A new art installation at College of DuPage will showcase artists spanning the worlds of dance, theater, music, and visual art.
“Walking with Giants” is a free, walkable exhibit that will be displayed around campus, presented by the McAninch Arts Center and Cleve Carney Museum of Art at COD.
“We wanted to do something to celebrate America’s 250th anniversary. And Justin Whittier, our curator, and I were talking, and he said, what about giant sculptures? And then I said, well, what if they are arts related?” said Diana Martinez, Executive Director of the McAninch Arts Center.
The exhibit features 10 roughly 10-foot-tall painted silhouette sculptures, showcasing artists like Aretha Franklin, Rodgers and Hammerstein, and Georgia O’Keeffe.
“We did a survey and we asked the community and we asked the college community, who are your favorites? And these are who came up,” said Martinez.
Creating the larger than life portraits
After the sculptures were designed, they needed to be physically built before they could be painted.
“So it started out with just the general silhouette of the artists. Tracing those out, cutting them with a jigsaw and ten-foot pieces of plywood. Fabricating them, putting two-by-fours in between, insulating them and then priming them to be able to prep them, for the two artists here,” said Madelene Przybysz, the gallery assistant for the Cleve Carney Museum of Art.
Naperville artist contributes to the exhibit
Those two artists are Naperville resident Rich Lo, and Chicago’s Judith Mayer.
Lo knew he wanted to be a part of the project the moment the call for artists went out.
“I’m working on Bob Fosse, and this one is a combination of graphics and a little more expressiveness. Compared to my other pieces, it’s very expressive, very colorful, but I want to contrast between a graphic and explosive background,” said Lo.
No stranger to the college, in 2025 Lo painted a mural of The MAC in the ukiyo-e style, a Japanese art form, and a large format print is currently on display in the lobby.
Mayer, a painter, designer, and illustrator with murals throughout Chicago, painted half of the new sculptures that will go up, including Lin-Manuel Miranda.
“It’s been really great to see them create every day and to be in this space with them and talk and ask questions as well,” said Przybysz.
Martinez believes public art projects like these are important because they provide up-close access to the works.
“You can’t help but looking at it, enjoying it, taking a selfie with it, appreciating it. And then you learn a little bit about people,” said Martinez. “
The exhibit is expected to debut on June 3 and run through October 18.
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