The NIU Art Museum will host “Making Our History – Artists Render Lincoln’s Legacies,” a traveling exhibition from the University of Illinois Springfield set to open Tuesday, March 26. There will be a public opening reception from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, April 4 with an informal gallery talk given by the project coordinators from 5:45 to 6:30 p.m.
“Making Our History – Artists Render Lincoln’s Legacies” was produced by University of Illinois Springfield professors Brytton Bjorngaard and Graham A. Peck. Bjorngaard and Peck worked with 20 Illinois artists in a virtual residency who created paintings, sculptures, prints, photography, virtual reality, conceptual and video artwork. The project was funded by the University of Illinois Presidential Initiative: Expanding the Impact of the Arts and Humanities and the Center for Lincoln Studies.
The artwork showcases the many sides to Abraham Lincoln that permeate our perception of the former president through each artist’s interpretation of Lincoln’s legacies: the frontier Lincoln, the family man, the politician, the military chieftain, the emancipator, the icon, the saint, the pop culture figure and cultural artifact, the Land of Lincoln and Lincoln’s still resounding political legacy.
Accompanying this exhibition are video interviews produced by Storyteller Studios of Springfield that provide insight into each artist’s practice, research and project. In addition, Professor Peck has written essays that contextualize the artists’ work in relation to Lincoln history.
Artists participating in this exhibition include William Blake, Julie Cowan, Keenan Dailey, David Hinds, Danny Houk, Larsen Husby, Jordan Fein, Lori Fuller, Industry of the Ordinary (Adam Brooks and Mathew Wilson), Lindsay Johnson, Kelly Kristin Jones, Judith Joseph, Alexander Martin, Judith Mayer, Mark Nelson, Nathan Peck, Don Pollack, Krista Shelton, Corey Smith and Billie Theide.
Also on display will be “Lincoln Highway: The Main Street Across America” in the Art Museum’s Hall Case Gallery. Curated by the NIU Art Museum’s program assistant Shelby Edelmann, this exhibition discusses the history of the creation of the Lincoln Highway, how it shaped cross-country travel in the United States and the roots of Lincoln Highway here in DeKalb County.
This exhibition suite runs March 26 to May 11, 2024.
Please check our website go.niu.edu/artmuseumevents for our hours, program schedule and instructions on how to join virtual talks. Have our event announcements and program information delivered directly to your inbox. Sign up at go.niu.edu/artmuseumsubscribe.
Calendar of Events
Thursday April 4
Public Opening Reception, 5 to 7 p.m.
Informal talk with project coordinators Brytton Bjorngaard and Graham A. Peck to begin at 5:45 p.m.
Refreshments provided.
NIU Art Museum Galleries
About the NIU Art Museum
Serving Campus and Community by Balancing Traditional and Contemporary Art to Explore the Connections Made through Visual Culture.
Part of the College of Visual and Performing Arts‘ vibrant and active arts community on campus, the Northern Illinois University Art Museum is a resource for the NIU campus, local community and beyond.
The NIU Art Museum is located on the first floor, west end of Altgeld Hall, at the corner of College Avenue and Castle Drive on the main campus of Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Illinois.
Parking on campus is now administered through the AIMS Mobile Pay App or Parking Pay Stations available in the Visitor Pay Lot located at 200 Carroll Ave and at accessible parking spaces in front of Lowden Hall with accessible aisles and route to Altgeld Hall. Campus parking is free on weekends and after 5 p.m. weeknights in nearby Lots 3 and 14.
The exhibitions and programs of the NIU Art Museum are sponsored in part by the Illinois Arts Council Agency, the Friends of the NIU Art Museum, the NIU Arts and Culture Fee, and the College of Visual and Performing Art’s Season Presenting Sponsors Shaw Media and WNIU/WNIJ.
Gallery Hours
10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday
10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesday
Noon to 6 p.m. Thursday
Noon to 6 p.m. Friday
Noon to 3 p.m. Saturday; and by appointment for group tours.
Exhibitions are free and open to the public.
