Annual Conference
Midwest Art History Society
Annual Conference 2010
Omaha, Nebraska, April 8–10, 2010
The Midwest Art History Society will hold its 37th annual Conference in Omaha, Nebraska April 8–10, 2010. Host institutions will be the University of Nebraska at Omaha, the KANEKO center and the Joslyn Art Museum. Conference Sessions on Thursday, April 8 will be held at the Joslyn Art Museum, with opportunities to view the permanent collections of European and American art as well as the Center for Western Studies and the newly installed sculpture garden, with works by Jesus Moroles, Maya Lin, Jun Kaneko, George Sugarman, Leonard Baskin and many others. On Friday the sessions will be held at KANEKO, and on Saturday at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. KANEKO is a new organization that will celebrate and explore human creativity in the arts, the sciences, the humanities, and in business. Through a partnership with the University of Nebraska at Omaha, the KANEKO-UNO Library was opened recently, providing resources for research and creative inquiry. The nearby Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts will also be available for those interested. The Bemis is an urban artists’ colony housed in a converted warehouse that brings together artists from around the world for residencies of several months.
Omaha is a strong supporter of the arts. The Joslyn Art Museum is housed in a beautiful Art Deco building, erected in 1931 with an addition built in 1994 by Sir Norman Foster, his first American project. Other outstanding buildings are the Durham Museum, housed in the former Union Pacific train station, another fine Art Deco structure, and the recently completed Holland Center for the Performing Arts. Near the site of the conference is the Old Market, a one–time warehouse district that has been turned into an area of restaurants, shops, art galleries and other amenities. The Omaha Community Playhouse is the largest such company in the country and served as the theatrical springboard for Henry Fonda, Dorothy McGuire, Nick Nolte and many others. It is just one of many theater companies in Omaha. Film Streams at the Ruth Sokolof Theater is a relatively new addition to the scene, a movie house dedicated to showing classic, experimental and independent films. There is an abundance of other venues for the arts, as well.
On the afternoon of Saturday, April 10, an afternoon side trip to Lincoln to visit the Sheldon Museum of Art is being arranged. The Sheldon, opened in 1962 in a building designed by Philip Johnson at the center of the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, possesses an outstanding collection of American Twentieth Century Art.
The residence hotels for the conference are the Courtyard by Marriott and the Hilton Garden. Both are located within easy walking distance of the KANEKO. Click here for more on hotels. A shuttle will be provided to the Joslyn Art Museum for the activities scheduled there. To register online, click here . To mail registration, click here. To receive the early-bird rate for conference registration, please register by March 1, 2010.
Come to Omaha, April 2010! Experience the Joslyn Art Museum, the KANEKO, the Sheldon Museum of Art, and the warm camaraderie of the Midwest Art History Society.