The Hilliard Art Museum is proud to announce its captivating lineup of exhibitions that delve into the complexities of race, intergenerational loss, and the power of art. From thought-provoking tapestries to innovative camera-less photography, these exhibitions offer a diverse and immersive experience for art enthusiasts and visitors of all backgrounds.
Throughout the entire month of July, Hilliard visitors can experience the excitement of the museum’s Summer Blowout Sale located in the James W. Bean store, where creativity and affordability intertwine. Explore an extensive selection of unique items, including captivating artworks, stunning jewelry, inspired home decor, art books, and much more. The sale ensures that everyone can find a special piece to enhance their artistic expression.
CURRENT EXHIBITIONS:
DATE: July 13, 2023 - February 3, 2024
"Black Flesh" is a solo exhibition by Noel W. Anderson delving into the relationships between media, image making, and race. In his tapestries and works on paper, Anderson is interested in how far he can push abstraction without losing meaning. He takes historic images of anti-Black violence and intentionally distorts them to show how racism warps perception.
Noel W. Anderson’s work deals with the intricacies of art history and the distortion of images. He is specifically interested in how art shapes the perception of race. Anderson, a non-linear thinker, conceives of the art historical ecosystem in a holistic way and draws parallels between his practice and other artists. Anderson chooses to model his practice after that of Peter Paul Rubens, a renowned Flemish artist who worked during the Early Renaissance and was known best as a painter. He also worked with printmakers and tapestry weavers as a way of making his work more affordable and replicable than his paintings. In what could be considered an early modern marketing campaign, he expertly adapted his work to those media for one reason: to widely disseminate his images and establish himself as an artist with few peers. The search for broader relevance drives Anderson’s work across printmaking and weaving. His distorted images provide a framework for understanding how historic and contemporary accounts of African American history are social constructs fabricated using American media images. Anderson’s unusual display strategies for his tapestries support this because their presence in a formal gallery can be seen as a disruptive critique of how African Americans are not represented equitably in museums.
DATE: July 29, 2023 - February 24, 2024
This body of work started on August 6, 1945, at 8:15 am, when Ito’s grandfather witnessed a great tragedy that destroyed nearly everything in Hiroshima. He survived the bombing, yet he lost many of his family members from the explosion and radiation poisoning. As an activist and author, his grandfather fought against the use of nuclear weapons throughout his life, until he too passed away from cancer when Ito was ten years old. Ito remembers his grandfather saying that, “day in Hiroshima was like hundreds of suns lighting up the sky.”
Ito harnesses the symbolism of the sun by tying it to Japanese New Year celebrations. Traditionally, bells toll 108 times to mark the New Year as a way of driving out evil passions and desires while purifying the soul. The artist recreates this in Each Tolling Sun by pounding a steel disc with a hammer 108 times and then creating a contact print of the deformed disc after each strike. The exhibition space is dominated by a large grid of these prints and a video of Ito striking the disc.
For Ito, the sun is a representation of the great destruction, not only associated with the annihilation of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, but also possible future destruction caused by nuclear weapons or other apocalyptic forces. Kei Ito is a visual artist working primarily with camera-less photography and installation art. Currently teaching at the International Center for Photography in New York City, Ito earned his BFA from the Rochester Institute of Technology and his MFA from the Maryland Institute College of Art.
Ito’s work addresses issues of intergenerational loss and interconnectedness expressed using the materiality of photography, as well as experimental processes. Fundamentally rooted in the trauma and legacy passed down from his late grandfather, a survivor of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, Ito’s work explores the complexities of his identity and heritage by examining the past and present using visualizations of radiation. Specifically, each of Ito’s projects is tied to a specific history or idea that provides audiences a chance to explore notions of justice and power.
Some of Ito’s most noteworthy accomplishments include residencies at the Studio at MASS MoCA, the Dennis Roussel Fellowship at the Center for Fine Art Photography, and the Center for Photography at Woodstock. His bibliography includes reviews and articles published by the Washington Post, Hyperallergic, ArtMaze Magazine, and others. Additionally, his works reside in the permanent collections of the Museum of Contemporary Photography, the Norton Museum of Art, Chroma at the California Institute of Integral Studies, and the Eskenazi Museum of Art.
