Hank,

2019

In 2018–19, Mario Moore was a Hodder Fellow in the visual arts at Princeton University. His fellowship project focused on creating portraits of African American men and women who are members of the University’s staff. “My project as a Hodder Fellow at Princeton has been about people, learning about people who work hard at Princeton but are not often recognized,” said Moore. “Most people walk through elite institutions of art, education and places of exclusivity with an expectation of only acknowledging security guards or people who work in facilities when they need something.” Emphasizing the way in which members of Princeton’s staff have an impact on generations of students, Moore created an etching of Princeton’s beloved retired head equipment manager, Hank Towns (honorary member, Class of 1982), who from 1970 to 2003 oversaw the needs of thousands of Princeton athletes, including supervision of thirty-eight varsity teams. Towns arrived at Princeton at the same time as the first class for women, and he worked to promote growth in the women’s athletic programs at Princeton.