March 25

Activity

1PM – 4PM
Spencer Museum of Art, Michaelis Gallery

Explore how clothing, adornment, and hairstyles can give clues about people in works of art. Look closely at several portraits, then create decorative figures of your own using the materials provided. The Art Cart is a free drop-in activity station where children and grown-ups enjoy hands-on art projects together, taking inspiration from original works of art on view.

Sponsored By: Spencer Museum of Art

March 26

Performance

1PM – 2PM
Spencer Museum of Art, 405 Michaelis Gallery

Join in an exploration of art, color, and the history of the oboe with the BS Project, featuring Susan Miranda (oboe) and Brian Handeland (sax) and compositions by Katherine Bergman, Sy Brandon, Julia Perry, Jonathan Posthuma, Georg Phillip Telemann, Yu Tsuruku.

Sponsored By: Spencer Museum of Art

March 29

Talk

5PM – 9PM
Maceli’s Banquet Hall, 1031 New Hampshire St., Lawrence, KS 66044 and via Zoom

For the second year in a row, KU will participate in the Worldwide Climate Justice Teach-In, organized by researchers at Bard College. This interdisciplinary event is an opportunity for local researchers, community leaders, practitioners, students, and creative scholars, among others, to share their unique contributions to the work of addressing climate change. Register for this hybrid event at https://thecommons.ku.edu/climate-teach-in.

Sponsored By: The Commons, the Department of Geography & Atmospheric Science, the IPSR Center for Compassionate and Sustainable Communities, the KU Libraries, and the Environmental Studies Program

March 30

Talk

11AM – 12:15PM
Spencer Museum of Art, Art and Architecture Library, Room 103 and on Zoom. To join via Zoom, please contact Maya Stiller at mstiller@ku.edu for the access code.

Explore the Zen paintings and calligraphies of Hakuin Ekaku (1685–1768), the most famous Zen monk-artist of Japan’s Edo period with Yukio Lippit (Harvard University). Lippit examines Hakuin’s incorporation of different voices from Edo popular culture to communicate religious meaning, and considers Zenga’s construction as a category in the modern era.

Sponsored By: Kress Foundation Department of Art History, Spencer Museum of Art

March 31

Activity

1PM – 4PM
305 Goddard Study Center

Your art wish is our command. Visit the Goddard Study Center on Fridays to request works of art on paper not currently on view or share your interests and let our staff select works for you. You can also drop in to enjoy works requested by other visitors. The Goddard Study Center is open to all during gallery hours with a break from 12-1PM.

Sponsored By: Spencer Museum of Art

April 01

Talk

3PM – 4PM
Lawrence Public Library, 707 Vermont St

Come learn about the Sacred Red Rock Project and receive a free activity guide with interactive prompts exploring history, monuments, reimagining and more. After the presentation, weather permitting, we will visit Robinson Park together. Snacks will be provided. Led by members of the Kaw Nation in collaboration with the City of Lawrence, University of Kansas, Spencer Museum of Art, Kanza Heritage Society and others, the project is focused on the return and relocation of In‘zhúje‘waxóbe, the 28-ton red Siouxan quartzite boulder currently located in Robinson Park, to the Kaw Nation, who have a centuries’ long relationship with the Rock and value it as a sacred item of prayer. Visit sacredredrock.com for more information.

Sponsored By: Spencer Museum of Art

April 05

7PM – 9PM
Haskell Indian Nations University, The Auditorium

A screening of the film Beans (2020) will serve as the kick-off event during the week leading up the KU First Nations Student Association Powwow and Indigenous Cultures Festival. “Beans” is a Canadian drama directed by Mohawk-Canadian filmmaker Tracey Deer. It explores the 1990 Oka Crisis at Kanesatake, a 78-day standoff between two Mohawk communities and government forces, through the eyes of Tekehentahkhwa (nicknamed "Beans"), a young Mohawk girl whose perspective on life is radically changed by these events. *92 minute run time. Trailer: https://youtu.be/ItjJduXxWAM

Sponsored By: Haskell Indian Nations University, Lawrence Arts Center, Lied Center of Kansas, Spencer Museum of Art, KU Native American Initiatives

April 07

Activity

1PM – 4PM
305 Goddard Study Center

Your art wish is our command. Visit the Goddard Study Center on Fridays to request works of art on paper not currently on view or share your interests and let our staff select works for you. You can also drop in to enjoy works requested by other visitors. The Goddard Study Center is open to all during gallery hours with a break from 12-1PM.

