Block Museum of Art
Fall 2018 Exhibitions
Up is Down: Mid-century Experiments in Advertising and Film at the Goldsholl studio
September 18 - December 9, 2018 Main Gallery
In the 1950s, Chicago-based design firm Goldsholl and Associates made a name for itself with innovative “designs-in-film.” Headed by Morton and Millie Goldsholl, the studio produced television spots, films, trademarks, corporate identities, and print advertisements for international corporations like Kimberly-Clark, Motorola, and 7-Up. Although they were compared to some of the most celebrated design firms of the day, the Goldsholls and their designers are relatively unknown today. Opening in September 2018, the Block Museum’s exhibition Up is Down: Mid-Century Experimentation in Advertising and Film at the Goldsholl Studio will reexamine the innovative work of Goldsholl and Associates and its national impact. This exhibition is presented in conjunction with Art Design Chicago, a wide-ranging initiative to explore the breadth of Chicago’s role as a catalyst and incubator for innovations in art and design. Art Design Chicago is a spirited celebration of the unique and vital role Chicago plays as America’s crossroads of creativity and commerce.
Paul Chan: Happiness (finally) after 35,000 years of civilization
July 17 - November 4, 2018 Alsdorf Gallery
Paul Chan (b. Hong Kong, 1973) is an American artist, writer, and publisher.. Created from 1999 to 2003, his first major artwork Happiness (Finally) After 35,000 Years of Civilization presents a 15-minute looped digital Flash animation inspired by as much by the history of utopian thought and the US invasion of Iraq as by Web 1.0 banner ads. Completed as part of his MFA degree at Bard College, Happiness also reflects Chan’s formative undergraduate years at the School of the Art Institute, where he first encountered the work of Chicago-based selftaught artist Henry Darger. An editioned work, Happiness is part of the 2016 gift of 68 works of contemporary art to the Block Museum from art collector, philanthropist, and software innovator Peter Norton.
Break A Rule: Ed Paschke’s Art and Teaching
September 18 - December 9, 2018 Katz Gallery Ed Paschke (1939–2004) often began his classes with the assignment to “break a rule.” A bold innovator who enjoyed disrupting conventions, Paschke mentored students for over two and a half decades at Northwestern University, coaching them to think outside the box. His work and his teaching were devoted to experimentation, playful exploration of the human experience, and capturing “every manner of humanity.” This exhibition considers his teaching alongside his art, foregrounding his printmaking along with self-produced pedagogical materials, to offer a new perspective on this well-known Chicago artist. While Paschke taught his students basic techniques in painting and drawing, he also encouraged them to break rules and create something entirely their own.
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@nublockmuseum 847. 491. 4100 blockmuseum.northwestern.edu
Block Museum of Art
Who We Are
The Block Museum of Art is a dynamic, imaginative, and innovative teaching and learning resource for Northwestern University and its surrounding communities, featuring a global exhibition program that crosses time periods and cultures and serves as a springboard for thought-provoking discussions relevant to our lives today. The museum also commissions new work to foster connections between artists and the public through the creative process. Each year, the Block mounts exhibitions; organizes and hosts lectures, symposia, and workshops involving artists, scholars, curators, and critics; and screens classic and contemporary films at its in-house cinema. The museum reaches national and international audiences through its traveling exhibitions, publications and web platforms. Its growing permanent collection includes over 6,000 works focuses with strengths in works on paper, photography, and contemporary art. The Block is always free and open to all. am
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@nublockmuseum 847. 491. 4100 blockmuseum.northwestern.edu