‘Point of View: The Veteran Print Project’ exhibit lasts through July 4

A collaborative exhibit titled “Point of View: The Veteran Print Project,” which runs through July 4, has allowed Wisconsin veterans to share their war experiences and have local artists interpret them.

“Point of View” is based on the oral histories of veterans engaged in war for the past two decades. Artists have used different media such as lithography, etching, screenprint and letterpress to interpret soldiers’ experiences in Iraq, Afghanistan and Desert Storm.

This exhibit was made possible by collaboration between the Wisconsin Veterans Museum oral history program, artists of the Madison Print Cooperative and the University of Wisconsin–Madison Vets for Vets student organization.

Jeff Kollath, curator of history at the Wisconsin Veterans Museum, notes this show is unprecedented because it is based on the actual oral histories of recently returned student veterans. “Each piece carries with it a unique set of emotions, some reflective, some comedic, and everywhere in between,” he says.

All of the artists involved in “Point of View” are members of the Madison Print Cooperative. Yvette Pino, an artist and veteran, is the founder of this exhibit. She saw this project as a great opportunity to bring artist and veteran together to share the stories of a new generation of veterans through art.

“[Point of View] brings together two very divergent groups of people to open a dialogue about veterans’ experiences and how we perceive them,” she says. “Artists have been able to create history in a visually appealing way where the spectator can appreciate the experience.”

“Point of View” is free and open to the public. For more detailed hours of the Wisconsin Veterans Museum, visit http://museum.dva.state.wi.us/Map.asp.