One Book One Northwestern (OBON) is a university‐wide reading program that aims to engage the campus in a common conversation centered on a carefully chosen, thought-provoking book. The Block is proud to partner annually with One Book to explore the themes of this shared text, selecting artworks from the museum collection that can broaden discussions. The […]
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Artist: Jacob Lawrence (American, 1917 – 2000)Title: The Birth of Toussaint, from the series The Life of Toussaint L’OuvertureDate: 1986Medium: Color screenprintCredit Line: Mary and Leigh Block Museum of Art, Northwestern University, Gift of Evelyn Salk, in memory of her husband Erwin A. Salk, 2001.13.2. During the early 20th-century, the Harlem Renaissance was defined by a convergence of heightened geopolitical […]
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Artist: Hendrik Goudt (Dutch, ca. 1585 – 1648) after Adam Elsheimer (German, 1578 – 1610)Title: The Mocking of Ceres (also called Ceres Seeking Her Daughter)Date: 1610Medium: Engraving on paperCredit Line: Mary and Leigh Block Museum of Art, Northwestern University, 2009.16 Hendrik Goudt’s The Mocking of Ceres (also called) from 1610 takes place in a dark and dense forest with tree […]
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Artist: Alberto Casado (Cuban, born 1970)Title: Dicen que en la Talia (What They Say in the Talia)Date: 1997Medium: Etching and aquatint and collageCredit Line: Mary and Leigh Block Museum of Art, Northwestern University,Gift of Curated Prints, Ltd., 1999.28.58 Standing on and around a teary-eyed portrait of Marxist revolutionary Ernesto “Che” Guevara (Argentine, 1928–1967), a motley […]
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Artist: Laura Aguilar (Chicana, 1959–2018)Title: Motion #53Date: 1999Medium: Gelatin silver printDimensions: 11 x 14 inchesCredit line: Mary and Leigh Block Museum of Art, Northwestern University, Julie and Lawrence Bernstein Family Art Acquisition Fund Purchase, 2023.3.1. Image copyright of The Estate of Laura Aguilar. The artist Laura Aguilar once said that she felt most comfortable in […]
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As part of her 2023 Block Curatorial Internship Vitoria Monteiro de Carvalho Faria conducted original research within the museum collection. Her investigation into the visual and thematic connections between two prints resulted in an installation in the Block’s conference space. Faria shares the intriguing alignment she curated at the museum. Although separated by 150 years, […]
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Artist: Hussein Madi (Lebanese, born 1938)Title: The Arabic Alphabet portfolioDate: 1973Medium: 30 etchings on cotton paperDimensions: Each 30 x 24.4 cmCredit line: Mary and Leigh Block Museum of Art, Northwestern University, gift of Sami Khalifé, M.D. As part of his varied practice, artist Hussein Madi has explored Arabic letters, words, and calligraphy. In The Arabic Alphabet (1973), a portfolio of thirty […]
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Throughout 2020-21 The Block Museum is reflecting on artworks from the collection that explore ideas of excess, consumption, and the environment, and offer an interdisciplinary perspective on the climate crisis. Our project is inspired by The Story of More by Hope Jahren, Northwestern University’s 2021-2022 One Book One Northwestern (OBON) selection. In this online talk, Lois Taylor Biggs, […]
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Artist: Dayanita Singh (Indian, born 1961) Title: Pothi Box Date: 2018 Medium: 30 unbound image cards, teakwood enclosure, and embroidered muslin Dimensions: 7 7/8 x 6 ½ x 1 in Credit line: Mary and Leigh Block Museum of Art, Northwestern University, Mary and Leigh Block Museum of Art, Northwestern University, gift of Lisa Graziose Corrin […]
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How might one artwork be used as a point of connection for a deeper understanding of history, artmaking, collecting practices, identity, and more? The Block Museum of Art is proud to publish an interactive close looking project, the result of graduate research centered on the 1996 print Mother and Child by artist Margaret Burroughs (American, 1915 […]
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