How did the sea protect and destroy this ancient sculpture? | AIC Shorts

Dive deeper with Lisa Çakmak, chair and curator of Arts of Greece, Rome, and Byzantium, as we explore a remnant of ancient Rome discovered on the seafloor in the 1920s. This sculpture fragment and a number of others were found near Athens in the harbor of Piraeus, where they had been lost in a disaster, likely while awaiting shipment. Collectors in second-century Rome sought out this popular style of art, and it...

Lecture: The Silk Road and China’s Tang Dynasty

Hear from Seung Hee Oh, assistant curator of Chinese Art, for a discussion about the art and culture of the Tang dynasty, the Silk Road, and China’s golden age of cosmopolitanism. Newly installed in Galleries 130 and 131A, polychromatic earthenware figures of camels, riders, horses, and musicians tell a story of how artisans in the Tang dynasty (618-907) captured the dynamism brought on by trade, diplomacy, and pilgrimage of the Silk Ro...

Artist Conversation: Germane Barnes

In his first solo museum exhibition, "Germane Barnes: Columnar Disorder," Barnes recasts the canonical foundations of Western architecture through the lens of the African diaspora. Critically reflecting on the enduring legacy of the Classical orders—the Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian—whose distinctive columns endure across our built environment today, Barnes upends these long-standing and ubiquitous conventions by reimagining architectural orders root...

Lecture: Adenike Cosgrove on Collecting African Art Today

Hear from Adenike Cosgrove, founder of ÌMỌ̀ DÁRA, for a talk on how she uses her digital platform to empower enthusiasts, scholars, and collectors of African art. Adenike Cosgrove is the founder of ÌMỌ̀ DÁRA, a digital platform that facilitates connections between collectors of African art and leading dealers and scholars worldwide. She holds a master of research in telecommunications degree from University College Londo...

Which classic horror movie starred this painting? | AIC Shorts

Chicago native Ivan Albright is a master of the macabre. Created for the 1945 film adaptation of Oscar Wilde's 1891 novel, "The Picture of Dorian Gray," this gruesome portrait, which appeared in vivid Technicolor within the otherwise black-and-white film, caused a sensation and holds a significant place within art history. We take a closer look with Sarah, curator of Arts of the Americas.