Des Plaines History Center to host lecture on Lincoln Park sculptures

On Thursday, May 9, the Des Plaines History Center will host a public lecture and virtual presentation by Krista August, author of the book “Giants in the Park: A Guide to Portrait Statues in Chicago’s Lincoln Park.”

Audience members will encounter giants from Lincoln to LaSalle and Grant to Goethe with a virtual sculpture tour of Chicago’s largest park.

With highlights from her award-winning book, August honors Lincoln Park’s bronze heroes with biographical narratives and historical images. She will share the histories behind select monuments — stories about the artists, the benefactors, and the unveiling ceremonies. “Lost” statues and the park’s cemetery years will be touched upon as well.

Copies of “Giants in the Park” will also be for sale after the program.

The program will be held on Thursday, May 9, beginning at 1:30 p.m., in the Visitor Center at the Des Plaines History Center, and will run for one hour. Although there is no charge for admission to the program, donations will be accepted at the door to help defray program expenses. Coffee and cookies will also be served.

A Lincoln Park local, August holds a graduate degree in education from DePaul University. Prior to creating “Giants in the Park,” Krista worked eight years as a finance professional, and she taught school for seven years, at the elementary and middle school levels. Aside from giving lectures about her book, Krista works part-time at a local gallery/frame shop, Art de Triumph/Artful Framer studios, and she enjoys volunteering for the Chicago Architecture Foundation, where she gives walking tours of Chicago’s historic and modern skyscrapers.

For information about this program, contact Adam at the History Center, (847) 391-5399. Or visit the History Center’s website at www.desplaineshistory.org.