Gail Lukasik's Blog, page 3

The Lost Artist

Peak Season for Murder

Death’s Door

About White Like Her and how PBS’ Genealogy Roadshow solved my family mystery.

I’m a mystery author with a family mystery I was never able to solve. The mystery revolved around my maternal grandfather, Azemar Frederic. I’d never seen a photograph of him, didn’t know when he was born or died. All I knew about Azemar was that he lived in New Orleans, Louisiana, and was my mother’s father. When Genealogy Roadshow announced that New Orleans was one of their Season Two cities, I was thrilled. If the show chose my story, I’d finally know the truth of my racial heritage.  The...

Kenyatta D. Berry

“Important in helping us understand America’s complex racial history . . . Adds to the ongoing conversation about race and racial identity in America because it looks at the ramifications of institutionalized racialism and racial passing through one family’s story.” —Kenyatta D. Berry, host of PBS’s Genealogy Roadshow

New York Times

Best book ever!

White Like Her: My Family’s Story of Race and Racial Passing

By Gail Lukasik Foreword by Kenyatta D. Berry White Like Her tells the story of my mother’s passing, my struggle with the shame of her choice, and my subsequent inner journey of self-discovery and redemption. In the historical context of the Jim Crow South, I explore my mother’s decision to pass, how she hid her secret even from my father, and the price she paid for choosing whiteness.  Haunted by my mother’s fear and shame, I embark on a quest to uncover my mother’s racial lineage, tracing h...

The Importance of Persistence and Resilience in an Artist’s Life

Commencement Speech: The Illinois Institute of Art

Photograph courtesy of Sandra Zmuda

In writing this speech, I reflected back to my own graduation from Barat College. I won’t tell you how long ago that was. My commencement speaker was Jane Byrne, former mayor of Chicago. I’m sure she gave a great speech, but to be honest I can’t remember a thing she said. So in writing my speech that took a little pressure off me. If you remember just one thing I say today, then I’ve done my job.
I’d like...

The Lost Artist and The Trail of Tears

Little history remains of Illinois’ involvement in the one of the darkest episodes of American history—the Trail of Tears or as the Cherokee call it “Nunna dual Tsuny” or “Trail where they cried.” The fact that Illinois was part of the Trail of Tears story comes as a surprise to many, myself included. Like many of the forgotten or little known historical events that The Lost Artist unearths, this one held surprises I wasn’t expecting.

In writing The Lost Artist, whose nineteenth-century southe...

Rufus Porter and The Lost Artist

Rufus Porter (1792-1884), the nineteenth-century American muralist, became part of The Lost Artist by happenstance. Prior to writing the book, I'd never heard of him. Though I suspect I might have seen his work somewhere, maybe, maybe not. And this is what intrigues me about the writing process, when you begin a book, you just never know who'll end up in it.

I learned about Rufus Porter while researching contemporary art restorers who specialized in mural restoration. I'd seen an episode of...