The exhibition features more than 75 objects from the permanent collection spanning centuries, continents and materials, including several loans of rare books from the Special Collections and University Archives. The exhibition examines tales from fairytales to mythology through decorative arts, textiles, prints and cultural objects that reveal how creators across cultures have transmitted narratives to reinforce morals, educate viewers and preserve traditions. 

"Storytelling is one of the oldest and most universal forms of artistic expression," said Dr. Michèle Schaal, professor of French and women's and gender studies, who co-curated the exhibition with Adrienne Gennett, curator of the Brunnier Art Museum. "Despite cultural differences, storytelling shapes who we are and helps humans understand themselves and the world around them." 

A distinctive feature of the exhibition is personal reflections written by Iowa State University faculty and staff from disciplines including history, classical studies, French, Russian, Spanish, Chinese and human development and family studies. These essays connect objects to lived experiences and cultural memory. 

The exhibition is organized into four thematic sections: "Something Old Made New," examining contemporary artists' reinterpretations of fairy tale tropes; "Telling the Untold or Untellable," featuring marginalized communities' stories; "(Not So) Beloved Characters," exploring fairy tale imagery on decorative objects; and "Legacies and Heritage," showcasing how storytelling preserves cultural values. 

Featured artists and makers include contemporary glass artist Preston Singletary (Tlingit), MacArthur Fellow Joyce J. Scott, renowned Inuit artist Kenojuak Ashevak, celebrated American illustrator N.C. Wyeth, and legendary San Ildefonso Pueblo potter Maria Martinez. The exhibition also includes art by Jaune Quick-to-See Smith, Luis Jiménez, Hung Liu and Allison Saar, alongside European decorative arts from manufacturers including Meissen and Wedgwood. 

Public programming includes a curator-led tour on Feb. 26, casual “Museum Meetup” on April 9, artist talk with photographer Stephanie Brunia on April 12, family activities on April 25, and a faculty roundtable on April 30. 

The exhibition runs through July 24, 2026. Admission and parking are free. The Brunnier Art Museum is located on the second floor of the Scheman Building, 1805 Center Drive, and is open Tuesday through Sunday. 

Generous support for the exhibition was provided by the Department of World Languages and Cultures, the Greenlee School of Journalism and Communication, the Carrie Chapman Catt Center for Women and Politics, the Department of English and University Museums Membership. 

For more information, visit museums.iastate.edu or call 515-294-3342. 

About University Museums 
University Museums at Iowa State University is an accredited museum system composed of the Brunnier Art Museum, Christian Petersen Art Museum, Farm House Museum, Anderson Sculpture Garden and the Art on Campus Collection. The museums offer free admission and programming for the public at all venues. 

IMAGES AVAILABLE IN THE CYBOX: https://iastate.box.com/s/y7vsh6cw2q2vd78v84j7rnqaainqxmyt  

Collections objects may be researched at https://emuseum.its.iastate.edu/collections  

Tell Me a Story Exhibition Programming 

Thursday, February 26, 5:00–6:00 p.m. 
Curator's Tour: Tell Me a Story 
Brunnier Art Museum 

Origin stories, cautionary tales, celebrations. Storytelling shapes who we are and helps us understand ourselves and the world around us. 

Explore the Tell Me a Story exhibition with co-curators Michèle Schaal, professor of French and women's and gender studies, and Adrienne Gennett, curator of the Brunnier Art Museum, for the only joint curator-led public tour of this exhibition. Experience art and cultural objects that tell stories from around the world, some familiar, others completely unknown to Western audiences. Decorative arts, textiles, and other objects spanning centuries and continents reveal how creators across cultures have transmitted narratives with visuals that can reinforce morals, educate viewers, and preserve traditions. 

Discover tales and storytelling methods both new and old. This is a free tour, open to the public. 

