The Artist-in-Residence Program in 2010

Herbert Hoover National Historic Site will not have Artists-in-Residence in 2010. Rehabilitation projects on historic buildings used for seasonal staff housing mean that we cannot provide lodging to artists in 2010. We intend to resume the Artist-in-Residence Program in 2011.

Linda Staats

Photographer Linda Staats was one of two Artists-in-Residence in 2008.

About the Program

Herbert Hoover National Historic Site offers two residencies each of two to four weeks from May through October. Residencies are open to all professional American artists. The residencies allow selected artists to pursue their art forms in the contemplative setting of Herbert Hoover National Historic Site. The National Historic Site provides lodging and a secure, environmentally-controlled place to lay out equipment and supplies at no cost to the artist.

During the residencies, the artists interact informally with the public, present public interpretive programs, and produce a piece of artwork for the park's collection. Through their artwork, Artists-in-Residence provide opportunities for park visitors to make meaningful connections with the cultural and natural resources of the National Historic Site.

Patricia Rottino Cummins

"Back Door at Hoover Cottage" by Patricia Rottino Cummins

Patricia Rottino Cummins
Oct. 17-24, 2009

Patricia Rottino Cummins of Miami, Florida, has been an art educator for over thirty years in the Miami Dade Public Schools. Her works of art are inspired by local landscapes, as well as by the vistas she has seen and photographed during her many travels and National Park residencies. “Lately I find myself closely concentrating on each landscape,” said Ms. Cummins, “and discovering that unique element that interprets the moment, feeling, and importance of the subject.”

Laura Madeline Wiseman

Writer Laura Madeline Wiseman exhibited her research at Hooverfest in 2009.

Laura Madeline Wiseman
July 14-August 2, 2009 

Laura Madeline Wiseman is a PhD student in English at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Ms. Wiseman’s great-great-great-grandmother Matilda Fletcher Wiseman, an Iowa native who lectured across the Midwest in the 19th century, inspires her current research and writing project. “These poems capture not only her life and work,” said Ms. Wiseman, “but also the natural landscape of the American West, where she was born and where she lived most of her life.”

You may read Ms. Wiseman's poem, "Maternal Lineage" (PDF file, 73 KB) or download and listen to an audio recording (MP3 file, 1.66 MB).

Kristen Bergren

Radio dramatist Will Anderson writes a script while chatting with visitors at the Visitor Center.

Will Anderson
July 7-July 20, 2008

Will Anderson, assistant professor at Central Michigan University, is an award-winning radio dramatist, with regional and national awards, including two National Audio Theater Festival awards in 2007 and 2003, and the 2006 National Broadcasting Society Region 2 Best Comedy Award.

You may download Will Anderson's radio drama script, "The Son of West Branch, America's Great Humanitarian" (PDF file, 196 KB). Please contact us if you are interested in using it in a production.

Linda Staats

"First Light on the Prairie", by Linda Staats

Linda Staats
June 20-July 5, 2008

Photographer Linda Staats is known for her imagery of the Midwest heartland and the Pacific Northwest. Her photographs are in private and corporate collections and have appeared in galleries, brochures, notecards, and calendars. She recently returned to the Midwest after living in Washington State where she spent countless days photographing National Parks, and is now working on a project of Midwestern images. “I want to illustrate the diversity that exists in this part of the country—the richness that makes up the land, the people, and the life of this area.”

Herbert Hoover NHS Collection

"Lou Henry Hoover circa 1925", painting by Billie Davids

Billie Davids
September 11-23, 2007

Billie Davids is a native of the small river town of Princeton, Iowa. After leaving behind artwork most of her life, Mrs. Davids started painting professionally three years ago. Her paintings capture moments of everyday American life. "I bought myself a camera a few years ago," says Mrs. Davids, "and started noticing all the ordinary activities that people of all ages were enjoying, sometimes planned activities they had looked forward to all week, sometimes impromptu moments, and I wanted to paint them, stop time, not just with my camera but in large as life pictures so I could say for them, 'See me, see what I can do.'"

