Albert B. Head has worked in the state arts field for over 43 years beginning in 1972 with the Fine Arts Council of Florida, and continuing through executive director positions with the Stephen Foster Folklife Center, the Louisiana Division of the Arts, and the Alabama State Council on the Arts. He has served his home state of Alabama for the past thirty years as
the Council’s director.
Mr. Head earned his undergraduate degree from Troy State University in art history and
aesthetics, and his Master of Liberal Arts, with a concentration on Southern literature, from
Auburn University at Montgomery. He received a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship
in 1974 to attend Harvard’s Arts Administration Institute.
Mr. Head has served two terms on the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies board
participating in a wide range of committee work. He has been a member of the South Arts board
(previously Southern Arts Federation) for 38 years and presided as its chair 1983-85. Prior to
serving as chair of SAF, Mr. Head served as vice-chair 1981-1983. In the state, Head currently serves on the Alabama Humanities Foundation Board and the Advisory Board of the Alabama Department of Tourism.
Mr. Head has served on
numerous panels for the National Endowment for the Arts and has chaired the Folk Arts and
Arts in Education panels. In 1998 he received the Gary Young Award presented by the National
Assembly of State Arts Agencies for his leadership and achievements in promoting the arts
nationally. In 1999 he received Alumni of the Year from the National Troy University Alumni
Association. Further recognition from Troy University came in 2008 in the form of The
Distinguished Leadership Award for exemplary dedication and service to the University. In
2012 The National Endowment for the Arts awarded Mr. Head with the National Heritage
Fellowship, Bess Lomax Hawes Award. National Heritage Fellowships are the nation’s highest
honor in the folk and traditional arts and the Bess Lomax Hawes Award recognizes an
individual who has made a significant contribution to the preservation and awareness of cultural
heritage.
Al Head is the only state arts director to start folk arts programs in three states: Florida, Louisiana, and Alabama. Al is a native of Troy, Alabama. (
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