UPCOMING EXHIBITIONS:
SOUTH ARTS SOUTHERN PRIZE AND STATE FELLOWS
DATE: August 19, 2023 - December 16, 2023
South Arts 2022 Southern Prize and State Fellows is a showcase of the best of Southern visual art. This powerhouse exhibition, organized by South Arts, features a wide variety of styles, media, and perspectives. The Hilliard Art Museum is the final stop for this traveling exhibition. Past venues include the Bo Bartlett Center at Columbus State University (GA), the Steven F. Gately Gallery at Francis Marion University (SC), and the 701 Center for Contemporary Art (SC). South Arts 2022 Southern Prize and State Fellows is a showcase of the best of Southern visual art. Each state is represented by a fellow selected by a panel of experts. The Southern Prize is given to the overall winner, and a finalist award is given to the runner-up. Louisiana’s own Hannah Chalew is the 2022 Southern Prize winner and Sarah Elizabeth Cornejo is the Southern Prize Finalist.
The fellows are Jenny Fine of Alabama, GeoVanna Gonzalez of Florida, Antonio Darden of Georgia, Crystal Gregory of Kentucky, Hannah Chalew of Louisiana, Gloria Gipson Suggs of Mississippi, Marcus Dunn of North Carolina, Brittany M. Watkins of South Carolina, and Sarah Elizabeth Cornejo of Tennessee.
OFF THE BEATEN PATH: WEIRD WILD, AND ABSTRACT 2023: GEORGE RODRIGUE FOUNDATION OF THE ARTS SCHOLARSHIP CONTEST
DATE: September 02, 2023 — September 30, 2023
The George Rodrigue Foundation of the Arts grants monetary scholarships to high school juniors and seniors through an annual visual arts competition in order to encourage individual participation in the arts. Over 650 high school students from across Louisiana entered the 2023 Scholarship Art Contest by submitting original works of art on the theme of, "Off the Beaten Path."
To find out more about the George Rodrigue Foundation for the Arts, and this contest please visit https://georgerodriguefoundation.org/what-we-do/scholarship-art-contest/
OTHER HAPPENINGS:
HILLIARD ART MUSEUM STORE BLOW OUT SUMMER SALE
DATE: Whole month of July
It’s time for the Summer Blow-Out Sale in the James W. Bean store at the Hilliard Art Museum!
- 40% off all items except Local Artists and Consignment items
- 15% off Local Artists and Consignment items
- Free ‘More Than A Museum’ Pin with your purchase
- Start your shopping now for holidays, birthdays and XX!
DATES: Every second Saturday of the Month at 11:00 AM.
Join us for Yoga in the Galleries as we flow and enjoy the gallery space.
MORE THAN A MUSEUM-GIVING CAMPAIGN
Restoring & Reimagining the A. Hays Town Building
The Hilliard launched a $1.5 million campaign in 2018 with major support from the UL Foundation, founding donor Paul Hilliard, philanthropist Gloria Callais, as well as board members and community members. Now with a $200,000 challenge pledge from Roger Houston Ogden, the Hilliard is poised to reach their goal of $1.5 million with community support.
Funds raised will support the following project costs:
- Construction: $1,150,000
- Soft Costs: $150,000
- Fixture, Furnishings, Equipment: $200,000
Museum Hours, Admission & General Information
The Hilliard Art Museum is located at 710 E. Saint Mary Blvd. on the campus of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. Museum hours are Tuesday through Friday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; closed Sunday and Monday. For general information, please visit HillliardMuseum.org or call 337-482-2278.
About the Hilliard Art Museum
Our Museum is a bridge. Our Museum is a catalyst. Our Museum is for everyone. We connect art and education, our university and our community, generations, heritage and cultures. The Hilliard Art Museum-University of Louisiana at Lafayette is not just a place to look at art. It is a place where visitors are encouraged to truly see art. It is a place of learning, where students sketch in the galleries and artists talk about their work. It is a destination for families, where kids express their own creativity through hands-on activities. And it is a resource for academic research and observation. Museum experiences build skills that extend into every aspect of life. Viewing art promotes dialogue and understanding between individuals, among families, and throughout our community. Art makes life richer and better for everyone.
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