Throughout the fall semester, there will be five exhibitions on view across the Newark campus that highlight art, minerals, and manuscripts and print materials. The gallery spaces are located in (L-R) Penny Hall, Old College, Morris Library and Mechanical Hall.

Exhibitions on view this fall

Article by UD Library, Museums and Press Staff Photo by Jaynell Keely September 05, 2022

Free and open to the public, the exhibits display art, minerals, manuscripts and printed materials

Discover something new in five exhibitions across the University of Delaware campus during the fall semester of 2022.

Visitors can:

Explore how contemporary African American art intersects with West African and Christian spirituality through Sacred Convergence in African American Art.
Discover the wide array of cultural artifacts and natural specimens recently added to the University’s collections of art, minerals, and manuscripts and print materials through What’s New? Recent Additions to the Art Collections, What’s New? Recent Additions to the Mineral Collection, and What’s New? Recent Additions to Special Collections.
Celebrate the 200th anniversary of the birth of the activist and abolitionist Harriet Tubman through Harriet Tubman: Legends and Literature.

These exhibitions, which open Tuesday, Sept. 6, are free and open to the public. They are on view in the Mechanical Hall Gallery, Old College Gallery, the Mineralogical Museum in Penny Hall, the Special Collections Gallery in Morris Library, and the Lincoln Exhibition Case in Morris Library. Visitors must observe the University’s current COVID-19 health and safety protocols.

There are also many online exhibitions available for exploration and discovery, including the recently launched Oral History Interviews: African Americans and the University of Delaware, which delves into the relationship between the University and African Americans who have attended UD or lived in Newark.

The exhibitions are presented by the Special Collections and Museums Division at the UD Library, Museums and Press. Read on to learn more about what will be on view in each exhibition.

Sacred Convergence in African American Art

On view in Mechanical Hall Gallery from Sept. 6 through Dec. 9.

In the Yoruba culture of southwestern Nigeria, the “orita meta” is a place where three or more paths converge. This exhibition explores where contemporary African American art intersects with sacred objects from West Africa and images and objects from the Christian tradition.

Guest curated by graduate student Rachael Vause, the exhibition includes African and Christian objects to reflect on how spirituality has been a means of comfort, solidarity and resistance for African American artists from the time of transatlantic enslavement until now. Visitors will be introduced to a broad spectrum of Black spiritual experience and invited to further consider the place of the sacred in African American art.

Mechanical Hall Gallery is open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Recent Additions to the Art Collections

On view in Old College Gallery from Sept. 6 through Dec. 9.

Explore African American art, photography, modern and contemporary Indigenous art and more. This exhibition reflects the wide variety of materials in our collections, which also includes abstract art, material culture, European prints, regional art, and works by UD faculty and alumni.

The University’s art collections are continually growing through careful and curated purchases and the generosity of donors. From basketry to paintings and sculpture to prints, there are more than 130 items on view, which were selected from more than 3,000 works of art added to the collection since 2016.

Old College Gallery is open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Recent Additions to the Mineral Collection

On view in the Mineralogical Museum in Penny Hall from Sept. 6 through Dec. 9.

Discover the variety of minerals in our collection by browsing some of the newly acquired specimens. This exhibition features minerals from around the world, including Australia, Brazil, China, Namibia and the United States, each with a fascinating origin story.

In addition to this exhibition, visitors can browse the Mineralogical Museum’s permanent collection, with approximately 350 mineral specimens on display. Specimens on view include gemstones and carvings.

The Mineralogical Museum is open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Recent Additions to Special Collections

On view in the Special Collections Gallery in Morris Library from Sept. 6 through Dec. 9.

Delve into the worlds of literature, history, art, African American history and Delaware history. This exhibition features an array of books and manuscripts that speak to the strengths of our Special Collections.

The rare and unique materials on view, spanning from the 15th century to the present, represent a portion of what has been added to our collection since 2016. Visitors will find an early edition of Frederick Douglass’ autobiography, diaries of Delawareans who served in the Civil War, a Bible printed in the 15th century, and much more.

The Special Collections Gallery is open Mondays through Fridays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Harriet Tubman: Legends and Literature

On view in the Lincoln Exhibition Case in Morris Library from Sept. 6 through Dec. 16.

While Harriet Tubman has served as an inspirational figure for generations, her story has been distorted and altered according to how others have chosen to portray her. Writers and other stewards of American cultural memory have gradually constructed a mythology surrounding Tubman that often dismisses certain aspects of her life while embellishing or falsifying others.

This exhibition honors the activist and abolitionist on the 200th anniversary of her birth. Visitors can view written works from the 19th and 20th centuries that feature Tubman while reflecting on the depictions of a woman whose history is often obscured by fantasy.

The Lincoln Exhibition Case can be viewed during Morris Library’s operating hours.

A small display of prints celebrating Tubman will also be on view in the Mechanical Hall Study Room. Mechanical Hall Gallery is open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.