February 7-18, 2023

Independence Historical Museum

& Art Center Gallery

FREE ADMISSION

Drawn from the Portrait Gallery’s unrivaled collection of Lincoln portraits, this exhibit charts Lincoln’s passage from a fresh-faced Illinois congressman to a troubled visage as he led the fight for the Union, culminating in his grizzled isolation as president.

This poster exhibition version of The Mask of Lincoln gives students across the country unprecedented access to the many faces of Lincoln. These portraits invite the viewer to examine closely the complex and mysterious man who came from nothing and was nationally unknown almost to the moment of his nomination for the presidency. Shaping himself to the uncertainties of the present, mindful of his role as the heir to the Founders, it was Lincoln’s ability that led the nation where it never intended to go: from a political crisis over states’ rights to the revolutionary act of abolishing slavery.

Geared to middle school and high school students and teachers of history and American Studies, this poster exhibition will provide a long-lasting and visually attractive complement to libraries and classrooms.

The Mask of Lincoln portfolio was developed by the National Portrait Gallery and the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service. This portfolio was made possible by a grant from the Smithsonian Women’s Committee