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Marna Brauner & Hai Chi Jihn: Curio

January 30, 2026 to April 12, 2026

James Watrous Gallery • Madison

Location

James Watrous Gallery Madison

For Curio, Milwaukee artists Marna Brauner and Hai Chi Jihn are collaborating to create a “cabinet of curiosities.” Obsessive collectors and highly skilled makers, Brauner and Jihn are interested in juxtaposing small, meticulously crafted pieces that speak to each other and create a unique whole. Their highly decorative, detailed work in textiles, metal, wax, and found objects references clothing history, body adornment, cultural memory, and the seductive nostalgia of old museum collections.

This exhibition is supported by Dane Arts with additional funds from Diane Ballweg and the Endres Mfg. Company Foundation.

Also at the James Watrous Gallery

Exhibition

January 30, 2026 to April 12, 2026

Lillian Luft: Deliberate Acts

Lillian Luft’s Deliberate Acts is inspired by river ecology and the environmental consequences of the 19th-century pearl button

Reception

February 1, 2026

Artists' Reception: Lillian Luft & Marna Brauner & Hai Chi Jihn

Join Lillian Luft, Marna Brauner, Hai Chi Jihn, and Wisconsin Academy staff to celebrate the opening of the exhibitions

Talk

April 8, 2026

Mussels & Metals

Want to find out why native mussels are so important for Wisconsin's waterways?

Contributors

Marna Brauner

Marna Brauner is Professor Emerita of Art and Design (1989-2014) at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, specializing in fibers and surface design. She received her MFA in textiles, with distinction, from California College of Arts and Crafts, and her BFA in Visual Art from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Hai Chi Jihn

Hai Chi Jihn has made Milwaukee, Wisconsin her home for the past 40 years. A native of Taiwan, she earned her BA in Textile & Clothing Design in Taiwan and her MFA in Metalsmithing from UW-Milwaukee.