FREE, but space is limited. Please register in advance  • RSVP

Conference begins at the Smart Museum of Art and continues at the Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts

Join UChicago Arts for a symposium on the work of the renowned ceramicist and sculptor Ruth Duckworth. 

Featuring presentations from scholars Sequoia Miller, Jack Schneider, and Matthew Groves as well as a panel of UChicago students, this symposiummakes use of art historical advances of the last several decades to examine Duckworth’s Chicago work in a new light. It investigates the influence of geomorphology and the nascent environmental movement in her work, beginning with her commission to create a complete environment of clay tiles in the vestibule of the newly built Hinds Geophysical Laboratory, moving through her monumental tile mural Clouds Over Lake Michigan, into wall works in high relief, Mama Pots, and clay sculptures.

Browse the full schedule of presentations and panels

The symposium is organized by Laura Steward, Curator of Public Art at the University of Chicago, in conjunction with the Smart Museum of Art’s fall 2023 exhibition Ruth Duckworth: Life as a Unity.

This symposium is part of Art Design Chicago, an initiative of the Terra Foundation for American Art exploring and elevating Chicago’s rich art and design histories and diverse creative communities.