National Veterans Art Museum Becomes A NEA Blue Star Museums

CHICAGO, IL, May 27, 2011

Today the National Veterans Art Museum (NVAM) announced the launch of Blue Star Museums, a partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts, Blue Star Families, and more than 1,300 museums across America to offer free admission to all active duty military personnel and their families from Memorial Day through Labor Day 2011.  Leadership support has been provided by MetLife Foundation through Blue Star Families. The complete list of participating museums is available at http://www.arts.gov/bluestarmuseums.

The NVAM offers free admission to all active duty military, dependents, as well as veterans, on a year-round basis. The NVAM's involvement in Blue Star Museums is part of a nationwide effort to draw attention to and provide for military families.

The NVAM will officially announce the program on Friday, May 27, 2011, to coincide with other special events in honor of Memorial Day weekend. The museum will be open to the public Friday from 5-8 p.m. to celebrate two new exhibits:

Charlie Shobe Memorial Exhibit
 NVAM remembers the life and work of Charlie Shobe, a former Marine and original member of the Vietnam Veterans Art Group.  This exhibit will remain on display through July 31, 2011. 
 Expansion of Intrusive Thoughts
 Two new pieces will be added to the Intrusive Thoughts exhibition: Jon Turner's Prayer Boots, an interactive piece that asks patrons to reflect on their relationship to war, and Angel in the Desert, a sculpture of one veteran's experiences in the Persian Gulf War. This exhibit will remain on display until Veterans Day, 2011.

"The National Veterans Art Museum is proud to join Blue Star Museums in honoring our nation's military personnel and their families. We look forward to sharing our mission of exhibiting art inspired by combat and created by veterans of all U.S. military conflicts with the next generations of art patrons," said Executive Director of the NVAM, Levi Moore.
 
"Blue Star Museums may be the program at the NEA of which I am proudest," said NEA Chairman Rocco Landesman.  "Blue Star Museums recognizes and thanks our military families for all they are doing for our country, and simultaneously begins young people on a path to becoming life-long museum goers."

"Last year the success of the inaugural year of the Blue Star Museums program showed that partnerships between the nation's museum and military communities are a natural," said Blue Star Families Chairman Kathy Roth-Douquet.  "We are thrilled that 300,000 military family members visited our partner museums in the summer of 2010. We hope to exceed that number this year as the military community takes advantage of the rich cultural heritage they defend and protect every day. We appreciate the NEA and the nation's museums who chose to partner with us. We also are grateful to our friends at the MetLife Foundation, the lead supporter of the Blue Star Museums outreach initiative, whose generous donation helps make our work possible."  
 
This year, more than 1,324 (and counting) museums in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and American Samoa are taking part in the initiative, including more than 500 new museums this year.  Museums are welcome to join Blue Star Museums throughout the summer.  The effort to recruit museums has involved the partnership efforts of The American Association of Museums, the Association of Art Museum Directors, the Association of Children's Museums, and the American Association of State and Local History.  This year's Blue Star Museums represent not just fine arts museums, but also science museums, history museums, nature centers, and 70 children's museums.  Participants include The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in Richmond, Virginia, The Children's Museum & Theatre of Maine in Portland, Maine, the National Mississippi River Museum & Aquarium in Dubuque, Iowa, the Chinese American Museum in Los Angeles, California, the Museum of Flight in Seattle, Washington, and the Toy and Action Figure Museum in Pauls Valley, Oklahoma.  
 
About Blue Star Museums  
 Blue Star Museums runs from Memorial Day, May 30, 2011 through to Labor Day, September 5, 2011.  The free admission program is available to active-duty military and their immediate family members (military ID holder and five immediate family members).  Active duty military include Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, and active duty National Guard and active duty Reserve members.  Some special or limited-time museum exhibits may not be included in this free admission program.  For questions on particular exhibits or museums, please contact the museum directly.  To find out which museums are participating, visit http://www.arts.gov/bluestarmuseums.  The site includes a list of participating museums and a map to help with visit planning.  
  
This is the latest NEA program to bring quality arts programs to the military, veterans, and their families.  Other NEA programs for the military have included Operation Homecoming: Writing the Wartime Experience; Great American Voices Military Base Tour; and Shakespeare in American Communities Military Base Tour.  
 
About the National Veterans Art Museum
 The National Veterans Art Museum is dedicated to the collection, preservation, and exhibition of art inspired by combat and created by veterans. No other gallery in the world focuses on the subject of war from an artistic perspective, making this collection truly unique. The National Veterans Art Museum addresses both historical and contemporary issues related to military service in order to give patrons of all backgrounds insight into the effects of war and to provide veterans an artistic outlet to work through their military and combat experiences.
To learn more about the National Veterans Art Museum, visit http://www.nvam.org.

About Blue Star Families
Blue Star Families is a national, nonpartisan, nonprofit network of military families from all ranks and services, including guard and reserve, with a mission to support, connect and empower military families. In addition to morale and empowerment programs, Blue Star Families raises awareness of the challenges and strengths of military family life and works to make military life more sustainable. Membership includes military spouses, children and parents as well as service members, veterans and civilians.
 
To learn more about Blue Star Families, visit http://www.bluestarfam.org.
 
About the National Endowment for the Arts
 The National Endowment for the Arts was established by Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government. To date, the NEA has awarded more than $4 billion to support artistic excellence, creativity, and innovation for the benefit of individuals and communities. The NEA extends its work through partnerships with state arts agencies, local leaders, other federal agencies, and the philanthropic sector. To join the discussion on how art works, visit the NEA at arts.gov.
 
The National Veterans Art Museum is located at 1801 S. Indiana Avenue and is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Tickets are $10.00 general admission and $7.00 seniors and students. Admission is free for veterans and active military and their dependents. For group admission reservations, call the museum at 312/326-0270 or visit http://www.nvam.org.