Finding Abe
Lincoln was born two hundred years ago. Happy birthday Abe! But why are we in the 21st century still obsessed with this 19th-century man? We find Abe everywhere from advertising to political punditry. What does this popular Abe have to do with the historical Abe? 21st-Century Abe has six months to tackle these questions—starting February 12, 2009—and we need your answers. We’ve asked scholars and artists to get the ball rolling, but your responses will define 21st-Century Abe.
If you like 21stCenturyAbe.org, please join us at the Rosenbach Museum & Library for a companion exhibit, Finding Lincoln: 21st-Century Abe, which features original Lincoln documents, behind-the-scenes material from project artists, and contributions from website visitors.
Blog
The 21st Century Abe blog is the place to find out what’s been happening on 21stcenturyabe.org and what fun, exciting, or downright ridiculous things the curatorial team have discovered in their search for Lincoln.
- Rosenbach is Part of New Civil War Cell Phone Tour
- Visitor Choice Award
- June Contest Winner
- Lincoln 200 is this Weekend
- The Undead Lincoln
Our Funders
This project has been funded by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage through the Heritage Philadelphia Program with additional support from the Marketing Innovation Program. Additional support has come from the Samuel S. Fels Fund and The Raab Collection.
Endorsed by the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission
Endorsed by the Pennsylvania Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission
Found Abe
Find your own version of Abraham Lincoln. Whether you are spurred by our documents or project artists, by something you’ve found on the web, or by your own inspiration, we want to see it and share it. Here are a few examples of where others have found Abe:
Participate
Create
Don’t sit back and let other folks have all the fun—it’s time for you to find your own Abe, submit your creations, and maybe even win some prizes!
Design Our Poster
Design your own poster to show what Abe means in the modern world. Share it with other Abe folks and enter it in our Poster Contest!
Be A Pundit
What if CNN had covered Lincoln’s funeral? Or The Onion had lampooned the Baltimore Address. Here’s your chance to (re)write history. Plus, enter your work into the Pundit Contest
Add Your Own Creation
Inspired by what you’ve read? Seen? Heard? Submit your own original Abe-related art. Just upload your file or URL. Enter your work in the original media contest and you could win a trip to Philadelphia!
Project Artists
We are joined by visual artist Maira Kalman, composer and rock musician Bryce Dessner, and media artists Archive. They have visited with us at the Rosenbach, pored over the documents and found their own vision of the 21st Century Abe story.
Bryce Dessner
Bryce Dessner offers up “The Lincoln Shuffle,” a series of short musical compositions.
1812 Productions
1812 Productions presents “Abe Lincoln: Behind the Speeches” — a mockumentary about Lincoln and his use of media.
Explore Our Documents
21st-Century Abe is centered on thirty Lincoln documents, ranging from Lincoln’s explanation of his family history to the manuscript of the Baltimore Address. They touch on Lincoln’s views on race, his patterns of thought and rhetoric, and his role as a celebrity.
Learn MoreThe opinions stated throughout this web site by artists, scholars, and other contributors are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the Rosenbach Museum & Library, its staff and trustees, or the funders of this project.
Rosenbach Museum & Library
2008-2010 Delancy Place · Philadelphia, PA 19103
215.732.1600 · abe@rosenbach.org