This fall, the NIU Art Museum is presenting one of the most distinctive exhibitions ever hosted on campus: The Olmec Heads Experience. The exhibition features twenty-five monumental, artist-designed sculptures inspired by the ancient Olmec civilization. The exhibition will open in the Art Museum South Gallery, Wednesday, September 16 and will run throughout the fall semester. Thirteen of the sculptures have already been installed around campus in front of Founders Memorial Library, Altgeld Hall, Davis Hall and Jack Arends Hall.
Visitors will discover colorful sculptures across campus while exploring an accompanying museum exhibition featuring educational displays, family activities, and an engaging graphic history of the Olmec civilization. The exhibition is inspired by the stone sculptures carved out of basalt boulders by the Olmec civilization of Mesoamerica from 1200 B.C. to 400 A.D. in what is now the tropical lowlands of Mexico.
Also opening at the Art Museum on September 16 is Celebrating 40 | Burma Art Collection, a retrospective of works from the NIU Center for Burma Studies’ extensive collection. NIU’s Burma Collection consists of more than 10,000 items, and has nearly quadrupled in size since its inception in 1986. The Burma Art Collection is located in the Art Museum and selections are exhibited on a continuing basis. This year’s Burma Art Exhibition features highlights from the first 40 years of the collection.
Exterior Campus Olmec Heads Locations