Sponsored By: Spencer Museum of Art

April 08

12PM – 9PM
Lied Center of Kansas, 1600 Stewart Dr

Join us for KU’s Annual First Nations Student Association Powwow and Indigenous Cultures Festival at the Lied Center and newly designated powwow arena nearby. This free community event features a daylong powwow and activities such as Indigenous films, educational workshops, and children’s activities focused on Indigenous cultures. Indigenous artists and craftspeople will have items for sale, and Indigenous food will be available for purchase throughout the day

Sponsored By: KU First Nations Student Association, Lied Center of Kansas, Haskell Indian Nations University, Spencer Museum of Art, Native Faculty-Staff Council, KU Indigenous Studies Program, and University Academic Support Centers

April 13

Talk

10:15AM – 11AM
Spencer Museum of Art, 405 Michaelis Gallery

Join KU Professor and Chair of Art History David Cateforis in exploring three major works in the Spencer collection: Elaine de Kooning’s "Arena" (1959), Louise Nevelson’s "Seventh Decade Garden IX-X" (1971), and Elizabeth Murray’s "Chaotic Lip" (1986). The discussion focuses on the artists’ distinctive uses of abstraction – a key feature of much modernist art – both as a vehicle of personal expression and to invite the viewer’s creative engagement with the artwork. Senior Sessions are designed with accommodations for older adults, but open to all.

Sponsored By: Spencer Museum of Art

April 13

Talk

6PM – 7:30PM
Spencer Museum of Art

Celebrate the release of a free collaborative zine exploring disability, ableism, gender, and feminism inspired by the KU Common Work of Art by Harry Bertoia and the KU Common Book “Disability Visibility.” Contributors reflect on their pages followed by time for questions and discussion. The first 10 people will receive a free zine making kit. What’s a zine? Check out https://emilytaylorcenter.ku.edu/making-zines-doing-feminism.

Sponsored By: Emily Taylor Center for Women and Gender Equity, The Commons, Spencer Museum of Art, Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging and Faculty Staff Council on Disability Inclusion

April 14

Activity

1PM – 4PM
305 Goddard Study Center

Your art wish is our command. Visit the Goddard Study Center on Fridays to request works of art on paper not currently on view or share your interests and let our staff select works for you. You can also drop in to enjoy works requested by other visitors. The Goddard Study Center is open to all during gallery hours with a break from 12-1PM.

Sponsored By: Spencer Museum of Art

April 20

Talk

6PM – 7PM
404 Marshall Balcony

Tour the exhibition "Dissent, Discontent, and Action: Pictures of US by Accra Shepp" with the photographer. Shepp, a New York-based artist, will share insights related to his two photographic projects, "Occupying Wall Street" and "The Covid Journals" that form this exhibition. Please note that space in the gallery will be limited and this tour will be repeated on Friday, April 21, at 10:00 am.

Sponsored By: Spencer Museum of Art

April 21

Talk

10AM – 11AM
404 Marshall Balcony

Tour the exhibition "Dissent, Discontent, and Action: Pictures of US by Accra Shepp" with the photographer. Shepp, a New York-based artist, will share insights related to his two photographic projects, "Occupying Wall Street" and "The Covid Journals" that form this exhibition. Please note that space in the gallery will be limited and this tour will be offered on Thursday, April 20, at 6:00pm as well.

Sponsored By: Spencer Museum of Art

April 21

Activity

1PM – 4PM
305 Goddard Study Center

Your art wish is our command. Visit the Goddard Study Center on Fridays to request works of art on paper not currently on view or share your interests and let our staff select works for you. On this afternoon, photographer Accra Shepp whose work is featured in the exhibition “Dissent, Discontent, and Action: Pictures of US by Accra Shepp” will be on present to explore the Spencer’s photography collection with Museum staff. The Goddard Study Center is open to all during gallery hours with a break from 12-1PM.

Sponsored By: Spencer Museum of Art

April 21

Talk

3:30PM – 5PM
318 Brosseau Learning Center

Artists of all disciplines are invited to learn how to apply for Rocket Grants—funding for innovative, artist-driven projects in surprising places. Rocket Grants administrator Kimi Kitada and Spencer staff member Adina Duke will take you step-by-step through the application process and timeline, budgeting tips, and the types of projects the program funds as well as answer your burning questions. Details about the Rocket Grants program are online at https://rocketgrants.org/apply/. Rocket Grants is a partnership between the Charlotte Street Foundation and the Spencer Museum of Art supported by funding from the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts. Rocket Grants awards up to $6,000 to individuals or collaborative groups within an 80-mile radius of Kansas City.

