The Speed Art Museum presents two shows celebrating the bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln’s birth. These exhibitions will explore the life of the nation’s 16th president in Beyond the Log Cabin: Kentucky’s Abraham Lincoln and Ed Hamilton’s Lincoln from June 28 through September 6, 2009.
“The Speed is extremely proud to participate in the Lincoln celebration by hosting these wonderful exhibitions” says Speed Director, Dr. Charles L. Venable. “Lincoln is the most famous of all Kentuckians and, as the State’s leading Art Museum, we are honored to be able to present different aspects of this great man to the public.”
In Beyond the Log Cabin, the Commonwealth’s signature Lincoln bicentennial exhibition, the untold story of Lincoln’s lifelong engagement with Kentucky and Kentuckians is revealed. Through engaging imagery, art, historical objects, portraits, and Lincoln’s own words, this exhibition illustrates the relationships that shaped Lincoln’s life, helped to pave the way for his political rise and, during the Civil War, kept Kentucky in the Union.
Ed Hamilton’s Lincoln will take you through the artist’s process in creating the Louisville Waterfront Park Lincoln Memorial. This memorial, created by Louisville sculptor, Ed Hamilton, portrays a young, seated Abraham Lincoln reading a book. The exhibition features early clay studies, plaster models, drawings, and the 12-foot final model of the Lincoln monument, as well as Hamilton’s sketches for panels of bas-relief sculptures depicting scenes of slavery and Lincoln’s extraordinary life.
“I think Abraham was an important President, as well as a great human being. Having my state, and people who believed in me commission me to create this memorial for our city is quite the honor. It made me step back and look at the man differently, and the words that he put to paper were so important in his life time and continue to be relevant today,” commented Hamilton on the project.
Taking a broad view of Lincoln, these exhibitions provide an opportunity to deepen one’s understanding of this extraordinary, yet ordinary man.
In conjunction with the exhibition openings, Ed Hamilton will give a talk about his artistic journey in creating the Lincoln Memorial on June 28 at 1:00 p.m. in the Speed Auditorium. A family celebration of Lincoln’s life will take place throughout the museum from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. that includes a festive array of family art and performance activities. Admission to the family events and lecture are free.
Admission to both exhibitions is free thanks to the generous support of Anonymous, Horizon Group International, and the Sutherland Foundation.
Special underwriting provided by the Kentucky Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission. Visit www.kylincoln.org
Beyond the Log Cabin was made possible by generous support from the James Graham Brown Foundation, the Kentucky Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission, and the Kentucky Historical Society Foundation.
About the Speed Art Museum: The Speed Art Museum is located at 2035 South Third Street in Louisville. For general information, call (502) 634-2700 or visit www.speedmuseum.org.
Image: Nicola Marschall (American, 1829- 1917), After Matthew Henry Wilson (American, 1814-1892), Abraham Lincoln, oil on canvas, Gift of Mrs. Hattie Bishop Speed, 1942.23, Conservation funded by the Alliance of the Speed Art Museum, 1999
