the Governor's Arts Award Winners

Ed Grothus

Los Alamos

2007 Recipient, Allan Houser Memorial Award

Ed Grothus is the recipient of the Allan Houser Memorial Award. Presented by the Allan Houser family along with the Governor's Arts Awards, this honor is given to an individual who has demonstrated artistic success and community involvement. The Houser family created this award in 1994 to pay tribute to the late prominent Chiricahua Apache sculptor, patriarch of Native American sculptors and former instructor at the Institute of American Indian Arts.

Grothus worked at the Los Alamos National Laboratory as a machinist for 20 years before opening the Black Hole of Los Alamos in 1969. At the Black Hole, Grothus collects, exhibits and sells recycled equipment from the lab and other places.

Grothus has a long standing relationship with many in the New Mexico arts community including artists Larry Bell, Tony Price, Bob Haozous and Erika Wanenmacher. Since it was established, the Black Hole has been a source of exotic material and equipment for movie and theater productions and for individual artists working in New Mexico.