FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 3, 2002
CONTACT: John G. Hammond, Director, San Antonio College Office of Public Relations
210.733.2147

Budge Selected to Create Ornament for White House Tree

The ceramic artwork of Assistant Professor Susan I. Budge, in the Visual Arts and Technology Department at San Antonio College, will be unveiled this week in an unusual setting - as an ornament on a White House Christmas tree. Hers will be a unique figure, a sandpiper with a detachable longhorn "BEVO" mask.

"I received a letter from Governor Rick Perry inviting me to create an ornament for the White House tree," said Budge, who explained that the Director of the Texas Commission on the Arts recommended her for the White House Christmas Tree Ornament Project 2002.

Budge was one of 400 American artists selected to create birds native to the U.S. for the White House tree, an 18-foot Noble fir. The tree will be the centerpiece to this year's White House theme "All Creatures, Great and Small," celebrating the history of pets at the White House, their role in Americans' lives, and animals of the wild.

Budge selected the sandpiper, but she grew bored with the result and decided to add a detachable BEVO mask, with the resulting "BEVO Bird." It is finished with a gold metallic luster, which Budge says is the most expensive glaze.

First Lady Laura Bush has invited Budge and the other artists to a Christmas Reception and the unveiling of the tree in the Blue Room on Wednesday, December 4, 12:00 noon. National television networks will broadcast the unveiling live, beginning at 11 a.m. Central time.

The tradition of a decorated White House tree began with President Benjamin Harrison in 1889, and First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy started the tradition of Christmas tree themes in 1961. Last year, First Lady Laura Bush selected the theme "Home for the Holidays," which featured replicas by American artisans of the nation's Presidents' family homes.

Budge's artistry will get additional public exposure with her selection by corporate sponsor Mission Pharmacal Co. to paint its cow for the San Antonio Cow Parade, which is raising funds to fight cancer. For more information, contact Susan Budge at 733-2900 or sbudge@accd.edu.