Georgia O’Keeffe’s interest in music was cultivated in her childhood and expressed throughout her life. Her fascination with music can be glimpsed in early drawings and paintings, as well as correspondence with other artists, and reflections on her educational experiences. One such moment occurred when O’Keeffe heard music pouring from mentor Alon Bement’s art studio at Columbia University, prompting her realization that “music could be translated into something for the eye.” For O’Keeffe, music offered possibilities for discovering new shapes, lines, and rhythms in her visual language. This talk will focus on her early fascinations with music, and the way she drew from its abstract sounds to express visual forms.

Untitled (Abstraction Orange Curve and Circles), 1970s
Watercolor on paper, 30 1/2 x 22 inches
Georgia O’Keeffe Museum
Gift of the Georgia O’Keeffe Foundation
2006.5.529
 

Speaker Bio: Dr. Janet Revell Barrett is Marilyn Pflederer Zimmerman Professor Emerita at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where she has taught courses in curriculum, philosophy, and interdisciplinary approaches for undergraduate and graduate students in music education. An early encounter at age sixteen with O’Keeffe’s “Blue and Green Music” at the Art Institute of Chicago sparked her lifelong quest to explore art inspired by music and music inspired by art. Barrett’s recent book, Seeking Connections: An Interdisciplinary Perspective on Music Teaching and Learning, encourages music educators to create educational experiences for students that strengthen their understanding of music’s relationships with other art forms, history, and culture. 
 

Georgia O’Keeffe’s interest in music was cultivated in her childhood and expressed throughout her life. Her fascination with music can be glimpsed in early drawings and paintings, as well as correspondence with other artists, and reflections on her educational experiences. One such moment occurred when O’Keeffe heard music pouring from mentor Alon Bement’s art studio at Columbia University, prompting her realization that “music could be translated into something for the eye.” For O’Keeffe, music offered possibilities for discovering new shapes, lines, and rhythms in her visual language. This talk will focus on her early fascinations with music, and the way she drew from its abstract sounds to express visual forms.

Untitled (Abstraction Orange Curve and Circles), 1970s
Watercolor on paper, 30 1/2 x 22 inches
Georgia O’Keeffe Museum
Gift of the Georgia O’Keeffe Foundation
2006.5.529
 

Speaker Bio: Dr. Janet Revell Barrett is Marilyn Pflederer Zimmerman Professor Emerita at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where she has taught courses in curriculum, philosophy, and interdisciplinary approaches for undergraduate and graduate students in music education. An early encounter at age sixteen with O’Keeffe’s “Blue and Green Music” at the Art Institute of Chicago sparked her lifelong quest to explore art inspired by music and music inspired by art. Barrett’s recent book, Seeking Connections: An Interdisciplinary Perspective on Music Teaching and Learning, encourages music educators to create educational experiences for students that strengthen their understanding of music’s relationships with other art forms, history, and culture. 
 

The Baroque Artists of Champaign-Urbana's (BACH) next community concert is about feasting and fun, J.S. Bach’s witty Coffee Cantata. Not your stereotypical Bach subject, this piece pokes fun at the 18th-century craze for the trendy, dangerous drink. 

Come explore the centuries-old obsession with this addictive drink at this May 8th lecture presented by OLLI member David Smith, professor of history at EIU, and Dr. Sarah Riskind, director of choral activities at Eureka College and music director of the Baroque Artists of Champaign-Urbana, known as BACH. Then come hear the Coffee Cantata presented by BACH on Sunday, June 1, at the Wesley Student Center in Urbana. At the concert BACH choir members will also offer their own treats -- several small groups singing madrigal songs of love and life. 

Founded in 1996, the non-profit Baroque Artists of Champaign-Urbana (BACH) is devoted to the performance of choral music in the Champaign-Urbana area. BACH specializes in music of the Baroque but performs music from all periods. 

Speaker Bios:

Previously based in Seattle and Boston, conductor and composer Dr. Sarah Riskind is the Music Director of BACH and Director of Choral Activities/Assistant Professor of Music at Eureka College. She leads the Eureka College Chorale, Chamber Singers, and instrumental Chamber Ensemble, as well as teaching courses in composition, improvisation, musicianship, and conducting. In 2023, she received the T. A. Abbott Award for Faculty Excellence from the Higher Education and Leadership Ministries of the Disciples of Christ, with which Eureka College is one of fifteen associated institutions. Also in 2022-2023, her grant-funded workshops with Eureka College colleague Dr. Adriana Martínez provided Illinois teachers with repertoire ideas and teaching techniques on Jewish choral music and choral improvisation.

David K. Smith is a Professor of History at Eastern Illinois University, a specialist in Baroque-era French history focusing on issues of political structure and economic policymaking.  His courses focus on the political, intellectual, and economic history of Europe and France, including France in the Age of Absolutism, the Enlightenment, and the French Revolution.  Since 1997, Dr. Smith has served as an editor for H-France, a web-based organization supporting the scholarly study of French history and culture on-line. 

