Birds on Chairs by Julie Schram Opens

Kimmel Harding Nelson Center for the Arts presents Birds on Chairs by Julie Schram, which opens Monday, March 9, 2020. On display March 9 – April 24, 2020, a Gallery Talk will be hosted on Thursday March 19, at 5pm in conjunction with KHN’s monthly Third Thursday Artist Talks.

“Three billion is an unimaginably large number. But that’s the number of birds that have been lost from North America since 1970. It is more than a quarter of the total bird population of the continent.” – Michael Parr, President of the American Bird Conservancy, Omaha World Herald, September 29, 2019

Omaha-based artist, Julie Schram has been doing art all her life. As a small child she created art with cut paper and glue, advancing into watercolor. A self-taught portrait artist, she has been commissioned to do many portraits, locally and nationally. After graduating from the Colorado Institute of Art she worked her way up to Art Director at Capco Tile’s hand painted tile studio, painting and drawing murals. Julie has had numerous solo and collective shows in the area including Joslyn Art Museum, Connect Gallery, Gallery 92 West, and The Hot Shops. She is always finding a way to change and evolve, mastering many different mediums.

Schram’s latest body of work began with an interest in painting chairs. “I originally chose chairs as my subject matter because I love the simple lines and the complex shadows that occur around the chair depending on the lighting. But, the chairs seemed a little lonely and needed some life, so I thought it would be nice to add native birds to the composition.” Then, Schram serendipitously happened upon an article in the Omaha World Herald (originally published in the Washington Post) about the unimaginable number of birds lost from North America since 1970. “After I became aware of the plight of the birds, I hope it [this body of work] might help to draw attention to this crisis. In a small way it might help.” 

Schram’s portraits of Birds on Chairs will be on display in KHN’s gallery from March 9 – April 24, 2020. KHN’s gallery hours are Monday-Friday, 10am-5pm and by appointment. The public is also invited to attend KHN’s monthly Third Thursday Artist Talk event on Thursday, March 19th from 5-7pm—an excellent opportunity to not only meet the artist and see the exhibition but also hear from KHN’s current resident artists, writers, and composer. Located at 801 Third Corso in Nebraska City, KHN’s exhibitions and Third Thursday events are free and open to the public. 

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Since 2001, KHN’s residency program has hosted more than 60 working artists each year—a combination of visual artists, writers, composers, and interdisciplinary artists from across the country and around the world. KHN’s gallery program hosts approximately six exhibitions annually, showcasing the work of regional artists and alumni residents. KHN is a program of the Richard P. Kimmel and Laurine Kimmel Charitable Foundation, Inc.

Contact:    Holly McAdams Olson, Program Director 

                   Kimmel Harding Nelson Center for the Arts 

                   801 Third Corso, Nebraska City, NE  68410

                   Phone: 402-874-9600 Email: holly@khncenterforthearts.org