Collection Spotlight

One Book Collection Talk: Roland L. Freeman, Combing Hair, Amoke Alayoe and Her Children, Silver Spring, Maryland, June 1978

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 Collaborations, Student Associates

Parting Gift: Artist Leonard Suryajaya unveils photographic collaboration with Block Museum students

per·en·ni·al /pəˈrenēəl/: Enduring or continually recurring On June 13, 2022 – Northwestern’s 164th Commencement Day – The Block Museum of Art is thrilled to unveil an original artwork created for the museum’s collection by Chicago-based contemporary artist Leonard Suryajaya in collaboration with the 2021-2022 Block Museum of Art Student Associates. The large-scale photograph Perennial Blossom, […]

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Collection Spotlight, Uncategorized

Collection Talk: Will Wilson “Shiprock Disposal Cell, Shiprock, New Mexico, Navajo Nation” (2020) [Video]

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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Exhibition Stories, Northwestern Learning

Collection Talk: Henry Simon “Industrial Frankenstein” (1932) [Video]

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. This online talk by Melanie Garcia Sympson, […]

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Collection News, Resources

Collection Talk: W. Eugene Smith “Robert Slocombe, Monsanto Chemical Co” (1953) [Video]

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. This online talk by […]

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Collection Spotlight

Collection Spotlight: Mexican Street Scene, Miguel Covarrubias

Artist: Miguel Covarrubias (Mexican, 1904–1957)Title: Mexican Street SceneDate: ca. 1940Medium: Lithograph on paperDimensions: 12.7 x 10 inCredit line: Mary and Leigh Block Museum of Art, Northwestern University, Gift of Anthony and Carolyn Donato, 1997.16 Artist Miguel Covarrubias, who worked also as a writer, curator, and anthropologist, was born and raised in Mexico City. He first moved […]

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Collection News, Student Associates

Docent team selects Leonard Suryajaya’s Quarantine Blues as 2021 Block Museum Student Acquisition

The Block is proud to announce that its undergraduate Student Docent team has made the formal recommendation to Block Museum director Lisa Corrin for the acquisition of Quarantine Blues (2020), a photograph by Chicago-based artist Leonard Suryajaya from his series of the same name. The recommendation comes after an intensive 7-week selection process by the […]

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