University Libraries to host exhibition of artist Karen Blessen’s journals

The thoughts, life and creative process of artist Karen Blessen are revealed in a new exhibition at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln Libraries. “The Muck, the Seeds, the Weeds, the Blossoming: The Journals of Karen Blessen” features 24 of her personal journals recently donated to the libraries’ Archives and Special Collections.

Karen Blessen

Opening Sept. 18 and running through February 2026, the exhibition is the first time journals of the Pulitzer Prize-winning graphic artist will be on view. The exhibition is on the second-floor link of Love Library and is accessible during Love Library’s normal hours of operation. The public is invited to an opening reception, 5 to 6:30 p.m. Sept. 18.

“We are deeply honored and grateful to receive this generous donation from a Pulitzer Prize–winning artist and UNL alumna,” said Richard Graham, chair of teaching partnerships in UNL Libraries. “Karen’s materials are more than a gift — they are a gateway for students, scholars and readers to engage with journaling, the visual process, and art and memoir at its highest level. This unique collection offers insight into the creative process and spirit and will inspire creativity and meaningful dialogue for generations to come.”

Born and raised in Columbus, Nebraska, Blessen graduated from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in 1973 and became an artist, writer and freelancer for 10 years before working at The Dallas Morning News from 1984 to 1989. While at the newspaper, Blessen became the first graphic artist to win a Pulitzer Prize (1989) as part of a story team that produced the special section “Anatomy of an Air Disaster: The Final Flight of 50 Sierra Kilo,” which explained why the airliner crashed. In 2005, she founded 29 Pieces, an arts organization based in Dallas, and she serves as its executive artistic director. The organization developed an arts-based curriculum, “Artists Making a Kinder World,” which is used by more than 1,500 teachers in 24 states and Washington, D.C.

Blessen’s journaling began after graduation, and by 2025 her consistent practice had produced more than 155 journals. In May, she donated 25 of the journals, from 2013 to 2022, to the university.

“It was an intuitive decision and need,” Blessen said. “I wanted them to be preserved.”

Blessen was also interested in exhibiting them to inspire students to carry on the same practice. She said she has no qualms about openly sharing her story, but she has redacted parts that refer to other people.

“(The journals) tell the good, the bad and the ugly,” she said. “They talk about my artistic life. They talk about my personal life, and they talk a lot about how I strategize to get through these real gut punches, the times that are hard, and how I don’t get too elated when something wonderful happens. The journals have given me a way to chart my path.”

Karen Blessen

The gardening metaphor apparent in the exhibition theme is deliberate.

“I'm a gardener, and the metaphor of gardening has directed my artistic life and my life as a leader of a nonprofit arts organization,” Blessen said. “There's so much to learn from nature as far as lessons in symbiosis, in mutualistic relationships, in tolerance and patience.”

The team working on the exhibition includes Camilo Sanchez, curator of exhibitions at the International Quilt Museum. Blessen recruited Sanchez with a cold call after being impressed with his exhibition designs and typography.

Sanchez said his job is “to bring the ideas down to reality.” He met with the Libraries Exhibit Committee and visited possible spaces within Love Library, assessed the supplies needed, determined where to position the cases, did the graphic design and installed the exhibit.

In the cases, the journals will be open to pages that Blessen selected, and both she and Graham worked on the labels.

Blessen said visitors will encounter a couple things she does while journaling: pages where she poses a question and then writes the answers using both hands to activate different parts of the brain; and the persistent Jesus Prayer, which Blessen said serves several purposes.

“It's an ancient prayer that I say or write a lot: ‘Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on us,’ or ‘have mercy on me,’” she said. “It serves the purpose of connecting me with the divine name in a very speedy way. It also, I feel, connects me with the millions of people who have said that specific prayer throughout the last centuries.” 

The exhibition is a signature event of the Pages to Paths: A Celebration of Our Libraries initiative to celebrate the history, raise awareness and co-create the future of UNL Libraries.