Chicago History & Culture

Lewis & Clark: The Journey of the Corps of Discovery by Ken Burns & PBS - Film History Livestream - Hosted by Robert Kelleman

Let's honor and remember the 220th anniversary of the Lewis & Clark Expedition (May 14, 1804 - September 23, 1806) by watching a two-part screening of Lewis & Clark: The Journey of the Corps of Discovery, an excellent documentary film by Ken Burns and PBS.

Part 1 will be on Thursday evening, September 17, and Part 2 will be on Thursday evening, September 24.

The first portion of our program, approximately 15 minutes, will be a brief overview of the film, including its historical context, things to look for, etc.
The second portion of our program will be a full screening of the film.

During and after the screening we invite you to participate in a discussion of the film with your fellow art history lovers via Zoom.

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Lewis & Clark: The Journey of the Corps of Discovery is a 1997 television documentary miniseries about the Lewis and Clark Expedition directed and co-produced by Ken Burns. It is produced by Burns' Florentine Films for Washington, DC PBS station WETA-TV, first aired on PBS on November 4 and 5, 1997.
The first part of the film covers the expedition up to the headwaters of the Missouri River. The second part of the film covers the meeting with the Shoshone, the treacherous crossing of the mountains, the downstream rush to reach the Pacific Ocean, and the ambitious explorations of the return trip.
The film, as with most of Burns' individual biography documentaries, is part of his American Lives film project, and is so credited in the copyright.
Summary
Sent by President Thomas Jefferson to find the fabled Northwest Passage, Meriwether Lewis and William Clark led the most important expedition in American history—a voyage of danger and discovery from St. Louis to the headwaters of the Missouri River, over the Continental Divide to the Pacific. It was the United States' first exploration of the West and one of the nation's most enduring adventures.
This extraordinary film tells the remarkable story of the entire Corps of Discovery—not just the two famous Captains, but the young army men, French-Canadian boatmen, Clark's African-American slave, and the Shoshone woman named Sacagawea, who brought along her infant son. Journey with them all, across a breath-taking landscape in an unforgettable experience that explores both the history—and promise—of America.

The History of Brick Architecture in Chicago - FREE In-Person Lecture
Wednesday, September 30
2:00pm - 3:00pm
Tinley Park Public Library
1st floor - Meeting Room A&B
The lecture starts at 2:00 pm, but we recommend arriving a few minutes early to get seated.

Join Chicago's premiere brick expert, Will Quam, to discover how humble bricks reveal Chicago's fascinating, hidden history and explore the evolution of building fashions over time. Signup required.

Frank Lloyd Wright Film by Ken Burns & Lynn Novick - Art History Livestream
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Frank Lloyd Wright - American Homes - Art History Livestream
Hosted by Robert Kelleman

We invite you to a special two-part art history program on the life and career of famed American architect Frank Lloyd Wright.

Part 1, on Friday, October 2, will be a screening of the PBS film “Frank Lloyd Wright” by Ken Burns & Lynn Novick.

Part 2, on Saturday, October 3, will be an art history lecture on some of Frank Lloyd Wright’s most noteworthy American home designs including Falling Water (Pennsylvania), Robie House (Chicago), Pope-Leighey House (Virginia), Taliesin (Wisconsin), Taliesin West (Scottsdale).

During and after both programs you’ll have the opportunity to discuss the topics with your fellow art lovers via Zoom.

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Frank Lloyd Wright
A Film by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick
Frank Lloyd Wright tells the story of the greatest of all American architects. Wright was an authentic American genius, a man who believed he was destined to redesign the world, creating everything anew. Over the course of his long career, he designed over eight hundred buildings, including such revolutionary structures as the Guggenheim Museum, the Johnson Wax Building, Fallingwater, Unity Temple and Taliesin. His buildings and his ideas changed the way we live, work and see the world around us.
Frank Lloyd Wright’s architectural achievements were often overshadowed by the turbulence of his melodramatic life. In ninety-two tempestuous years, he fathered seven children, married three times, and was almost constantly embroiled in scandal. Some hated him, some loved him, and in the end, few could deny that he was the one of the most important architects in the world.

