Grant Halliburton Foundation welcomed 175 guests Sept. 10 to the opening reception for Journey: The Art and Legacy of Grant Halliburton at Center for BrainHealth, part of The University of Texas at Dallas.
The exhibition is now open to the public at no cost through Sept. 25. It is presented in partnership with Center for BrainHealth and curated in collaboration with Business Council for the Arts (BCA).
Held on World Suicide Prevention Day and during National Suicide Prevention Month, the reception brought together Foundation supporters, community leaders, mental health advocates and partners to experience Grant’s creative work and reflect on the mission that grew from his life.
Laura Bloom Gordon, chief marketing officer of Center for BrainHealth, welcomed guests and spoke about the organizations’ longstanding partnership.
“Our partnership with Grant Halliburton Foundation reflects a shared commitment to helping people build stronger, healthier minds and lives,” Gordon said.
During the program, Council Member Laura Cadena presented a Special Recognition from the City of Dallas, signed by Mayor Eric Johnson, honoring the Foundation’s 20th anniversary and its commitment to helping the community recognize and respond proactively to mental health challenges.
Kevin Hall, president of Grant Halliburton Foundation, thanked the city and reflected on the Foundation’s work during the past two decades. He also spoke about Grant’s drawing Friends, which depicts one young man reaching toward another lying in a quiet neighborhood street.
“For 20 years, we’ve brought mental health education into schools and communities, equipped adults to recognize warning signs and respond with care, and helped families find support,” Hall said. “At its heart, our work is about helping people who are struggling feel noticed and heard and find the help they need.”
Amy McCloskey, a Foundation co-founder and Grant’s sister, collaborated closely with BCA throughout the curation process, contributing a personal understanding of Grant and his work.
“Grant’s life was far too short, but his legacy has extended far beyond his 19 years. Twenty years later, his art is still giving us a way to tell his story—and the Foundation built in his name is still giving people hope.”
Journey features more than 50 of Grant’s original paintings, charcoal works, drawings, and sketches, along with selections from his personal writings and poetry. A Listening Lounge features music Grant wrote and recorded with his high school bandmates.
The exhibition spans three floors of Center for BrainHealth’s Brain Performance Institute building. A first-floor preview introduces visitors to Grant and the Foundation. Most of the artwork and accompanying elements are displayed on the second and third floors.
The exhibition begins with Grant as a young artist, continues through the Foundation’s history and impact, and concludes by asking visitors to consider how they can help carry the work forward.
Since 2006, Grant Halliburton Foundation has reached more than 375,000 students, educators, parents, and professionals through mental health education, suicide prevention training and community resources.
For personalized guidance finding mental health and substance-use providers and resources, call the Foundation’s free Here For Texas Mental Health Navigation Line at 972-525-8181, Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The Navigation Line is not a crisis service.
If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. You can also text HOME to 741741 to connect with a Crisis Text Line volunteer. Both services are free, confidential, and available 24/7.
Visit Journey: The Art and Legacy of Grant Halliburton
Sept. 8-25
Center for BrainHealth
2200 W. Mockingbird Lane, Dallas
The exhibition is open Wednesdays and Fridays from noon to 4 p.m. Appointments are available on other weekdays by calling Center for BrainHealth at 972-883-3400. The exhibition is closed Saturdays and Sundays. Admission is free. Learn more at granthalliburton.org/journey.
SEPTEMBER EVENTS
• September 24 | 6–9 p.m.
The Art of Connection: Creativity, Mental Wellness and Brain Health
A Young Professionals Event presented by GHF YP and Think Tank
Center for BrainHealth, 2200 W. Mockingbird Lane, Dallas
Grant Halliburton Foundation Young Professionals and Think Tank, Center for BrainHealth’s young professionals group, are partnering to present an evening for guests in their 20s, 30s and 40s. The event will feature networking, a private viewing of the Journey exhibition and a panel including artists and mental health and brain health experts exploring the connections among creativity, mental wellness and brain health.
Register at centerforbrainhealth.org/events.
• September 1–27 | Galleria Dallas
Galleria Dallas Mural: “The Art of Hope: Celebrating 20 Years of Grant Halliburton Foundation”
Created for Grant Halliburton Foundation’s 20th anniversary and National Suicide Prevention Month, this public mural explores how hope grows when a community shows up. Featuring a preview of Grant’s artwork, suicide prevention steps, mental health resources and September events, the installation invites visitors to learn more about the Foundation, discover how to support someone in crisis, find help and explore Journey. The mural is located on Level 1 at the south end of Galleria Dallas near Sephora.
About Grant Halliburton Foundation
Grant Halliburton Foundation is a Dallas-based nonprofit established in 2006 in memory of Grant Halliburton, who lived with depression and bipolar disorder and died by suicide at age 19. The Foundation works to strengthen the network of mental health resources for children, teens and young adults; promote better mental health; and prevent suicide. Through education, resources and support, it equips students, educators, parents and professionals to recognize signs of distress, respond appropriately and connect young people with help. Since its founding, the Foundation has reached more than 375,000 people across North Texas. Its Here For Texas program offers two free resources: HereForTexas.com, a searchable database of mental health providers and resources, and the Here For Texas Mental Health Navigation Line, which provides personalized assistance finding care. Learn more at GrantHalliburton.org.
About Center for BrainHealth
Center for BrainHealth®, part of The University of Texas at Dallas, is a nonprofit translational research institute committed to enhancing, preserving, and restoring brain health across the lifespan. Major research areas include the use of functional and structural neuroimaging techniques to better understand the neurobiology supporting the continual growth of cognition, well-being and social connections in health and disease. This leading-edge scientific exploration is translated quickly into practical innovations to improve how people think, work and live, empowering people of all ages to thrive and unlock their brain potential. Translational innovations leverage 1) the BrainHealth Index, a proprietary measure that uniquely charts one's upward (or downward) brain health trajectory whatever their starting level; and 2) Strategic Memory Advanced Reasoning Tactics (SMART™) brain health training, a strategy-based toolkit developed and tested by BrainHealth researchers and other teams over three decades. The center's landmark longitudinal study, The BrainHealth Project, launched in 2020 with the goal of identifying actionable strategies for optimizing brain health throughout life, uncovering the dynamic relationship between lifestyle factors, biological markers, brain training and cognitive performance. It is co-led by Dr. Sandi Chapman, Dr. Mark D'Esposito, Dr. Geoff Ling, Dr. Ian Robertson, Dr. Vince Calhoun and Tom Leppert, with Georgeann and Adm. William McRaven (ret.) serving as national spokespersons.
About Business Council for the Arts
Since its founding in 1988 by Raymond Nasher as a Dallas Citizens Council initiative, the Business Council for the Arts (BCA) has championed the integration of arts and business across North Texas. Today, under the leadership of Founder’s Chair Nancy Nasher, Board Chair Joel Austin, and CEO Stacie Adams, BCA serves a network of more than 150 organizations committed to strengthening workplaces, classrooms, and communities through the arts. BCA’s programming spans creative workforce development, community engagement, and leadership cultivation. Signature initiatives include On My Own Time™, Art at Work, and the Leadership Arts Institute, alongside committee-driven efforts focused on Arts & Health, Arts & Real Estate, and Arts & Technology. To learn more, visit www.ntbca.org.