French government honors two Penn State faculty members

French government honors two Penn State faculty members

George Mauner & Norris Lacy

University Park, Pa. -- The French government honored two Penn State faculty members, Norris Lacy and the late George Mauner, for their contributions to education and to the diffusion of the arts in the world.

Chantal Manes, head of the education office at the French Cultural Service in Washington, D.C., represented Ambassador Jean-David Levitte at the awards ceremony at The Nittany Lion Inn on Dec. 1.

In her remarks, Manes cited Lacy and Mauner as "exemplars of a very high level scholarship on the culture of France that reaches audiences outside the world of academia."

Lacy, the Edwin Erle Sparks professor of French and medieval studies in the College of the Liberal Arts, was elevated from knight to officer in the Order of Academic Palms. He is one of the world's leading experts on early French literature, and in particular the Arthurian tradition. His books include "The Craft of Chretien de Troyes," "The Arthurian Handbook," "The New Arthurian Encyclopedia," "Lancelot-Grail: The Old French Arthurian Cycle in Translation" and the upcoming "The Fortunes of King Arthur."

The Order of Academic Palms was instituted in 1808 by Napoleon Bonaparte to honor university professors. Today the award is given to educators in France and abroad who render special services to France.

Mauner, the late distinguished professor emeritus of art history in the College of Arts and Architecture and former director of the Institute for the Arts and Humanistic Studies, was awarded the rank of officer in the Order of Arts and Letters. A specialist in European art, he was one of the world's leading scholars on the art of Edouard Manet. He curated the highly successful international exhibit on the still life paintings of Manet that was displayed at the Orsay Museum in Paris and the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore in 2000 and 2001. Mauner died June 7. The award insignia was accepted by his widow, Marianne Mauner.

The Order of Arts and Letters was founded in 1957 to recognize people who have contributed significantly to understanding of the arts and literature of France.

In her remarks at the awards ceremony, Manes also noted, "The French Embassy staff is impressed by the strong interest of Penn State students in opportunities to study and teach in France as well as by the variety of French cultural activities at the University."

Thomas Hale, head of the Department of French and the liberal arts professor of African, French and comparative literature, said, "Over half of our 90 French majors spend a semester or year in France. Many other students with a basic background in French apply for one-year assignments to teach English in French schools." The French Department Film Series and the interdepartmental minor in film studies both are contributing to growing interest in French culture, he added.

Mauner is the first member of the Department of Art History to be honored with membership in the French Order of Arts and Letters. Two emeritus members of the French Department, Gerald Brault and Richard Frautschi, currently hold membership in the Order of the Academic Palms.

For photos from the ceremony, go to http://live.psu.edu/still_life/2004_12_02_award/index.html