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Visual Arts

Reflecting on the 250th—and what’s still ahead
Philadelphia’s Independence Hall.

Image: Franziska Spiecker/picture-alliance/dpa via AP Images

Reflecting on the 250th—and what’s still ahead

Activities for the semiquincentennial will continue into the fall, with art exhibits, courses, nationally renowned speakers, workshops, and musical programming.

3 min. read

Recreating the Declaration using 250-year-old techniques
adding ink to letterpress

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Recreating the Declaration using 250-year-old techniques

From papermaking to typesetting, Penn’s Common Press has been working to print the Declaration of Independence using the same methods as in 1776. Members of the public can sign up through December to print their own copies.

4 min. read

‘Migrating Lives: Celebrating Communities Through Participatory Murals’
One mural made of multiple hand-drawn murals.

The completed canvases were photographed together—by alum Bryan Lathrop—to make one large mural. Lathrop and his wife, Tatiana Olmedo, each painted their own canvases as well.

(Image: Bryan Lathrop)

‘Migrating Lives: Celebrating Communities Through Participatory Murals’

A yearlong mural project celebrating the beauty of immigration has brought together Penn students, staff, faculty, and alums—along with community members across the Philadelphia area.

From Omnia

2 min. read

Making paper for the Declaration’s anniversary
Kelly He makes paper at Historic Rittenhouse Town

Kelly He lifts the mould and deckle to drain water from the paper pulp.

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Making paper for the Declaration’s anniversary

Learn the five steps to making paper as it was done in the Revolutionary era, part of a Common Press semiquincentennial project, alongside a class from the Weitzman School of Design.

5 min. read

Two 2025 project grants and a fellowship from the Pew Center for Arts & Heritage
A sculpture of a crocodile eatings its tail made in filament and resin.

“White Ouroboros II” by Allison Janae Hamilton. The Institute for Contemporary Art will feature the first museum survey of the artist in the spring of 2027.

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Two 2025 project grants and a fellowship from the Pew Center for Arts & Heritage

WXPN and the Institute for Contemporary Art each received creative project grants and filmmaker Sosena Solomon, who teaches in the Department of Cinema and Media Studies, was named a 2025 Pew Fellow.

3 min. read

Native North America Gallery opens at the Penn Museum
People visiting Penn’s new Native North American Gallery at the Penn Museum.

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Native North America Gallery opens at the Penn Museum

In partnership with eight Indigenous consulting curators, the newly renovated 2,000 sq. ft. gallery features more than 250 archaeological, historic, and contemporary items from the Museum’s North American collections.

3 min. read

Monumental sculpture celebrated on Penn’s campus
The Rui Rui sculpture on campus.

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Monumental sculpture celebrated on Penn’s campus

A generous gift from alumni Glenn and Amanda Fuhrman brings the work of internationally acclaimed artist Jaume Plensa to the University of Pennsylvania. The latest addition to the Penn Art Collection expands Philadelphia's public art.

3 min. read

Students use art to change how we communicate about research
Five ceramic art pieces on display.

Image: Courtesy of Penn Medicine News

Students use art to change how we communicate about research

Science is hard to explain. The Artist-in-Residence initiative at Penn’s Translational Research Immersion Program seeks to help by using art.

2 min. read