Fourth-generation Texas photographer to give UNT's annual Paul R. Voertman Lecture

Thursday, February 27, 2014 - 19:43
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What: “Byrds of Texas: Four Generations of Photographers” — The Friends of the University of North Texas Libraries’ annual Paul R. Voertman Lecture, presented by Byrd Williams IV, professor of photography at Collin College        

When: 6 p.m. March 27 (Thursday)

Where: The Forum on the first floor of UNT’s Willis Library, 1506 W. Highland St.

Cost: $40 per person; $75 per couple. Includes a buffet dinner. Reservations must be made by 5 p.m. March 24 (Monday)

Contact:  Kristin Boyett at 940-565-2486 or Kristin.Boyett@unt.edu.

 


DENTON (UNT), Texas -- Gainesville resident Byrd Moore Williams Jr. started a career in photography while earning a degree from the University of Texas at Austin. He documented many major engineering projects in Texas with his camera, including the construction of San Antonio's River Walk.

Williams’ grandson, Byrd Williams IV — the fourth generation in the Williams family with an interest and career in photography — will discuss his family’s collection of photos March 27 (Thursday) at the annual Paul R. Voertman Lecture sponsored by the University of North Texas' Friends of the UNT Libraries.

The event begins at 6 p.m. at the Forum on the first floor of UNT’s Willis Library, 1506 W. Highland St. Following a buffet dinner, Williams will present his lecture, "Byrds of Texas: Four Generations of Photographers," at 7 p.m.

Tickets are $40 per person and $75 per couple. To make reservations, contact Kristin Boyett at 940-565-2486 or Kristin.Boyett@unt.edu. Reservations must be made by 5 p.m. March 24 (Monday).

All proceeds will benefit the Friends of the UNT Libraries, which was established in 1981 to improve and increase the physical resources of the libraries’ Special Collections, formerly the Rare Books and Archives collections.

The Friends regularly contribute funds for the purchase of materials for the collections and sponsor events to help to make the collections a recognized part of the cultural benefits of the Denton area. The Voertman Lecture was established by and named for a life member of the Friends. 

 In 2013, the UNT Libraries acquired the Byrd Williams Family Collection, which consists of more than 10,000 prints and more than 300,000 negatives of photos shot by the Williams family. The collection is part of the UNT Libraries’ Special Collections. The photos include depictions of Gainesville at the end of the 19th century; scenes of everyday life in Fort Worth during the 1930s, ‘40s and ‘50s, a series of prints documenting women at work in the city during the 1930s; and images of some of the same places in Fort Worth 40 years later. The collection includes commercial and studio photography, western landscapes, documentary studies and fine art photography, as well as family correspondence, artifacts and cameras.

Morgan Gieringer, head of the Special Collections, said the UNT Libraries plans to share the collection with a larger audience through exhibitions and publications.

“It is a significant addition to our Texana and photography collections,” she said, adding that the collection includes the archive of the Williams family photography studio that was in Fort Worth during the 1950s.

  “If you or someone in your family had a photo taken at the studio, we may have that photo in the collection,” she said. 

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