Washington Remembers WWII: Their Sacrifice. Our Freedom.
January 19 – April 14, 2019; Old City Hall
Before they liberated concentration camps or freed countries from tyranny, men and women in uniform fought enemy forces everywhere — in factories on the Washington home front and on beaches abroad. They braved the unknown, lived through the unthinkable, and changed who we are.
“I’ve had a wonderful life. … I would go through it again to keep our freedom, really. … I know I could be angry for what I had to go through, but it made life worth living.”
— Capt. Joseph F. Moser, U.S. Army Air Forces, shot down over north-central France in 1944, POW held at Buchenwald concentration camp, resident of Whatcom County.
This is just one of the emotion-packed stories documenting the personal experiences of men and women who fought for freedom on the battlefield and on the home-front in the exhibit Washington Remembers WWII: Their Sacrifice. Our Freedom.
The Legacy Washington exhibit was created through the Office of the Secretary of State to honor the tens of thousands of Washingtonians who served in the war. “The profiles allow World War II veterans a chance to share stories that haven’t been told. The time to hear their stories is now. Every three minutes in this country, we lose a World War II veteran. These heroes offer first-hand accounts of the war, a personal perspective to history, that we can’t afford to lose,” said Secretary of State Kim Wyman.
In addition to the Legacy stories, the exhibit will highlight a variety of WWII artifacts, documents, and historic photographs from the Whatcom Museum’s collection.
Bellingham National 2019 Juried Art Exhibition and Awards
February 2 – May 19, 2019; Lightcatcher building
Juried by Bruce Guenther, Adjunct Curator of Special Exhibitions for the Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education
The Whatcom Museum is hosting the third biennial Bellingham National 2019 Juried Art Exhibition and Awards. Juried by Bruce Guenther, Adjunct Curator of Special Exhibitions for the Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education, the theme of the exhibition is landscape art. Guenther will select artwork submitted by artists from across the United States that represents an investigation of contemporary art practices, and addresses our understandings of the Earth, climate change, and the evolving relationships of humanity to nature. Works will range from traditional interpretations of the observed landscape to the metaphoric and spiritual manifestations of the landscape through image, language, and mapping of our response to nature and the world. The top three artists, chosen by the juror, will receive cash awards, and the exhibition includes a popular choice award.
Artists interested in submitting work to the exhibition can learn more at www.callforentry.org.
About the Juror: Art historian and independent curator Bruce Guenther is currently serving as Adjunct Curator of Special Exhibitions for the Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education. A specialist in post-war American and European Art, Guenther was the Chief Curator and Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, Portland Art Museum, Oregon, until his retirement in 2014. Previously he was the Chief Curator at the Orange County Museum of Art, Newport Beach, California, and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, Illinois, and head of the Modern Art Program at the Seattle Art Museum, Washington. He has curated major monographic and thematic exhibitions internationally, and authored numerous books and exhibition catalogues.
Modern Quilts: Designs of the New Century
June 1 – August 25, 2019; Lightcatcher building
Curated by Riane Menardi, Alissa Haight Carlton, and Heather Grant of the Modern Quilt Guild
Modern quilts are utilitarian art. They tell stories. They are graphic, improvisational, or minimalist. They break the rules. They make a statement. Modern quilts are creative expressions made with needle and thread, fabric, and time, expressing today’s aesthetic through a generations-old traditional craft.
Experience the power of modern quilts firsthand in this exhibit of 60 innovative and inspiring quilts that represent the best modern quilts and quilters of the past decade. In this exhibit, you’ll see the work of modern quilters past and present and learn the story of modern quilting from its earliest roots and influences throughout today.
Hands-on activities will allow visitors of all ages to experience the artistry and process of quilting, and to explore the styles, patterns, and variations between modern and traditional quilts.
All of the quilts featured in this exhibit were made by Modern Quilt Guild (MQG) members, past and current. The MQG is a community of more than 12,000 quilters across six continents and 39 countries.
