July 26, 2017
The
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INSIDE
Week in Review
O PINION
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Henry Frison poses at his Portland home with two of his favorite works, ‘Under the Spotlight,’ depict-
ing President Obama and other civil rights icons, and ‘African Prince’ a painting Frison describes as
his masterpiece.
M ETRO
Creating Positive Images
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Gallery shines light on
historic mural artist
Z achary s enn
t he P ortland o bserver
Portland has a rich history of public murals to
educate and uplift the African American communi-
ty, a civil rights tradition that can be traced back 50
years when a “Wall of Respect” mural in Chicago
depicted a dozen black heroes and community lead-
ers and inspired black artists around the country to
create positive public images in often impoverished
neighborhoods.
A new gallery in north Portland will shine the
spotlight on one of Portland’s most prominent black
mural artists of this generation during an exhib-
it and art show that opens on Saturday, July 29 at
GreenHAUS Boutique and Gallery, 18 N.E. Kill-
ingsworth St.
Henry Frison was known for his portraits of
prominent black figures, especially for five 20 foot
by 20 foot murals, part of the Albina Mural Project,
long lost to redevelopment at Northeast Vancouver
Avenue and Alberta Street.
Born in Texas and raised in New Mexico, Frison
says he drew his interest in art from a very early age
and always focused on people, even though many
by
Arts &
ENTERTAINMENT
C LASSIFIEDS
C ALENDAR
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artists prefer to stick to easier subjects, such as land-
scapes.
“I love drawing people, because everybody that
you draw is a little bit different,” Frison told the Port-
land Observer. “I love the challenge. You’ve got to try
to capture the person.”
After his uncle told him about the benefits of Port-
land’s unionized workforce, Frison moved to the city
in search of higher wages and better working condi-
tions. At 25, he found work in one of the city’s iron
foundries. The heavy industrial labor took a toll on
the artist, however, and he began to suffer from a
work-related spinal condition.
A job re-training program allowed him, at the age
of 35, to begin pursuing his lifelong dream of working
as a professional artist.
“I got to where I couldn’t work,” he explained. “It
was a good chance for me to go to art school. They
paid for it, so I joined an art class downtown.”
Frison adds that refining his art skills made it possi-
ble for him to continue supporting his family, even if
his physical condition continued to deteriorate.
“Even if I got to where I might be bedridden be-
cause of my illness, I could still set up and draw lying
down,” Frison said. “I could still make something for
my family.”
c ontinued on P age 4
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Lynch Schools Get New Names
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F OOD
Ending any confusion over the
word describing the murder of
black Americans by white mobs
during the civil rights era and
other periods of U.S. history, the
Centennial School Board has an-
nounced plans to rename Lynch
Meadows, Lynch Wood and
Lynch View elementary schools.
Centennial Superintendent Paul
Coakley says the problem is that
new students and their families
don’t associate the name Lynch
with the name of a local family
who donated land for the schools
in the district over a century ago.
Of the 6,000 students attending
the elementary schools, 55 percent
come from families of color, the
majority bein-g from Latino house-
holds. The schools join a growing
trend to change racially offensive
landmarks, buildings and names
across the United States, including
the recent renaming of Dunn Hall
to Unthank Hall on the University
of Oregon campus.