, the work, and its significance. She then set about returning The History of Negro Education in Morris County, Texas to a place of honor and found herself becoming a friend and recorder of John Biggers’s stories and experiences relating to the creation of his other murals too, including Family Unity at Texas Southern University. Containing more than eighty color and black-and-white illustrations, Walls That Speak is a richly illustrated update of an earlier edition published in 1996. The artist completed new murals between its publication and his death in 2001. In addition to the inclusion of the new murals, Theisen has added a chapter on Biggers’s African art collection. The only work exclusively dedicated to his murals, this book will appeal to all those interested in murals or African American art. “As a result of her friendship with Dr. Biggers, Dr. Theisen clearly has unique access to the works that are now held by the Biggers estate. Her interviews provide a deeply personal insight into the mind of this remarkable man and the symbols he employed in his art.”—R. William McCarter, Regents Professor of Art, University of North Texas
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1574412892/?tag=2022091-20
A Life on Paper: The Drawings and Lithographs of John Thomas Biggers
( John Thomas Biggers (1924–2001) was a major African Ame...)
John Thomas Biggers (1924–2001) was a major African American artist who inspired countless others through his teaching, murals, paintings, and drawings. After receiving conventional art training at Hampton Institute and Pennsylvania State, he had his personal and artistic breakthrough in 1957 when he spent six months in the newly independent country of Ghana. From this time forward, he integrated African abstract elements with his rural Southern images to create a personal iconography. His new approach made him famous, as his personal discovery of African heritage fit in well with the growing U.S. civil rights movement. He is best known for his murals at Hampton University, Winston-Salem University, and Texas Southern, but the drawings and lithographs that lie behind the murals have received scant attention—until now. Theisen interviewed Dr. Biggers during the last thirteen years of his life, and was welcomed into his studio innumerable times. Together, they selected representative works for this volume, some of which have not been previously published for a general audience. After his death in 2001, his widow continued to work closely with Theisen, resulting in a book that is intimate and informative for both the scholar and the student
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1574412205/?tag=2022091-20
Olive Jacobson Jensen Theisen
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Olive Jacobson Jensen Theisen, American art educator, writer. Nominee, North-East Texas Community College; named Piper Professor of Year, Minnie Stevens Piper Foundation, 1990; Distinguished fellow, Texas Art Educator, 2009. Member of Texas Art Educators Association (Outstanding Art Educator 1989), National Arts Education Association (Outstanding Art Education Higher Education 1989).
Education
Bachelor, St. Olaf College, 1953. Master of Arts, University Minnesota, 1961. Doctor of Philosophy, University Minnesota, 1971.
Career
Art instructor South St. Paul High School, 1961—1973. Adjunct art professor Augsburg College, Minneapolis, 1965—1973. Art professor Texas Technology University, Lubbock, 1973—1981.
Art instructor Winnsboro Texas Middle School, 1982—1985. Art instructor, chair Northeast Texas Community College, Mount Pleasant, 1985—1996, Minnie Stevens Piper professor, 1991. Adjunct art professor Dallas Baptist University, since 2002, Collin Company Community College, Plano, 2002, University North Texas, Denton, since 2003.
Retired; distinguished professor emeritus, 2010. Consultant editor School Arts Magazine, 1983—1985.
Achievements
Works
book
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A Life on Paper: The Drawings and Lithographs of John Thomas Biggers
( John Thomas Biggers (1924–2001) was a major African Ame...)
-
Walls That Speak: The Murals of John Thomas Biggers
( John Thomas Biggers (1924–2001) was one of the most sig...)
- A life on paper; the drawings and lithographs of John Thomas Biggers.
- Walls That Speak: The Murals of John Thomas Biggers by Olive Jensen Theisen (15-Nov-2010) Hardcover
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A Life on Paper: The Drawings and Lithographs of John Thomas Biggers
Membership
Member of Texas Art Educators Association (Outstanding Art Educator 1989), National Arts Education Association (Outstanding Art Education Higher Education 1989).
Interests
Connections
Married Paul Jensen (divorced). Children: Erik Jon Jensen, Elisabeth Lisa Murray. Married John Theisen, April 19, 1981 (deceased March 1990).
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Born
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Nationality
American -
Religion
Protestant -
Political Party
Democrat
Awards
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Nominee, North-East Texas Community College. Named Piper Professor of Year, Minnie Stevens Piper Foundation, 1990. Distinguished fellow, Texas Art Educator, 2009.Nominee, North-East Texas Community College. Named Piper Professor of Year, Minnie Stevens Piper Foundation, 1990. Distinguished fellow, Texas Art Educator, 2009.