Arts & Culture Center

WPL welcomes local artists to exhibit their work and community groups to present their organization in the Arts & Culture Center, located on the first floor of the library.

The purpose of the Arts and Culture Center is to introduce local and regional artists to the public as well as a serve as an informational display space for community partners or upcoming events. 

MLK's Chicago Freedom Movement

Bernard Kleina's rare and historic color photographs of Martin Luther King, Jr.

"I photograph so that others can see what I saw, feel what I felt and better understand what perhaps I understood for the first time. My camera is not just an extension of my eye, but an extension of my heart. Senator Elizabeth Warren said, 'There is no virtue in Silence.' My goal in life is to break that silence with my photographs."  - from Mr. Kleina's Artist Statement

"These photographs of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in Chicago in 1966 are some of the first color photographs that the world saw of Dr. King. Mr. Kleina captured one of the most violent missions Dr. King undertook, and it wasn't in the Deep South." - The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute

Presentation by Bernard Kleina

Thursday, Jan. 12 | 7 pm | in-person
Registration is required

In this presentation, The Road to Freedom, Mr. Kleina shares his experience capturing MLK’s Chicago visit.  

All artwork is from the Elmhurst Art Museum's collection, Gifts of Bernard Kleina and Susan Keleher.

Display Your Artwork

To have your artwork considered for display in the Arts & Culture Center, fill out the application. For more information, contact Bari Ericson at 630-868-7529 or bericson@wheatonlibrary.org.