Vanka Lecture Series

In 1909, Croatian historicist artist Oton Iveković traveled from Zagreb to paint murals in St. John the Baptist Croatian Catholic Church in Kansas City, KS.  Three decades later, artist Maksimilijan Vanka, an immigrant to the United States, was invited to paint murals in St. Nicholas Croatian Catholic Church in Millvale, PA. These artists were working for Croatian working-class immigrant communities at opposite ends of the Rust Belt and in different political moments in historical American immigration. This presentation with Heidi Cook will explore how the artists and priests involved were entering contemporary discourse around immigrants and immigration utilizing their art.