Thursday, April 9, 6:00–8:00 p.m. 
Museum Meetup: Storytellers Abound 
Brunnier Art Museum 

Fairytales can be some of the first stories we're told, sparking imagination and curiosity. Visit the Brunnier Art Museum to explore the visual storytelling exhibitions Tell Me a Story and Mapping Infrastructure/Mapping Agriculture. Create your own name or letter sign inspired by illuminated manuscripts and grab a take-home snack. Guests are encouraged to come dressed as their favorite fantasy character. 

Museum Meetups are free and open to all Iowa State University students and their guests. No registration required. Drop in any time between 6:00 and 8:00 p.m. 

Sunday, April 12, 2:00–3:00 p.m. 
Myths of the Self with Stephanie Brunia 
Brunnier Art Museum 

How do we depict ourselves and our experiences in the images we create and share? How do you make invisible emotions visible? 

Photographer Stephanie Brunia has built her career and artistic practice exploring these questions through deeply personal projects—from restaging Pre-Raphaelite paintings with diverse contemporary women (on view in Tell Me a Story), to documenting her relationship with her aging father in Thursday's Child, to her recent series examining motherhood and domestic life. An Iowa Arts Council fellowship recipient whose art has been featured in the Des Moines Art Center's Iowa Artists exhibition and shown at venues from Houston to Switzerland, Brunia discusses how she uses photography to create narratives drawn from lived experience. Learn about her visual storytelling process, how she approaches intangible concepts like mortality, time, family, and belonging through the camera, and why personal archives become art. 

Free and open to the public. 

Saturday, April 25, 10:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. 
Explore! Today Was a Fairytale 
Brunnier Art Museum 

Explore new stories and create your own at the Brunnier Art Museum. Activities and crafts for children and families focus on imagination and storytelling. Enjoy the exhibition Tell Me a Story and the many objects on view. Participants are encouraged to come dressed as their favorite fairytale character. 

Activities geared for grades K–5; all are welcome. Stop by any time during the three-hour window, while supplies last. No admission fee or registration. Free, easy parking. 

Thursday, April 30, 5:00–6:00 p.m. 
Tell Me a Story Roundtable Conversation 
Brunnier Art Museum 

Join Iowa State University faculty and University Museums in a conversational roundtable to learn about the impact of storytelling on teaching and research. In a conversation moderated by exhibition co-curator Michèle A. Schaal, professor of French, Iowa State University faculty discuss the impact of storytelling on teaching and research, along with personal connections to the objects on view in the Brunnier Art Museum exhibition Tell Me a Story. 

Moderator: Michèle A. Schaal, professor of French 

Panelists: 
Michael D. Bailey, distinguished professor of history 
Kenny Cook, Professor of English; Dean's Faculty Fellow in the Arts 
Rachel Meyers, associate professor of classical studies 
Amy Popillion, teaching professor, graduate faculty, human development and family studies 
Elisa Rizo, associate professor of Spanish 
Eulanda Sanders, chief strategist of innovation and entrepreneurship; Donna R. Danielson Professor in Textiles and Clothing 

Free and open to the public. 

Curator’s Statement 

Although all major artforms may be found in cultures across the globe, storytelling remains one of the oldest and most universal artistic expressions. Whether through reciting, creating, listening to, or reading tales, stories, old and new, impact everyone’s lives. From childhood on in, humans are told or make up their own stories. Some of these tales are transmitted from generation to generation and even date back to early human times. Many have also endured, albeit always transformed and adapted to their context. 

The purpose of the exhibition “Tell Me a Story” is to explore the enduring impact of folk, fairy, mythological, spiritual, and other tales, whether old or new, on humans across the globe, as well as these enduring global stories’ specificities and commonalities. This exhibition will feature objects from the University Museums Collections, highlighting both national and global tales and stories. The exhibition will demonstrate that despite cultural specificities and differences, storytelling shapes who we are and help humans understand themselves and the world around them. In short, tales are a pathway to human and global understanding.