April 22

Activity

1PM – 4PM
Spencer Museum of Art, 405 Michaelis Gallery

Join in a citywide celebration of Earth Day! Learn how to create a colorful woven food covering from plastic bags and wire. The Art Cart is a free drop-in activity station where children and grown-ups enjoy hands-on art projects together, taking inspiration from original works of art on view.

Sponsored By: Spencer Museum of Art

April 24

Talk

7PM – 8:30PM
Liberty Hall, 644 Massachusetts St

Ross Gay is the author of four books of poetry including Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude, which won the 2015 National Book Critics Circle Award and the 2016 Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award. His first collection of essays, The Book of Delights, was released in 2019 and was a New York Times bestseller. His latest collection of essays, Inciting Joy, was released in October 2022. Free tickets are available at https://www.universe.com/RossGay. The Raven Book Store will be on site to sell books for a signing following the lecture.

Sponsored By: The Commons

April 28

Activity

1PM – 4PM
305 Goddard Study Center

Your art wish is our command. Visit the Goddard Study Center on Fridays to request works of art on paper not currently on view or share your interests and let our staff select works for you. You can also drop in to enjoy works requested by other visitors. The Goddard Study Center is open to all during gallery hours with a break from 12-1PM.

Sponsored By: Spencer Museum of Art

April 29

Activity

1PM – 3PM
Spencer Museum of Art, Marvin Grove, directly behind Spencer Museum, 1301 Mississippi St

Journey across KU's Marvin Grove and the Spencer Museum galleries to explore various dimensions of trees in art and the landscape. Jon Standing discusses the history, biology, and horticulture of trees in the Grove and Adina Duke delves into artist choices in material, form, and content that draw on trees as a resource. Space is limited. Register online at lprd.org using class code #727123, or in person at any Lawrence recreation center. We will meet outdoors at the convergence of sidewalks in the Grove, directly behind the Museum.

Sponsored By: Lawrence Parks and Recreation Department, Spencer Museum of Art

April 30

Activity

2PM – 3PM
Spencer Museum of Art, 401 Loo Gallery

Slow down at the Spencer and spend time getting to know one great work of art. Slow Art Sunday features one work for visitors to contemplate and converse about with Museum staff. In April, get to know Sam-Ilus's "Le partage du gateau (Dividing the Cake)".

Sponsored By: Spencer Museum of Art

May 05

Activity

1PM – 4PM
305 Goddard Study Center

Your art wish is our command. Visit the Goddard Study Center on Fridays to request works of art on paper not currently on view or share your interests and let our staff select works for you. You can also drop in to enjoy works requested by other visitors. The Goddard Study Center is open to all during gallery hours with a break from 12-1PM.

Sponsored By: Spencer Museum of Art

May 06

Activity

1PM – 4PM
Spencer Museum of Art, Reece Memorial Plaza

This community event commemorates the Hamamatsu Kite Festival that occurs each May in Japan. People of all ages are invited to learn about the history and culture of kite making.

Sponsored By: Spencer Museum of Art, Center for East Asian Studies

May 11

Talk

10:15AM – 11AM
Spencer Museum of Art, 406 Stewart Gallery, 409 Lee Study Center

Learn how objects in the Spencer Museum’s collection intersect with the Japanese tradition of tea. Dale Slusser, who has studied and taught the Urasenke tradition of tea for nearly 40 years, provides an introduction to tea practice and shares how aesthetics, craft, and tea have interacted over time. Senior sessions are designed for older adults, but open to all. Senior Sessions are designed with accommodations for older adults, but open to all.

Sponsored By: Spencer Museum of Art

May 11

Social

4PM – 6PM
Spencer Museum of Art

Drop in for any part of this open house to learn about the Museum’s next steps for improving access, inclusion, and belonging based on community input and explore our new collection galleries through tours or self-guided activities. Fun for all ages and light refreshments provided.

Sponsored By: Spencer Museum of Art

May 12

Activity

1PM – 4PM
305 Goddard Study Center

Your art wish is our command. Visit the Goddard Study Center on Fridays to request works of art on paper not currently on view or share your interests and let our staff select works for you. You can also drop in to enjoy works requested by other visitors. The Goddard Study Center is open to all during gallery hours with a break from 12-1PM.

Sponsored By: Spencer Museum of Art

May 20

Activity

1PM – 4PM
Spencer Museum of Art, 406 Stewart Gallery

Take inspiration from the many teacups and ceramics on display in the Intersections gallery and create your own from mixed media. The Art Cart is a free drop-in activity station where children and grown-ups enjoy hands-on art projects together, taking inspiration from original works of art on view.

Sponsored By: Spencer Museum of Art