Join us for insights into how the Art Institute acquires new works for our extraordinary collection from curators Emerson Bowyer, Kit Maxwell, and Emily Ziemba.
This conversation will highlight a number of recently acquired works, including Portrait of Josep Cardona and Head of a Woman with a Chignon (Fernande) by Pablo Picasso; Interior. The Music Room, Strandgade 30, by Vilhelm Hammershøi; and a collection of early Meissen stoneware and porcelain. Â
Before the discussion, Luminary are invited to gather at the Member Bar for happy hour. Enjoy beverages for purchase, conversation with fellow Luminary, and sweeping city views from the Member Bar at Terzo Piano, located on the third level of the Modern Wing.
This program is open exclusively to Luminary, Circle, and Roundtable members and requires advance registration.
program schedule
4:30
Happy hour in the Member Bar at Terzo Piano
5:45
Doors open to Fullerton Hall
6:00
Curator panel in Fullerton Hall, with Q&A to follow
7:00
Program concludes
Image: Pablo Picasso. Head of a Woman with a Chignon (Fernande), 1906. Gift of Susan Manilow in memory of Lew Manilow. © 2025 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.
about the curators
Emerson Bowyer is the Searle Curator and Curator of Painting and Sculpture for the Jeffrey and Carol Horvitz Collection, Painting and Sculpture of Europe. A specialist in 18th- and 19th-century French and British art, he has previously worked at the Frick Collection, the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. His recent exhibitions at the Art Institute include Canova: Sketching in Clay (2023–24) and Camille Claudel (2023–24).
Kit Maxwell is the Chair and Eloise W. Martin Curator, Applied Arts of Europe. Before joining the museum in 2022, he was at the Corning Museum of Glass, where, as curator of early modern glass, he was responsible for collections ranging in date from about 1250 to 1820. Prior to the Corning Museum, Kit worked in several different capacities at the Royal Collection Trust. Most recently, Kit played an integral role in the redesigned Eloise W. Martin Galleries for European Design.
Emily Ziemba is the director of curatorial administration and research curator in Prints and Drawings. Since joining the museum in 2001, she has contributed to several exhibitions, including The Artist and the Poet (2013), Undressed: The Fashion of Privacy (2013), Helen Frankenthaler Prints: The Romance of a New Medium (2018), and Picasso: Drawing from Life (2023–24).
Contact Us
Interested in joining Luminary? Learn more about this dedicated community of art enthusiasts and reach out to us at [email protected] or (312) 443-3735 to begin enjoying the benefits of membership—including exclusive opportunities with artists and curators, behind-the-scene tours, VIP tickets, and invitations to travel.
