IU Kokomo’s new exhibit “75 Years in Pictures” features prints and a slide show of hundreds of moments in history, starting from humble beginnings as Kokomo Junior College, capturing memories through the present.
It opens with a reception from 5:30-8 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 11, in the IU Kokomo Art Gallery. Chancellor Susan Sciame-Giesecke will welcome guests at 6 p.m., and Meg Galasso, campus archivist, will talk about the exhibit at 6:15 p.m.
“We tried to select photos from our archival collection that people haven’t seen in a while, or that haven’t been published before, some new images that tell the stories of our faculty, students, staff, and community,” said Galasso. “It represents the whole picture of what this campus has been, and what it will be.”
Visitors will see photos displayed in 25-year sections, along with slide shows at the front and back of the gallery, and are invited to help identify people in the pictures and remember stories about what they see. Including a link to the Flickr account for the archives, there will be more than 4,000 pictures available to view.
“We’re using this exhibition as an opportunity to gather more stories,” said Galasso. “We have many photos in our archive that just have a first name written on the back, and we’re lucky if there is a year on them. Our hope is people will see these pictures and tell their stories, so we can get them written into our history books to share into the future.”
Tara Scott, Gallery director, hopes students view the show, to understand they are part of something larger than themselves.
“This offers them a real representation of the legacy they are now part of as students, and hope it instills pride in them for what this campus has meant to the Kokomo community,” she said.
The IU Office of the Bicentennial provided funding for digitizing equipment that made the exhibit possible, Galasso said. The equipment allowed for digitization of print photos, slides, negatives and other materials, allowing them to be shared.
Gallery intern Jared Stanley assisted Scott in preparing photos to be exhibited, while intern Raelee Puckett-Sharpless created the slide show.
More pictures can be viewed at IU Kokomo Archives.
The exhibition continues through October 18. Admission and parking are free.
The Art Gallery is in the IU Kokomo Library Building, 2300 S. Washington St. Admission is free, and free parking is available on campus. Hours are 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Mondays; 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays; 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesdays; noon to 4 p.m. Saturdays; and closed Sundays and Fridays.