Herbert Hoover NHS Collection

"Hoover Birthplace", pastel by Diane Blair Kunzler

Diane Blair Kunzler
July 19-August 4, 2007

Diane Blair Kunzler is from Glidden, Iowa, and has been featured in numerous art exhibits. She has a Master of Fine Arts from the Art Institute of Boston. Ms. Kunzler has explored Midwestern landscapes as a subject for her artwork for twenty years. "A residency at Herbert Hoover National Historic Site affords me the opportunity to explore an abundance of subjects of interest to me as an artist, and a unique opportunity to interact with people who visit the site," said Ms. Kunzler. "Art is so many times a solitary experience and I enjoy the casual interactions with people who are interested in the subjects I work with and the artistic process."

During her tenure as Artist-in-Residence, Ms. Kunzler painted a nine-inch circumference gold ornament supplied by the White House with scenes of the Herbert Hoover Birthplace Cottage and the Gravesite of President and Mrs. Hoover. The ornament was displayed on the National Park themed 2007 White House Christmas tree.

Herbert Hoover NHS Collection

"Cottage in Winter", hand-woven tapestry by Karen Page Crislip

Karen Page Crislip
September 13-29, 2006

Hand-woven tapestry maker Karen Page Crislip of Estes Park, Colorado has roots in eastern Iowa. She graduated from Bettendorf High School in 1966 and is related to Herbert Hoover. She is a trained and experienced educator eager to share her love of weaving with the public.

“I am very excited about returning to Eastern Iowa and seeing what happens to my images when I am focusing on designs in the environment of my early years,” said Ms. Crislip. She started a number of designs during her residence and donated a tapestry, pictured here, interpreting the Birthplace Cottage in winter.

NPS Photo

Artist-in-Residence Gabriel Sokoloff composed three pieces inspired during his residency.

Gabriel Sokoloff
July 14-28, 2005

Musician and composer Gabriel Sokoloff studied with renowned jazz pianist Alex Darqui. He performs keyboard and saxophone in West Palm Beach, Florida and Providence, Rhode Island.

Mr. Sokoloff's music and lyrics found expression in the charm and power of the National Historic Site's outdoors. During his residency, he composed, performed, and engineered three songs, including "Prairie Sun", an instrumental piece written for Herbert Hoover National Historic Site.

You can download and listen to the three pieces by Gabriel Sokoloff:

1. Prairie Sun, 3:16 (MP3 file, 7.7 MB)
2. What is this Place?, 3:07 (MP3 file, 7.3 MB)
3. Last Words, 3:50 (MP3 file, 9.0 MB)

Caren Hackman

"Quaker School House", painting by Caren Hackman

Caren Hackman
July 5-18, 2005

Painter and illustrator Caren Hackman immersed herself in the distinct light and texture of the National Historic Site's landscape. The park's Eastern Iowa locale was a sharp contrast to South Florida, where she has painted for decades.

As Artist-in-Residence Ms. Hackman twice demonstrated working with highlights and shadows to distinguish forms in watercolor painting. She created three paintings while at Herbert Hoover NHS, including "Hulda's Chair", a watercolor used in a postcard sold at the park bookstore.

Herbert Hoover NHS Collection

Untitled sculpture by Matt Moyer

Matt Moyer
September 24-October 22, 2004

Ceramicist Matt Moyer creates vessels and sculptures influenced by everyday implements and industry that surrounded the Mississippi River and its central plains in the late 19th century.

As Artist-in-Residence Mr. Moyer, who is interested in natural materals, demonstrated ceramics using clays found in Cedar County. Participants learned to make their own cup or bowl and to incorporate natural fibers.

Mr. Moyers donated sculpture of wood-fired stoneware on a steel base is modeled on a tool found in the park's working Blacksmith Shop.

Herbert Hoover NHS Collection

"Miles Farmstead", painting by Kristi Carlson

Kristi Carlson
May 6-21, 2000

Kristi Carlson is an art professor and gallery director at Waldorf College in Forest City, Iowa. She holds degrees in art from St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota and Purdue University, and has also studied art independently and at the University of Iowa.

Prof. Carlson's painting, "Miles Farmstead" is on display in the Visitor Center.