Frank Lloyd Wright Sr. (June 8, 1867 – April 9, 1959) was an American architect, designer, writer, and educator. He designed more than 1,000 structures over a creative period of 70 years. Wright played a key role in the architectural movements of the twentieth century, influencing architects worldwide through his works and mentoring hundreds of apprentices. Wright believed in designing in harmony with humanity and the environment, a philosophy he called organic architecture. This philosophy was exemplified in Fallingwater (1935), which has been called "the best all-time work of American architecture".
Wright was a pioneer of what came to be called the Prairie School movement of architecture and also developed the concept of the Usonian home, his vision for urban planning in the United States. Wright also designed original and innovative offices, churches, schools, skyscrapers, hotels, museums, and other commercial projects. Wright-designed interior elements (including leaded glass windows, floors, furniture and even tableware) were integrated into these structures. He wrote several books and numerous articles and was a popular lecturer in the United States and in Europe. Wright was recognized in 1991 by the American Institute of Architects as "the greatest American architect of all time". In 2019, a selection of his work became a listed World Heritage Site under the name The 20th-Century Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright.
Raised in rural Wisconsin, Wright studied civil engineering at the University of Wisconsin and later apprenticed in Chicago, first briefly with Joseph Lyman Silsbee, and then with Louis Sullivan at Adler & Sullivan. Wright opened his own successful Chicago practice in 1893 and established a studio in his Oak Park, Illinois home in 1898.

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“The Young Victoria” (Emily Blunt) - British Film History Livestream - Hosted by Robert Kelleman

You are invited to a screening of “The Young Victoria”, our latest British film history livestream.
This 2009 feature film stars Emily Blunt in the title role of Queen Victoria.

This will be a two-part program. Part one, approximately 15-20 minutes, will be a brief overview of the film including historical context, plot summary, things to look for, accuracy, etc. Part two will be a full screening of the film.

During this film history program there will be an opportunity to discuss the film with your fellow participants via Zoom.

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Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days, which was longer than any of her predecessors, is known as the Victorian era. It was a period of industrial, political, scientific, and military change within the United Kingdom, and was marked by a great expansion of the British Empire. In 1876, the British Parliament voted to grant her the additional title of Empress of India.
Victoria was the daughter of Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn (the fourth son of King George III), and Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld. After the deaths of her father and grandfather in 1820, she was raised under close supervision by her mother and her comptroller, John Conroy. She inherited the throne aged 18 after her father's three elder brothers died without surviving legitimate issue. Victoria, a constitutional monarch, attempted privately to influence government policy and ministerial appointments; publicly, she became a national icon who was identified with strict standards of personal morality.
Victoria married her first cousin Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha in 1840. Their nine children married into royal and noble families across the continent, earning Victoria the sobriquet "grandmother of Europe". After Albert's death in 1861, Victoria plunged into deep mourning and avoided public appearances. As a result of her seclusion, British republicanism temporarily gained strength, but in the latter half of her reign, her popularity recovered. Her Golden and Diamond jubilees were times of public celebration. Victoria died in 1901 at Osborne House on the Isle of Wight, at the age of 81. The last British monarch of the House of Hanover, she was succeeded by her son Edward VII of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.

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The Young Victoria is a 2009 British period drama film directed by Jean-Marc Vallée and written by Julian Fellowes, based on the early life and reign of Queen Victoria, and her marriage to Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Produced by Graham King, Martin Scorsese, Sarah Ferguson, and Timothy Headington, the film stars Emily Blunt, Rupert Friend, Paul Bettany, Miranda Richardson, Harriet Walter, Mark Strong, and Jim Broadbent among a large ensemble cast.
As screenwriter, Fellowes sought to make the film as historically accurate as possible. With this in mind, Oscar-winning costume designer Sandy Powell and historical consultant Alastair Bruce were hired, and filming for The Young Victoria took place at various historical landmarks in England to further the film's authenticity. Despite this, some aspects of the film have been criticised for their historical inaccuracies.
Momentum Pictures released the film in the United Kingdom and Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions Group opened The Young Victoria in limited theatrical release in the United States. Critical reception was generally positive.