Caleb Dulock’s transition into his position as the Art Department head and professor of art at Hardin-Simmons University was not exactly a smooth-sailing experience, but rather one involving a moving truck accident that destroyed most of his family’s belongings. Over four years later, however, his time at HSU has brought much more pleasant memories.
Before his family’s eventful move to Abilene, Dulock had never lived outside of the Dallas-Fort Worth area. He grew up in a close-knit community and was known as a tinkerer from an early age. With his parents’ support, Dulock had the freedom to discover various artistic media and emerging creative technologies, which contributed to his eventual career choice.
He attended a K-12 private school that also promoted creativity. Dulock then obtained a BFA in Photography in 2000 and an MFA in Intermedia Studio in 2012, both from The University of Texas at Arlington. He worked as a teacher, a freelance media artist, a photography business owner and a video editor/producer.
Dulock started his family in the DFW area and this made leaving their home in 2017 a challenging decision. On top of that, their moving truck had only reached the edge of Abilene when it was involved in a highway accident resulting in the destruction and theft of the majority of the family’s belongings.
“It was a devastating experience for our entire family and took time to recuperate from,” Dulock said.
As soon as news of the wreck was heard, the HSU community jumped in to help the Dulock family get back on their feet. Using what they were able to salvage, a personal look into Dulock’s past life was displayed in his exhibition, titled Moving On: Photographs and Transmedia at the Ira M. Taylor Art Gallery in 2018. Dulock has a way of reflecting on life with art.
As an educator in art and design, Dulock is able to guide students toward manifesting their creative ideas into products that enrich life. He thinks that art programs are often misunderstood and limited to just producing things that look “beautiful” and “thought provoking.” Yet, art education can empower students to supersede disciplinary boundaries and envision a better world and its way of life. “I feel like I have the privilege to co-labor with the creative nature of God and get to impart that to my students,” Dulock said.
Within the walls of the Frost Center for the Visual Arts, many improvements have been made with Dulock as the department head. Dulock and his students have expanded the program from being just a traditional fine arts community to one that embraces emerging media forms and creative technologies. Many new courses have been added, ranging from film production to web design on top of traditional studio classes.
When he is not on campus, Dulock’s passion for art and creativity is still present. Dulock enjoys listening to or playing music and getting lost in the melody. He does not miss an opportunity to pass on his creativity while playing with his children. He also shares with his wife a passion in the world of design. Dulock and his family can now laugh about the material things that were lost in the wreck over four years ago because of their shared appreciation for art and beauty.