To gain insights from educators in preparation for their upcoming Art Design Chicago exhibition, Radical Craft: Arts Education at Hull House, 1889–1935, Jane Addams Hull-House Museum (JAHHM) collaborated with University of Illinois Chicago’s Gallery 400 to introduce their pilot educator institute Learning Together. In summer 2022, JAHHM brought Chicago art historians, educators, and cultural workers together with colleagues from the United Kingdom. Participants learned about the role of Hull-House in the history of arts education, took part in hands-on artmaking sessions, and visited local Chicago arts institutions.

“Terra Foundation for American Art Research Fellow Annie Storr presented the history of arts education through the biography of Hull-House co-founder Ellen Gates Starr.  In her lecture, Storr connected the arts at Hull-House to the rise of progressive education in Chicago and trans-Atlantic partnerships. Guests from the United Kingdom―Murdo Macdonald, a Patrick Geddes scholar, Fahra Bi of Toynbee Hall, and Andrew Vaughan of The Whitworth―presented historical connections to Hull-House and Chicago and shared innovative arts and community practices happening in their locations. Chicago-based arts educators reflected on the challenges and successes of the last year of teaching during a global pandemic.”

— From the Desk of Jane Addams, the Jane Addams Hull-House Museum Blog

Read more about the Learning Together educator institute.

Link to related event page on ADC website (when available

Radical Craft: Arts Education at Hull House, 1889–1935 will be on view September 6, 2024 – July 27, 2025 at Jane Addams Hull-House Museum and is presented as part of Art Design Chicago.