SU Art Student leaves mark in Higgins

The College of Social and Behavior Sciences is the biggest college on Southern University’s flagship campus. Dr. Rodney G. Higgins (1911-1964) Hall is a second home to approximately 1300 students with majors such as psychology, social work, sociology, criminal justice, political science, and number of Master programs.
To add to its popularity, the college recently added a hand painted mural of Higgins in the Dean’s Office.
Dr. William Arp III, Dean of the College of Social and Behavioral Science said that the new painting is symbolic of the hardships and triumphs that the college has endured over time; including financial exigency and reorganization.
“The painting captures Dr. Rodney Higgins. A lot of people try to throw out the old with the new; reorganization is new but we don’t throw out the old as well,” Arp said.
From an idea to an artistic vision, Patricia Smith and Dwayne Bell made the vision come to life.
Smith, an administrative assistant to the dean made it her responsibility to come up with a plan of action. “I planned for about two weeks and the full project took a full month to complete,” she said. When deciding who would paint the mural, she visited the art department to spread the word and was referred to Bell.
Bell, a senior visual arts major from Baton Rouge said that it was his first time painting a mural and that the experience was enjoyable and rewarding.
“From early mornings to late nights, it took a lot of hard work and decision making. I changed a lot of things before I got to the finished product, ” Bell said.
The painting was put in the Dean’s Office as a symbolic promise to honor Higgins’ philosophy. “The main focus is to educate our students; everything else is a distraction and that’s the legacy that he left, ” Arp ended.