Family heirlooms subject of next lecture in Ellwood House series

Shaw Local News Network

DeKALB – February’s lecture series at the Ellwood House Museum in DeKalb will feature a presentation on family heirlooms.

“Listen to Your Heirlooms: Your Family’s Treasured Objects Have More to Say Than Meets the Eye” is the title of the next Brown Bag and Local Lore program hosted by the Ellwood House Museum.

The program will begin at noon Thursday, Feb. 2, at the Ellwood House Museum Visitor’s Center, 420 Linden Place, DeKalb, according to a news release.

The presentation will feature appraiser and antiques researcher Carolyn Law, who will discuss strategies for investigating, recording and preserving the meaning of family heirlooms using 21st century resources. She also will introduce some basic

News Brief

Open game time offered Feb. 4 at DeKalb library

DeKALB – The DeKalb Public Library, 309 Oak St., host an open game time event from 2 to 4 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 4, in the library’s lower-level Zimmerman Meeting Room.

The game time is open to people of all ages.

Patrons can play various card games, principles and techniques of material culture research in the context of family heirlooms. Attendees are encouraged to bring an heirloom for discussion. board games, and chess at the library with their friends and other attendees. Participants are encouraged to bring a game to play during the event. The games and chess sets will be provided by the library. No registration is required to attend.

Law is the owner of Carolyn Law Antiques LLC in Sycamore. She also is a certified personal property appraiser and antiques researcher specializing in decorative arts and sterling silver.

The “Listen to Your Heirlooms” presentation is part of Brown Bag Lunch/Local Lore, a free lecture series offered in collaboration by the Ellwood House Museum and DeKalb County History Center.

To register, visit ellwoodhouse.org/ lectures and scroll down to the bottom of the page.

Brown Bag Lunch and Local Lore is funded in part by the Mary E. Stevens Concert and Lecture Fund.

For information, call 815-756-4609 or email king@ellwoodhouse.org.

For information, email irise@dkpl.org or call 815-756-9568, ext. 2150.

–ShawLocalNewsNetwork

Kish College Black History Month events begin Feb. 1

MALTA – Kishwaukee College will host several events to celebrate Black History Month throughout February.

The events will begin Wednesday, Feb. 1, either online or at Kishwaukee College, 21193 Malta Road, Malta, according to a news release.

Admission to the events is free and open to the public.

The Black History Month events are based on programs and themes developed by the Association for the Study of African American Life and History. The theme for this year’s Black History Month celebrations is black resistance.

Kishwaukee College’s Black History Month events include:

• Black Jeopardy Game, noon to 1 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 1, in the Student Lounge

• Brown Bag Series: Origins of Resistance, 1 to 2 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 1, in room C1121 or via Zoom

• Brown Bag Series: Religion and Resistance, 1 to 2 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 8, in room C1121 or via Zoom

• Brown Bag Series: The Black Arts Movement, noon to 1 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 15, in room C1121 or via Zoom

• Paint and Create, 1 to 3 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 15, in room C1133

• Brown Bag Series: Contemporary Resistance-Black Lives Matter and Critical Race Theory, noon to 1 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 22, in room C1121 or via Zoom

• Black Card Revoked Game, noon to 1 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 28, in room C1131

• Black History Month is observed annually to recognize and honor the accomplishments that Black people have made in the U.S. and across the world.

For information, visit kish.edu/diversity.

NIU exhibit runs through Feb. 17

DeKALB – The Northern Illinois University Art Museum will host a public reception for its art exhibit, “A Show of Hands: Recent Work by Ben Stone.”

The reception will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 15, at the NIU Art Museum, according to a news release.

“A Show of Hands: Recent Work by Ben Stone” features the recent work of NIU School of Art and Design sculptor and coordinator of 2D and 3D foundations Ben Stone.

The artwork in the exhibit includes low relief hand variations of past and current nail salon signage, pictogram signage of hands being washed, as well as an homage to Stone’s hometown of Chicago. The exhibit is being showcased in the North Gallery of the NIU Art Museum.

The artwork reflects several concur- rent themes through its iconography and aesthetics from the late 1970s and early 1980s. One of the themes includes the good and bad times Stone experienced during his adolescence while discovering his personal identity.

The exhibit runs through Friday, Feb. 17.

For information, visit go.niu.edu/artmuseumevents.

Free tax assistance begins Feb. 4 at DeKalb Library

DeKALB – The DeKalb Public Library, 309 Oak St., will host an AARP Foundation Tax-Aide assistance program from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturdays, Feb. 4 through April 15.

The tax assistance program is intended for people with low to moderate incomes.

AARP Foundation Tax-Aide program volunteers will provide patrons with free tax assistance. Attendees must bring a photo ID, all necessary tax documents, and their return forms from the previous year. No appointments will be held Saturday, April 1.

Registration is required to receive an appointment. To register, call 815-9919418.

For information, email reference@ dkpl.org or call 815-756-9568, ext. 2150.