Donors to the Marianna Kistler Beach Museum of Art took off on an adventure as they travel north to Lincoln and Omaha Nebraska. Aileen Wang, Curator, shares her photos and stories of the trip.
The first stop of our trip was the Gerald Ford Conservation Center in Omaha, Nebraska, where we got a behind-the-scenes tour of the facilities with Kenneth Bé, the head painting conservator.
Next, we visited Gallery 1516 in Omaha, Nebraska which is a not-for-profit arts organization that is focused on supporting the art 
scene in Omaha. Their mission is to provide a venue for regional artists to exhibit their work at no charge to the artist. They work with museums, educational, professional, and performing arts organizations to provide a space for traveling exhibitions, educational lectures, music and more. To learn more about Gallery 1516 and Director Patrick Drickey, visit their webpage.
While we were in Omaha, we stopped at Kutak Rock, which is a law firm located in the historic Omaha Building. This historic building was Omaha’s first skyscraper built in 1887 and became the location for numerous professionals who set up offices on the upper stories. 
Despite being entered in the National Register of Historic Places in 1972, The Omaha Building was scheduled to be demolished in 1974. When the deal fell through, the building remained empty for two more years. In 1978, Kutak and his partners purchased and renovated the building for their law firm. It was renovated again in 2006-07 but many original structures were untouched. Kutak Rock has an extensive collection of contemporary art and this picture shows a window in the law firm with the original stenciled glass.
After we visited Omaha, we headed to the Sheldon Museum of Art in Lincoln, Nebraska! The Sheldon Museum of Art is located at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and is known for its beautiful architecture. There is still a bench in the museum that was a part of the original furniture picked out by architect Philip Johnson in the early 1960’s!
Our last stop on the trip was Kiechel Fine Art in Lincoln, Nebraska where we listened to a talk by artist Francisco Souto. He explained what his artwork meant to him:
“A Memory in Peril is a compilation of works in response to the current reality that is affecting my native land. These drawings are visual testimonies of the social, economic and political deterioration that is eroding Venezuela…It is an attempt to offer a voice to the unheard; it is about the people and their humanity in time of adverse reality.”
After Souto’s talk, we watched Kenneth Bé performing a mini concert with a 17th century Italian type of lute, which he has been playing for many decades!
This post was co-written by Aileen Wang and student curatorial assistant Maddie Allen.
To learn more about the becoming a Friend of the Beach Museum or making a gift please contact Linda Duke, Director at lduke@ksu.edu or Tracy Robinson, Development Officer at tracyr@found.ksu.edu.
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