Exhibitions

Archives and Special Collections hosts exhibitions each year in the Loyola Notre Dame Library. We welcome faculty and students to collaborate with us on exhibitions utilizing materials from our collections.

Current and Upcoming Exhibitions

World War I: Lessons and Legacies

Ferguson Gallery, Spring-Summer 2024

This exhibit explores "the war to end all wars" and its lasting impact and far-reaching influence on life in America, in Baltimore, and at Loyola University Maryland and Notre Dame of Maryland University. Sparked by the assassination of one man, the war eventually included the forces of the world's major industrial powers (over 18 countries) and ended with millions dead. It redefined how we saw ourselves as Americans and its legacy continues today. The exhibit includes materials from Archives and Special Collections curated by Grace Perry, Loyola '24, and interpretive posters from the Smithsonian Institution.

Logo for World War I: Lessons and Legacies exhibit

Father Talbot and Sainte-Marie among the Hurons

Archives Reading Room, Third Floor, 2022-2024

How did a collection of artifacts from a 17th century Jesuit mission among the Huron Wendat (Wyandot) people come to be housed in our library? What is the collection’s connection to Loyola University Maryland’s history and present-day built environment? This exhibit, curated by Loyola student Frederick Bradbury V, shares Wyandot and Jesuit artifacts, rare books and maps, and historical research that shed light on the link between Loyola and a site of engagement and conflict between French Jesuits and indigenous communities in North America.

A photo of exhibit materials including a historic map, an axe head, and a newspaper article titled 'Loyola Head Off On Indian Study'

2024 Humanities Symposium Student Poster Exhibition
Ferguson Gallery, February-March 2024

Posters and promotional materials for Loyola University Maryland's 2024 Humanities Symposium, created by students in Communication professor Noelle Dichiera's Graphics I and II classes, will be on display at the Loyola Notre Dame Library until late March. Students used tools in the library's makerspace, including a large-format printer, laser cutter, button maker, and materials for etching and sublimation printing, to create exhibit materials celebrating nature. Visit the Humanities Symposium website to learn more about the March 14 keynote address by Aimee Nezhukumatathil and about her book World of Wonders: In Praise of Fireflies, Whale Sharks, & Other Astonishments.

Humanities Symposium posters in an exhibition case

Dr. Elizabeth Morrissy: Her Life and Legacy as a Catholic Professor and Activist

Ferguson Gallery, First Floor, October 2023-February 2024

This exhibit explores the life, career, and activism of Dr. Elizabeth Morrissy, Professor of History and Economics at the College of Notre Dame of Maryland and namesake of the school's Morrissy Honors Program. Learn about Dr. Morrissy's political and social activism on behalf of industrial workers, women's rights, and educational reform, and how her deep Catholic faith influenced the trajectory of her remarkable career.

Dr. Elizabeth Morrissy photo portrait

Loyola Notre Dame Library: 50 Years of Innovation, Evolution, and Excellence

Ferguson Gallery, First Floor, March-September 2023

Since its opening in 1973, The Loyola Notre Dame Library has been a site of continual transformation and growth. This exhibit explores the origins of this unique shared library, its development over half a century, and its ongoing dedication to meeting the holistic needs of Loyola, Notre Dame, and the Baltimore community.

2023 Humanities Symposium Student Poster Exhibition

Ferguson Gallery, First Floor, March 2023

Humanities Symposium posters and promotional materials created by students in Communication professor Noelle Dichiera's Graphics II classes will be on display at the Loyola Notre Dame Library until late March. Visit the Student Poster Contest webpage to see the students' posters and the Humanities Symposium website to learn more about the keynote address by Julie Otsuka and related events.

Students and professor in the library's gallery space

Plays through Playbill: Snapshots of Broadway Theatre History, 1947-2011

Ferguson Gallery, First Floor, November 2022-February 2023

Curated by students in Loyola's Fall 2022 Introduction to Theatre History course, this exhibit shares highlights of Broadway history through the extensive playbill collections in Archives and Special Collections. From The Iceman Cometh to In the Heights, learn what made these landmark theatrical productions so significant and how their legacies endure today.

Father John J. Griffin: A Life Through Photography

Archives Reading Room, Third Floor, 2021-2022

Digital Exhibition

This exhibit, curated by Loyola University Maryland students Christopher Linfante and Joseph Seminara, explores the life and legacy of John J. Griffin, a Jesuit priest, Notre Dame of Maryland chemistry professor, boys' summer camp founder, and photographer.

Father John J. Griffin with camera in a field

Celebrating 50 Years of Women at Loyola

Ferguson Gallery, First Floor, January-October 2022

In 1971, after nearly 120 years as an all-male college, Loyola merged with Mount Saint Agnes College, a women’s Catholic institution run by the Sisters of Mercy. Since then, Loyola has made an effort to keep the memory of “The Mount” alive and to prioritize the expansion of educational opportunities to include all groups. As we approach the anniversary of 50 years of women and their contributions to the Evergreen campus, this exhibit looks back at Loyola before, during, and after this momentous change.

Logo that reads '50 Years Celebrating Women at Loyola'

September 11, 2001: The Day That Changed the World

Ferguson Gallery, First Floor, August-November 2021

This exhibit presents the history of 9/11, its origins, and its ongoing implications through the personal stories of those who witnessed and survived the attacks. It includes posters curated by the 9/11 Memorial & Museum, as well as materials from the library's Archives and Special Collections that reflect the effects of 9/11 on the Baltimore, Loyola, and Notre Dame communities.

Skyline of Lower Manhattan with exhibit title 'September 11, 2001: The Day That Changed the World' at the bottom