Recently at the Museum
The Museum at the Swedish Days Festival
In late June, the Museum took part in the Swedish Days Festival in Geneva, IL. This summer tradition celebrates the Swedish influences that helped shape the Geneva area into the exciting place it is today, and is filled with rides, activities, music, shopping, a parade, and more.
We Are America...Now Open!
We are excited that our much-anticipated new core exhibit is now open! Be sure to come by to explore this wonderful exhibit that tells the Swedish immigration story through artifacts, personal stories, and interactive elements. We Are America is great for all ages. Whether you are most intrigued by the actual journey over the ocean, the establishment of a social circle in Chicago, or Swedish clubs and business that still exist in the area today, this exhibit is for you.
Exhibit Sponsored By: Institute of Museum and Library Services * Swedish American Museum 40th Anniversary Campaign * Morlights, LLC
Many thanks to our community who volunteered their time and donated their stories and items to the Museum.
Thank you to our exhibit team and to all those who made this exhibit possible!
Karin Moen Abercrombie - Executive Director * Phoebe Yates, Curator * Lisa Lindström, Collection Manager * Tamara Biggs, Project Advisor and Installation Lead * Miles Lindblad, Architect * Amy Reichart, Exhibit Designer * Jordan Mosher, Exhibit Designer * Mark Ramirez, Graphic Designer * Mark Schall, Contractor * Patience Baach, Exhibit Evaluator * Katie Biggs-Wrona, Mannequin Artist and Installation Team * Erin Bliss, Mountmaker and Installation Team * Kassadi Locke, Graphic Design Intern * Carol Turchan, Paper Conservator and Mountmaker * Geneva Wrona, Fabricator and Installation Team
Balance Digital Media Studios * Brad Larson Media, Inc. * Morlights, LLC * Most Visual * Progressive Communications, Inc. * Third Coast Conservation
Svenska Skolan & Bullerbyn Graduation
June 2 was graduation day. Congratulations to all of our hardworking students! We are honored to be able to share Swedish language and culture with you all. Great work to our students and a huge thank you to our amazing teachers!
*Exhibit Opening* The Last Swedes: Half-Century Old Photographs of Swedish-Americans in Brooklyn, NY - Photography by Per-Olof Odman
At the conclusion of May, we held our newest Wallenberg Gallery exhibit opening; this exhibit will be open through Sunday, Sept. 29. This is a captivating photography exhibit by Per-Olof Odman, featuring Swedish-Americans living in Brooklyn, NY in 1974. Through his photos, Odman captured the last remaining residents of a once bustling Swedish neighborhood of Bay Ridge. Never before shown in the U.S., this exhibit invites visitors to draw parallels between Bay Ridge and Andersonville and notice differences between the two historic Swedish neighborhoods.
Volunteer of the Year 2023
At our Volunteer Appreciation Dinner, we awarded our Volunteer of the Year for 2023, Vivi-Anne Erikson! Vivi-Anne brings a contagious positive energy to the Museum and she has made visits extra special for all of the guests she encounters. She puts her full energy and heart into her contributions here and we are extremely grateful for all she has done. Congratulations Vivi-Anne!
ABOVE: 2023 Volunteer of the Year Vivi-Anne Erikson with Layne Borden, Community Engagement Manager (left) and Karin Moen Abercrombie, Executive Director (right)
Exciting Member News
Allen Wheatcroft has a wonderfully unique perspective in that he has divided his time between Andersonville and Sörmland, Sweden for the past several years. His son and his son's family live in Sweden, so he have a strong connection with the country and culture.
Allen is an experienced photographer and he has two new photography books on press — one on Sweden (Björkevägen/Birch Road) and one on Chicago (The Northside). They were released at AIPAD in New York City in April, where he was there signing them as well.
