Barbara Aubin (1928-2014) was born in Chicago and studied Art Education at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Until her retirement in 1991, Aubin was a professor at Chicago State University. She received fellowships that enabled her to travel abroad, including a Fulbright Fellowship award in 1958. She has received many awards and her work has been exhibited internationally. In 2002, the Chicago Women’s Caucus for Art held a retrospective of Aubin’s work.

This painting is near the First Floor elevators.]]>
Originally from Hong Kong, Kwok Wai Lau (1930-2021) studied at the Art Institute of Chicago and the International Art School in Hong Kong. Through the 1960s, he taught at the Art Institute, the Hyde Park Art Center, and the North Shore Art League, later moving to and teaching in southern California.

This painting is on display across from the elevators on the Second Floor.]]>
LeRoy Neiman (1921-2012) was born in St. Paul, Minnesota, and studied at the Art Institute of Chicago where he later taught for ten years. He moved to New York City and had his first one-man show in 1963. He is known primarily for his colorful paintings of athletes, sporting events, and celebrities. His works are in museums and private collections all over the world.

Located outside the Quiet Room on the Second Floor (across from the Money & Business shelves).]]>
Hilda Rubin Pierce was born in Vienna, Austria in 1923, but left for England in 1938, when Hitler took over Austria. She later moved to Chicago and was described, in a 1958 Chicago Tribune article as a “young Chicago artist of great promise.” She exhibited at the Art Institute of Chicago and taught art. She later wrote a memoir entitled, Hilda: a True Story of Terror, Tears, and Triumph. Pierce's oral history has been recorded by the University of Santa Cruz Shoah Foundation's Visual History Archive online. The Library owns another painting by Rubin, “Walled City.”

Read more about the artist on the Library's blog.

Located in the Community Engagement hallway on the First Floor.]]>
Irene Fisher (1921-2004) studied art at Northwestern University, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the North Shore Art League. She worked with oil paint, pastel chalks, and paper collage from her home studio in Glencoe, Illinois, and her art has been exhibited in and around the Chicago and North Shore area.

This painting is on the east wall near the southeast corner of the Second Floor.]]>
This painting was commissioned by the Skokie Public Library Board of Trustees in 2002 to commemorate the third and final home of Henry Harms (1832-1913) who is considered to be Skokie's founder. The house was located at 5319 Oakton Street, just a block west of the Library, and was demolished after local fund-raising efforts to preserve the house, which was suffering from structural problems. The property was purchased by the Skokie Park District Board in 1999.

Eugene J. Paprocki is a Chicago artist and his paintings are exhibited internationally.

Located on the east wall in southeast corner of the Second Floor.]]>
Originally from Detroit, Carl E. Schwartz (1935-2014) studied at the Art Institute of Chicago and the University of Chicago. He taught figure drawing and painting in Chicago at the North Shore Art League for nearly thirty years. His work is in numerous private, corporate, and museum collections. The Library owns three other works by Schwartz, “Sculptress Kay Hoffman,” “The Village: Carl Sandburg,” and “Chess Game.”

Located on the east wall near the southeast corner of the Second Floor.]]>
Gift in memory of James O. Burke, Andy Frain, and John R. Sobeck. The artist, John R. Sobeck, Jr. (1947-2001), painted under the name, “TUNA.” The Library owns another painting by Sobeck, “Energy."

Located on the east wall in the Petty Auditorium on the First Floor.]]> http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/]]>
On original plaque:
Lydia Hwang
SILENCE (WINTER SCENERY)
Gift of
Friends of Mary Radmacher
Lydia Hwang (Pei-Quincita) studied the fundamentals of traditional Chinese brush painting for ten years under Professor Chen, Hong-Zen, a well-known artist of Chinese calligraphy, brush painting, sculpture, and woodblock painting. In 1975, Hwang immigrated to the United States where she continued her art career. She studied with professors Monica Liu, and Mr. Chi-An Yang. Hwang worked at Skokie Public Library for over twenty years.

This painting is not currently on display.]]> Located on first floor on the west wall of the Radmacher Meeting Room.]]> http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/]]>
Stanley Mitruk (1922-2006) was born in Chicago and studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and at the Jane Addams Hull House with Julio De Diego. Mitruk’s painting career stretched from 1939 to 1964 during which time his work was in regular exhibits at the Art Institute, as well as in national exhibitions. Mitruk was also known for his set and costume design work for The Chicago Ballet Repertory Company and The Chicago Opera Company from 1941-1942. He changed course in 1964, devoting himself to the restoration of historic landmarks for the State of Illinois.

Located on the east wall near the southeast corner Second Floor (by the start of the World Languages Collection).]]>