The Baroque Artists of Champaign-Urbana's (BACH) next community concert is about feasting and fun, J.S. Bach’s witty Coffee Cantata. Not your stereotypical Bach subject, this piece pokes fun at the 18th-century craze for the trendy, dangerous drink. 

Come explore the centuries-old obsession with this addictive drink at this May 8th lecture presented by OLLI member David Smith, professor of history at EIU, and Dr. Sarah Riskind, director of choral activities at Eureka College and music director of the Baroque Artists of Champaign-Urbana, known as BACH. Then come hear the Coffee Cantata presented by BACH on Sunday, June 1, at the Wesley Student Center in Urbana. At the concert BACH choir members will also offer their own treats -- several small groups singing madrigal songs of love and life. 

Founded in 1996, the non-profit Baroque Artists of Champaign-Urbana (BACH) is devoted to the performance of choral music in the Champaign-Urbana area. BACH specializes in music of the Baroque but performs music from all periods. 

Speaker Bios:

Previously based in Seattle and Boston, conductor and composer Dr. Sarah Riskind is the Music Director of BACH and Director of Choral Activities/Assistant Professor of Music at Eureka College. She leads the Eureka College Chorale, Chamber Singers, and instrumental Chamber Ensemble, as well as teaching courses in composition, improvisation, musicianship, and conducting. In 2023, she received the T. A. Abbott Award for Faculty Excellence from the Higher Education and Leadership Ministries of the Disciples of Christ, with which Eureka College is one of fifteen associated institutions. Also in 2022-2023, her grant-funded workshops with Eureka College colleague Dr. Adriana Martínez provided Illinois teachers with repertoire ideas and teaching techniques on Jewish choral music and choral improvisation.

David K. Smith is a Professor of History at Eastern Illinois University, a specialist in Baroque-era French history focusing on issues of political structure and economic policymaking.  His courses focus on the political, intellectual, and economic history of Europe and France, including France in the Age of Absolutism, the Enlightenment, and the French Revolution.  Since 1997, Dr. Smith has served as an editor for H-France, a web-based organization supporting the scholarly study of French history and culture on-line. 

John J. Bird, though long forgotten, was one of the most important civil rights leaders of Post-Civil War Illinois.  As head of the state's second largest Black community, located in the city of Cairo, during the 1860s-80s Bird oversaw the establishment of the city's Black Republican wing that provided the community with unprecedented political influence within this hostile, majority-white town. Bird rose to prominence across Illinois in 1873 when he became the first African American to serve on the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois, a position he held for nine years.  During that same year, he became the first elected Black judge in Illinois history.  He worked tirelessly in support of public education for African American children in the state, became a prominent leader in the Black convention movement and an influential newspaper editor in both Cairo and Springfield during the 1880s and 90s. Bird was also known as a man of integrity by both his political friends and enemies. This lecture describes the rediscovery of Bird and the story of an extraordinary man.

Speaker: Wayne T Pitard received his PhD from Harvard University in 1982 and taught from 1983 to 2016 in the Department of Religion at UIUC. He also served as director of the Spurlock Museum on campus from 2007-2016, when he retired. He is the author of Watchman, Tell Us: John J Bird and Black Politics in Post-Civil War Illinois, published by Southern Illinois University Press in September.

John J. Bird, though long forgotten, was one of the most important civil rights leaders of Post-Civil War Illinois.  As head of the state's second largest Black community, located in the city of Cairo, during the 1860s-80s Bird oversaw the establishment of the city's Black Republican wing that provided the community with unprecedented political influence within this hostile, majority-white town. Bird rose to prominence across Illinois in 1873 when he became the first African American to serve on the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois, a position he held for nine years.  During that same year, he became the first elected Black judge in Illinois history.  He worked tirelessly in support of public education for African American children in the state, became a prominent leader in the Black convention movement and an influential newspaper editor in both Cairo and Springfield during the 1880s and 90s. Bird was also known as a man of integrity by both his political friends and enemies. This lecture describes the rediscovery of Bird and the story of an extraordinary man.

Speaker: Wayne T Pitard received his PhD from Harvard University in 1982 and taught from 1983 to 2016 in the Department of Religion at UIUC. He also served as director of the Spurlock Museum on campus from 2007-2016, when he retired. He is the author of Watchman, Tell Us: John J Bird and Black Politics in Post-Civil War Illinois, published by Southern Illinois University Press in September.

OLLI Rare Book & Manuscript Library Presentations - Spring 2025

Location: All OLLI Rare Book & Manuscript Library Presentations will take place in the Rare Book & Manuscript Library, 346 Main Library, 1408 W. Gregory Drive, Urbana, IL 61801

These presentations are designated for OLLI members through our collaboration with the Rare Book & Manuscript Library (RBML). Space is limited and registration still required through your OLLI account online.

If you have questions regarding the presentation topic or content, email askacurator@library.illinois.edu or call 217-333-3777.