First Division Museum: Duty First

This permanent exhibit endeavors to connect citizens and soldiers in a meaningful and personal way. To accomplish this, Brave New Pictures interviewed 29 current and former First Infantry Division soldiers on topics pertaining to Deterrence, Battle, Peacekeeping, Counterinsurgency, and Military Assistance. The soldier’s service ranges from conflicts in Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan, to peacekeeping in the Balkans and to cold war era exercises in Europe. From these interviews BNP produced more than 125 Soldier Stories that are presented on four life-size touchscreen monitors mounted vertically on the corners of a Blackhawk helicopter – the focal point of the gallery.

The Chicago Tribune wrote “The museum doesn’t hammer home patriotism.  It doesn’t need to. What’s underscored here is deeper than wearing an American flag pin in a lapel, say. It’s something fundamental to the idea of the nation.”