This Summer, The MAC and CCMA Present "Walking With Giants" Celebrating America's Artistic Achievements

This summer, in honor of the United States’ 250th anniversary, the McAninch Arts Center (MAC) and Cleve Carney Museum of Art (CCMA), in association with the College of DuPage Foundation, will present “Walking With Giants.” This free, outdoor, walkable exhibition offers a family-friendly celebration of American artistic achievement. The CCMA will commission one or more artists to create the featured works and invites artists to submit their portfolios for consideration by March 6.

Responding to the national call to reflect on our nation’s past, honor the contributions of all Americans and look toward the future, the exhibition will feature 10 larger-than-life painted silhouette sculptures of Americans who have made significant contributions to the arts in music, theater and dance. The decision of who they will be is being made in conjunction with survey feedback from College of DuPage faculty and the MAC community.

The sculptures will be installed along a walkable route surrounding the MAC on the College of DuPage (COD) campus. Each will stand approximately 10 feet tall and depict one of a selection of influential American artists representing visual art, music, theater and dance. Featured artists will include American Neo-Expressionist visual artist Jean-Michel Basquiat; American singer, songwriter, actress, philanthropist, and businesswoman Dolly Parton; and American songwriter, actor, filmmaker and librettist Lin-Manuel Miranda, among others. The exhibition will open in June and continue throughout the summer. For more information, visit theccma.org/walking-with-giants.

The Cleve Carney Museum of Art and McAninch Arts Center encourage artists to submit their portfolios for consideration for creating the “Walking With Giants” sculptures. The selected artist or artists will be commissioned to design and oversee the creation of the works. The MAC and CCMA will fabricate and install all sculptures and structural supports, allowing artists to focus on the design and surface treatment of those forms. The deadline for artist submissions is March 7. For more information, visit chicagoartistscoalition.org/call-for-artist/walking-with-giants-call-for-artists.

The MAC at College of DuPage is located 25 miles west of Chicago near I-88 and I-355 at 425 W. Fawell Blvd. It houses three indoor performance spaces , the outdoor Lakeside Pavilion, plus the Cleve Carney Museum of Art and classrooms for the college’s academic programming. For more information about the MAC, visit AtTheMAC.org or follow AtTheMAC on Facebook and Instagram.

The late Cleve Carney provided a significant legacy gift to establish the Cleve Carney Art Gallery at College of DuPage. In fall 2019, the gallery was expanded to a 2,500-square-foot museum. The Cleve Carney Museum of Art opened June 2021 with the highly anticipated “Frida Kahlo: Timeless” exhibition followed it up in summer 2023 with “Warhol.” More information can be found at TheCCMA.org and on social media CleveCarneyMuseumofArt.