Looking for a fun summer activity here in Orange? Look no further! Visit the Leatherby Libraries at Chapman University! Spend your time on campus exploring our many exhibits and displays. Ranging from our Tiki in Orange County exhibit to our display of Chapman University staff artwork in the Leatherby Libraries’ Hall of Art, there is sure to be something to catch your eye this summer.

TIKI TIKI TIKI TIKI TIKI ROOMTiki in Orange County
Exhibit Dates: January 23 – August 25, 2017
Frank Mt. Pleasant Library of Special Collections and Archives
Leatherby Libraries, 4th Floor


Chris Jepsen, Guest Curator, presents a new exhibit to the library. From architecture, decor  and music to literature, theme parks and backyard luaus, the South Seas was a wildly popular theme throughout mid-twentieth century America. Artifacts, photographs, documents and music, offer a brief look at the origins of Tiki in the South Pacific, its interpretation in mid-century Orange County (and Southern California), and how both have inspired today’s Tiki revival. 

 

 

OrdoverThe Last Hurrah II
Abe Ordover, Photography
Exhibit Dates: March 15 – August 18, 2017
Doy and Dee Henley Reading Room and Thurmond and Athalie Clarke Gallery
Leatherby Libraries, 2nd Floor 
Exhibit Catalog

In 1991, Abe Ordover moved to San Diego to pursue photography as his full time occupation. He opened Ordover Gallery in Solana Beach in 2004 and operated it until 2014. The Ordover Gallery at San Diego Natural History Museum opened 2006 and remained in operation until his retirement last December closing with his solo exhibition The Last Hurrah. The Chapman exhibition The Last Hurrah II will feature new work plus a reprise of some of his earlier images.

 

Staff ExhibitFourth Annual Staff Art Exhibition
Opening Reception: Thursday, June 19, 2017 – 4:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Exhibit Dates: June 1 – August 24, 2017
Hall of Art, Leatherby Library, First Floor
Featuring works by Chapman University staff, including works by president emeritus, Jim Doti!

 

 

Huell HowserCalifornia’s Gold Exhibit and Huell Howser Archive
Leatherby Libraries, Lower Level
Hours: Tuesday – Saturday, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
The joy that the late T.V. legend Huell Howser shared with generations of Californians infuses a permanent exhibit, sponsored by the Automobile Club of Southern California, housed in Chapman University’s Leatherby Libraries. The exhibit includes images, text and artifacts which outline Howser’s career and legacy in California

 

 

CAWLCenter for American War Letters Reading Room
Leatherby Libraries, Lower Level
Hours: Tuesday – Saturday, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
The Center for American War Letters (CAWL) is a unique and extensive manuscript collection of previously unpublished war letters from every American conflict, beginning with handwritten missives composed during the Revolutionary War and continuing up to emails sent from Iraq and Afghanistan. The reading room features a display devoted to the Tuskegee Airmen of WWII, banners representing historic wars, examples of the war letters themselves, a collection of original Armed Services Editions miniature books and select newly arrived archival letters.

cAWL

Looking for more? Did you know that Chapman University has it’s own museum, on campus, dedicated to California art?

Hilbert Museum of California Art
Tuesday-Saturday, Weekly
Location: 167 N. Atchison Street, Orange, CA 92866
Hours: Tuesday – Saturday, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m.
The Hilbert Collection – which includes oils, watercolors, sketches and lithographs of urban and industrial scenes, coastal views, farms, ranches and landscapes of everyday life – is a significant repository of images of the 20th century by California artists, celebrating the unique artistic and cultural development of the Golden State.