I visited the free National Veterans Art Museum to see Kurt Vonnegut doodles — his silkscreen prints remain on display. But once there, I was entranced by the work of vets I'd never heard of.
Vietnam War veteran John McManus’ sculptures, bound in carved ropes and blindfolds, are so haunting that a college removed one (“Abandoned,” pictured above) for being too depressing.
You see, NVAM is not patriotic in the stereotypical flag-waving sense. Rather, the museum’s patriotism emerges through honoring veterans’ own images. It’s the only museum in America dedicated solely to art by veterans.
Plaques accompanying the permanent collection include writing from the artists, too: craft talk and war fog memories that weave together like grievous poems:
- “... I always saw them with chutes streaming behind them, changing into futile wings that could not support or save them.” — Leo McStravick, a Vietnam vet, on "Falling Airman"
- “... How do we normal, walking-down-the-street kind of people end up doing these incredibly horrible things to each other?” — Randolph Harmes, a Vietnam vet, on "Ritual Suicide Mask"
- “We are blindfolded on this planet; we are unable to see what we do to each other … when I sculpt, I learn to see.” — McManus on "POW" (pictured above)
On Display Now
In addition to NVAM’s permanent collection, you can catch “Never Forget: 9/11 25th Anniversary” through January and “we had each other, and still…,” a collection of paintings by Minneapolis-born Gregory Rick through July.
Paintings by Gregory Rick (left to right): “Late Morning Send Offs,” “The War Powers Dance,” “Hearts and Minds,” “24 Hour News Cycle.” Photos taken at the National Veterans Art Museum. (Emmi Mack / City Cast Chicago)
An Iraq War veteran, Rick depicts tortured chaos, overseas and at home, to tell a broad story of the so-called war on terror. In one piece, the army recruitment station sits next door to a bail bondsman. Another collages the 24-hour news cycle. Viewed in succession, his paintings unfold like comic panels, satirizing war’s corporate interests.
They are remarkable.
Make a Day of It
Tucked away on the second floor of a Portage Park loft, NVAM is right above Filament Theatre and across the street from Junebug Cafe, where I enjoyed a delicious bowl of spicy chicken-and-sausage gumbo. Then, just around the corner, unwind at City News Cafe.
