--- title: Justice and Hope – June 2026 Newsletter --- June Newsletter ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­    ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­   | View in browser Join the conversation or share your experience by visiting our social media. The exhibition, Justice and Hope, will close June 28, 2026 – We hope you will find time to visit. Exhibition Lecture – Saturday, June 6, 2:00 PM A Conversation with Samuel Bak Join us at the Museum for a live zoom conversation between artist Samuel Bak and Chief Curator Alexandra M. Cardon broadcast from his studio in Boston.  This is a FREE event, but preregistration is required. Omaha Art Fair – Friday, June 12 through Sunday, June 14 Visit our booth outside the Museum at 2289 S. 67th St. for hands-on art activities for all ages, then head inside for guided tours of the current exhibition every hour on the half hour and an art swap activity.   Museum Hours During the Omaha Art Fair: Friday, June 12 \| 11 am – 6 pm Saturday, June 13 \| 10 am – 6 pm Sunday, June 14 \| 10 am – 4 pm Omaha Refugee Week – Friday, June 19, 3:00 PM The Museum is thrilled to partner with Omaha Refugee Week - Refugee Week is a week-long festival celebrating the contributions, creativity, and resilience of refugees and people seeking sanctuary in Omaha. On June 19 at 3pm, Alexandra Cardon, Museum Chief Curator, will present a 30-minute lecture on themes of forced migration in Samuel Bak's paintings. RSVP at omaharefugeeweek.com.  Samuel Bak was born in 1933 in Vilna, Poland. He and his mother survived the Holocaust and subsequently fled Soviet-occupied Lithuania. They moved across war-torn Europe and found refuge in a Displaced Persons camp from 1944-1948 before moving to Israel. Bak moved ceaselessly from country to country until 1993 when he settled in the US. As a survivor of genocide, he has dedicated his career to bearing witness to the Shoah and ongoing global humanitarian crises. Since 1945, he has witnessed endless war, human rights violations, and the displacement of millions. Through the use of symbols and objects, he is able to create universally legible artworks that speak beyond his personal experiences.  Samuel Bak, Roots, 2009, oil on canvas, 26 x 48 inches, Collection of Samuel Bak Museum: The Learning Center, University of Nebraska at Omaha. This talk will explore how birds and uprooted trees started to appear with increased frequency in his paintings after 2000, mirroring the rising numbers of refugees on a global scale. After the lecture, attendees will be invited to tour the current exhibition Justice and Hope - which includes the work of artists also displaced by war and genocide.   All Museum programming is FREE and open to the public, but due to limited seating, preregistration is required. RSVP Today! The Spring 2026 exhibition, Justice and Hope, explores how artists Samuel Bak, Dinh Q. Lê, Mladen Miljanović, Serge Nitegeka, and Maja Ruznic use intertwining personal narrative and historical facts to commemorate conflicts and denounce humanity’s inability to forgo violence. The exhibition poses questions on reconciliation and how we might learn from history to build better futures.  Samuel Bak Museum: The Learning Center thanks the following sponsors for their generous support of Justice and Hope and accompanying educational programs and events. UNO Course Collaboration Spotlight In the Spring 2026 semester, Museum staff collaborated with UNO Professor Caitlin Cass, and students enrolled in ART 4220 Illustration 3. Students toured the Museum’s current exhibition and created zines for visitors to enjoy. Seven students designed small booklets that introduce the key themes of the exhibition through a presentation of the life of the artists and their works. The illustration students brought their own lens to the creation of these works. Visitors can view the zines and take one home anytime through the month of June. Museum Spotlight Meet Tanatswa Chivero – Student Worker I’m a sophomore majoring in secondary social science education with a minor in history. The Museum has given me so much joy! I especially love interacting with students during field trips; they bring lots of life to the space. Students who visit are very inquisitive when given a chance to look closely at the art, and their ability to make connections to their own lives is inspiring. When I’m not at the Museum, I’m usually behind a camera, finding a new trail to hike, or making a playlist. I’m also on a mission to find the best store-made chai in Omaha and have found many fun cafes along the way!   Favorite Bak: My favorite Bak from our current exhibition is Family Tree III. The work uses muted hues and depicts a tree ascending, separated from its roots. To me, the work speaks to the effects of displacement and how ancestry can serve as a foundation even when our original ties to family feel out of reach. Free Audio Tour The Museum mobile tour is back, offering a free audio tour available for visitors in English, Spanish, and French. Please bring your headphones and a smart device to scan a QR code at each stop.   Guided Tour Requests Would you like a Private Guided Tour? Complete the Guided Tour Request Form for more information.   Meeting Reservation Requests Interested in reserving the Museum Classroom for your next meeting? Read our Reservation Agreement to see if your group is eligible. Complete the Reservation Request Form to get the conversation started. Additional information can be found on the Museum's Meeting and Event Spaces website page.  Samuel Bak Museum: The Learning Center, University of Nebraska at Omaha, 2289 South 67th Street, Omaha, NE 68016 Manage preferences | | --- |