10th Anniversary
Thank You, Chicago!
A decade sounds like a long time, but when you are accomplishing great things and realizing big goals, 10 years fly by!
Friday, October 9: Join us for Divine Decade, an Andy Warhol-themed celebration in honor of LUMA's 10th anniversary. Click here for more details!
10 YEARS . . . of Exhibitions Exploring the Spiritual in Art
Including Andy Warhol’s Silver Clouds, Caravaggio: Una Mostra Impossibile, HEAVEN+HELL, Rodin: Magnificent Obsession, Pilgrimage and Faith: Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam, Ten Thousand Ripples, The Missing Peace: Artists Consider the Dalai Lama, Truth is In the Telling: The Passover Story, and of course, the Martin D’Arcy, S.J. Collection of medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque Art.
10 YEARS . . . of Collaboration
Alliance Française de Chicago, Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Big Shoulders Schools, Center for Catholic School Effectiveness, Changing Worlds, Consulate General of France in Chicago, Consulate General of Italy in Chicago, Edward Gorey Trust, Fowler Museum at UCLA, Intuit: The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art, Kantor Foundation, Missouri Province of the Society of Jesus, Museum of Contemporary Religious Art (Saint Louis University), Partners In Health, and School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
10 YEARS . . . of Progress
Including growing as a new museum in the cultural mix of Chicago, while becoming one of the youngest museums in the U.S. to receive accreditation by the American Alliance of Museums.
10 YEARS . . . More to Look Ahead
Including an additional gallery space by 2017, building the endowment, naming the museum, traveling LUMA collections, reuniting the Life of Christ paintings by Mattius Stomer, and growing LUMA’s membership and community.
Message from the Director
Dear Friends of LUMA,
This year, 2015, marks the 10th anniversary of LUMA. When I think of how quickly the 10 years have passed, the happy and obvious thought is to send out the well-deserved kudos to everyone over the years who has been involved with the museum—past and present board of advisors, members, staff, volunteers, and the Loyola community—who have helped us grow, sharing their valuable expertise, time, and talent. But there is a second thank you that is due. That thank you goes to the city of Chicago, our museum colleagues, and the Chicagoans who welcomed LUMA in 2005. I admit that even after 10 years, LUMA still is not a cultural brand as such, but more of a destination museum—one sought out and delightfully discovered, consistently praised for its “jewels,” the Martin D’Arcy, S.J. Collection and our unique exhibitions. Despite this seemingly low profile, LUMA has something special and compelling to offer its members and visitors. I believe that art is created as a subjective experience. It is a two-part process that needs both the artist and the viewer to complete the picture, as it were. Our intimate galleries allow for a quiet and contemplative art-viewing experience. They are places ripe for self-reflection and discovery, thereby affirming our mission to explore the spiritual in art.
This year we have an exciting list of programs, exhibitions, and events, culminating in the fall exhibition, LUMA at 10: Greatest Hits. This celebration not only brings back many of LUMA’s past exhibitions—including Caravaggio: Una Mostra Impossibile, Andy Warhol’s Silver Clouds, The Missing Peace: Artists Consider the Dalai Lama, Painting Ethiopia: The Life and Work of Qes Adamu Tesfaw, and Rodin: In His Own Words—but also gives us the chance to display 10 years of acquisitions that have not yet been shown. The celebratory gala on September 26 will replicate LUMA’s inaugural event in a brilliant tent right in front of the museum on Michigan Avenue. Part elegant dinner, part auction, the evening will conclude with an after-party among the Silver Clouds. The event is a chance to congratulate ourselves on a splendid 10 years.
LUMA’s exhibitions for this commemorative year span a wider range than usual. We begin in February with Shaker in Chicago, three exhibitions in one. This is the first time a Chicago museum has exhibited Shaker art and design. In keeping with its unique mission, LUMA will interpret the Shakers’ aesthetic in light of their faith. Then, in late spring, we present two companion exhibitions: Touching Strangers: Richard Renaldi and In the Presence of Sacred Light: The Master Watercolors of Timothy J. Clark. Touching Strangers is a photo essay documenting what happens when total strangers are asked to physically engage with each other. LUMA is partnering with Loyola University Chicago’s School of Social Work to celebrate the latter’s 100th anniversary. This exhibition celebrates the work of thousands of students who went into the social work profession to change lives by “touching strangers.” In the Presence of Sacred Light showcases contemporary watercolors, hoping to show how traditional subject matters and techniques can be presented in new and captivating ways. Infused with color, Clark’s watercolors capture the evasive presence of light as it changes exterior landscapes and interior settings into something both beautiful and sacred. His works speak of a technical virtuosity in the tradition of John Singer Sargent or Winslow Homer, yet in a voice that is wholly his own.
LUMA at 10: Greatest Hits begins in late August, a revolving display of art donated to or purchased for the museum’s collections that illustrates our mission. Finally, at year’s end, the Art and Faith of the Crèche exhibition returns. This time, however, we will ask our members to vote on their favorites. We are pairing this annual show with a smaller exhibition, Whirligigs: The Art of Peter Gelker. Organized by California State University, Fullerton, the exhibit is comprised of quirky, psychologically-inspired whirligigs—folk art with a Freudian twist! All told, it is an exciting year of exhibitions with a great deal of fun thrown into the mix.
But enough about us, let’s talk about you! I’d like to know from our readers and visitors, what was your favorite exhibition over the past 10 years?
Send us the title of the exhibition that you thought best spoke to you, and to our mission—the exploration of the spiritual in art. From HEAVEN+HELL to Elegant Enigmas: The Art of Edward Gorey, it’s quite an impressive list. You can find a full list of LUMA’s past exhibitions here. I am sure you will be surprised at the list’s variety. Drop us a note, an e-mail, or post to our Facebook page with a brief sentence or two on why this exhibition is your all-time favorite.
I cannot adequately express how much we owe to all of you, our members and friends—and there are more great things to come. The 20th anniversary is only a decade away!
Pamela E. Ambrose
Director of Cultural Affairs
Loyola University Chicago
