blog posts Passes on sale now for 25th Roger Ebert’s Film Festival Dec 6, 2023 4:30 pm 'Ebertfest was created for people who love movies as much as Roger loved movies,' Chaz Ebert said. 'We want audience members and special guests to feel like they are a part of a family as we reach this important milestone...' Poetry book looks at how people create a sense of place for themselves Mar 19, 2025 9:00 am English professor Janice Harrington draws on her love of the prairie and her interest in Black history in the Midwest to examine how people create a sense of place in her new book of poetry, 'Yard Show.' Professor's new book explores racism in Russia over the past 150 years May 10, 2022 9:30 am White militarism has flourished in Russia under Putin’s rule, making it one of the most dangerous places in the world for racial violence, writes professor Eugene Avrutin in 'Racism in Modern Russia: From the Romanovs to Putin.' Professor's novel: A mysterious disappearance, whales trying to save the planet Apr 19, 2022 9:45 am The themes of Jewish identity and loss in the debut novel of Professor Brett Ashley Kaplan echo her academic research interests. 'Rare Stuff' also is a work of eco-fiction and magical realism. Prof’s novel tells of love triangle in post-WWII Paris, based on his family history Feb 5, 2025 3:30 pm The characters in 'The New Internationals' — a young French woman who has survived the Holocaust, a university student from West Africa and a Black soldier — are based on David Wright Faladé’s parents. Project reconnects Native American tribes with hide painting tradition Nov 16, 2022 10:45 am 'A big part of this project is to help the Miami and Peoria communities continue to revitalize their cultures in a hands-on way,' Professor Robert Morrissey said. 'It’s more than an academic study of the past.' Reinvented decorative arts gallery at Krannert Art Museum tells diverse stories Dec 12, 2022 11:00 am Krannert Art Museum has completed a transformation of its Moore Gallery of Decorative Arts that highlights several new acquisitions and the diverse stories of art-making they tell, including this attention-grabbing piece by Roberto Lugo. Research connects 18th, 19th century relics to our understanding of Atlantic Africa Nov 8, 2023 11:00 am 'My research shifts African and African Atlantic (art) histories from their stereotypical focus on trade goods and sacred relics... toward property and real estate: specifically, the ancestral stone houses of the Gold Coast,' says researcher Hermann von Hesse Research project seeks to learn from Indigenous practices in music, engineering Aug 5, 2024 9:15 am 'I was blown away by this experience, and it was a moment of clarity for me in how my understanding of music could influence my understanding of engineering and vice versa,' graduate student Jess Mingee said. Sinfonia da Camera to perform work by Pulitzer Prize-winning Black composer Nov 9, 2022 11:15 am Pianist Rochelle Sennet and Sinfonia da Camera will perform a work by Pulitzer-winning composer George Walker to commemorate the 100th anniversary of his birth. Sennet says Walker inspiried her to learn more about Black composers, record their music. Site of integrated Illinois town founded by former slave is newest national park Jan 30, 2023 1:45 pm The New Philadelphia National Historic Site in western Illinois commemorates the first U.S. town to be legally founded by African Americans. Several U of I professors were among those leading the effort seeking national park status. Space Invaders: Professor examines the symbolic influence of a secretive, playful artist Jul 18, 2023 10:45 am '(The artist) invades urban space with these characters, finding in mosaic tiles the perfect material to replicate the aesthetics of pixels,' Julie Gaillard said. 'These effigies are a symbol for the global upheaval brought about by digital technologies.' Theatre department premiering reimagined 'Peter Pan' centered on Indigenous identity Apr 7, 2022 11:30 am 'The Neverland,' by playwright Madeline Sayet, takes the original escapist journey told from a colonial viewpoint and makes it a work of Indigenous futurism about building a world where all people and cultures are valued. Theatre department’s season features theme of reconciliation Sep 24, 2024 10:15 am The season opener is 'No Puedo, I’m Sorry,' produced as part of the Daniel J. Sullivan Playwright-in-Residence program, which provides support for an emerging playwright to develop a work. The literature of extreme poverty: A stirring view of the Great Depression Feb 25, 2025 10:45 am Professor Robert Dale Parker examines how literature and poetry of the 1930s express the hopelessness of extreme poverty and the stagnation of time in his new book, 'The Literature of Extreme Poverty in the Great Depression.' The overlooked role of food in the civil rights struggle Aug 30, 2023 10:00 am Professor Bobby Smith tells the overlooked story of how food was used as both a weapon and a tool of resistance during the Civil Rights Movement in his new book 'Food Power Politics: The Food Story of the Mississippi Civil Rights Movement.' Todd Phillips’ ‘The Hangover’ to close 26th annual Ebertfest Jan 22, 2025 1:00 pm 'In 2009, a cult phenomenon was born when Scott Budnick, Todd Phillips and the entire team involved with The Hangover unveiled this offbeat comedy classic,' said Chaz Ebert, co-founder and producer of Ebertfest. Unwind and learn at Illinois' first folk school Aug 4, 2023 11:30 am Midwest Living (Aug 3) For the past decade, the U of I's Allerton Park has offered arts and crafts programming at the estate, setting the stage for this fall's launch of 'The Farms: An Allerton Folk School.' U of I Library’s 15-millionth volume: A 13th century manuscript on agricultural management Oct 6, 2023 11:45 am The 15-millionth volume in the collection of the University Library is a medieval copy of Walter of Henley’s 13th-century work 'Hosbondrye,' one of the most influential works on agriculture and land management in the Middle Ages.