CV

MFA Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois
MA University of Missouri, Kansas City
BA University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa
Lives in the US with studios in New York and in Providence and works on location internationally

Selected Honors and Awards

Artist Residency (Invitational), Art Source, Fremantle, Western Australia, 2014
International Biennial, Darmstadt, Germany, 2013
Invitational Grunewald Biennial, Berlin, Germany, 2011/12
Invitational International Biennial, Internationalen Waldkunstpfad, Germany, 2010/11
Edwin Austin Abbey Fellowship, National Academy Museum, NYC, New York, 2009
American-Scandinavian Foundation Project Grant, 2009
Brown University Creative Arts Council Faculty Grant, 2008
Embassy of the US Iceland, 2006
Fulbright Hays Grant, 2003
Ragdale Foundation, 2000,1999, 1998
Fulbright Senior Scholar Award, 1994-95
National Endowment for the Arts/KS Art Com., 1992
Yellowstone Association for Natural Science, History, and Education Grant
Yellowstone National Park, 1992
American-Scandinavian Foundation Award, 1991

Selected One-Person Exhibitions

2015

Racine Art Museum. Installation up for one year. Brochure.
Dean Jensen Gallery, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Joan Backes, Strathnaver, Scotland, Angela MacKay, curator.
Joan Backes/Carpets of Leaves, Lessedra Gallery, Sofia, Bulgaria.

2014

Cutlog, New York, Site Specific Installation, “Paper Mache Trees”, presented by Yellow Peril Gallery.
SCOPE New York International, Special Project, presented by Yellow Peril Gallery, “Cardboard Trees” and “TREE, New England” by Joan Backes.
Beach Museum of Art, Manhattan, Kansas. Brochure. (Installed for one year)
Studio 21 Fine Art, Halifax, Nova Scotia, CA.

2013

Francine Seders Gallery, Seattle, Washington.
Torrance Art Museum, Torrance, California. Brochure.

2012

Dedee Shattuck Gallery, Westport, Massachusetts. Book.
Newport Art Museum, Newport, Rhode Island. Book.

2011

Dean Jensen Gallery, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Catalogue.

2010

sleeper Gallery, Edinburgh, Scotland. Brochure.

2009

Linnaeus Garden, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden. Brochure.

2008

Dean Jensen Gallery, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Catalogue.
LA Contemporary Gallery, Los Angeles, California. Catalogue.

2007

Gallery of the Faculty of Painting, Sculpture and Graphic Arts, Silpakorn University, Bangkok, Thailand. Brochure.
Thomas McCormick Gallery, Chicago, Illinois.
Nova Scotia College of Art and Design University, Halifax, NS, Canada.
University Gallery, Salve Regina University, Newport, Rhode Island. Brochure.

2006

SAFN Museum, Reykjavik, Iceland. Brochure.

2005

Rauma Art Museum, Rauma, Finland. Catalogue.

2004

Wright Museum of Art, Beloit College, Beloit, Wisconsin. Catalogue.

2003

Hafnarborg Institute of Culture and Fine Art, Iceland. Catalogue.

2002

Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire.

2001

Jan Weiner Gallery, Kansas City, Missouri.

2000

Braitmayer Art Center, Marion, Massachusetts.

1999

Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.

1998

James Baird Gallery, St. John’s, Newfoundland.
Hafnarborg, Institute of Culture and Fine Art, Iceland. Brochure.

1997

Centro Cultural Recoleta, Buenos Aires, Argentina. Brochure.
Virginia Lynch Gallery, Tiverton, Rhode Island.

1996

Museum of Contemporary Art, Santiago, Chile. Catalogue.

1995

Virginia Lynch Gallery, Tiverton, Rhode Island.

1994

Dorry Gates Gallery, Kansas City, Missouri.
Nordic Heritage Museum, Seattle, Washington. Catalogue.
Rahr-West Art Museum, Manitowoc, Wisconsin. Brochure.

1993

Charles A. Wustum Museum of Fine Arts, Racine, Wisconsin. Brochure.

1992

Gallery 72, Omaha, Nebraska.

1991

Hafnarborg Institute of Culture and Fine Art, Iceland. Brochure.

1990

Dorry Gates Gallery, Kansas City, Missouri.

Selected Group Exhibitions

2015

Peabody Essex Museum, Branching Out, Jane Winchell, Curator. Salem, MA.
Differences of Identity, curated by Efthalia Rentetzi in conjunction with the Venice Biennial.
Jamestown Art Center, Burning Down the House, curated by Robert Stack, Yellow Peril Gallery, RI.

2014

Branching Out: Trees as Art, Peabody Essex Museum, Curator Jane Winchell, Salem, Massachusetts. (one-year installation)
Art Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark, presented by Artspace, Basel, Switzerland.
Home Construction: Backes (and Moore, different title) Grimshaw-Gudewicz Gallery, Fall River, Massachusetts.

2013

Locally Made, Museum of Art, Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, Rhode Island.
New Acquisitions, Smith College Museum of Art, Northampton, Massachusetts.
Looking After Trees, The Art Center / Western Colorado, Grand Junction, Colorado.
Crossing the Line: A Collection of Drawings, Gallery of the Institute Library, New Haven, Connecticut. Stephen Vincent Kobasa, Curator.
Urbanity, Mobility, Freedom, Darmstadt, Germany. Catalogue.
Geopark Benches, Hessen, Germany.

2012

Contemporary Drawing, New Bedford Art Museum, New Bedford, Massachusetts. Catalogue.
Highlights of the Year, Francine Seders Gallery, Seattle, Washington.

2011

International Biennial Berlin / Grunewald, Berlin, Germany.
Big, Big Bangs, Dean Jensen Gallery, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Four Forest Artists, Merck, Darmstadt, Germany.
International Print Exhibition, Lessedra Gallery, Sophia, Bulgaria.

2010

International Biennial and Symposium: Internationaler Waldkunstpfad, Darmstadt, Germany.
Baltimore Museum of Art Contemporary Prints & New Editions, Baltimore, Maryland
Botanica, Hunterdon Art Museum, Clinton, New Jersey.
Gallery Benoit, Boston, Massachusetts.

2009

Arbores Venerabiles, Glyndor Gallery, Wave Hill, Bronx, New York.
Art Chicago/NEXT, Chicago, Illinois.
The Intimate Page, Portrait Society, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Edwin Austin Abbey Fellowship Exhibition, National Academy, NY, New York.
The Decorata Project: Three Artists, Three Installations, Bristol Art Museum, Bristol, Rhode Island.

2008

Nature Interrupted, Chelsea Art Museum, New York, New York. Brochure.
Big, Big Bangs, Dean Jensen Gallery, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

2007

Faculty Exhibition, Bell Gallery, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island.

2006

Nature Interrupted, New Bedford Art Museum, New Bedford, Massachusetts. Brochure.
drawing _ 2, The Foundry, London Biennial, London, England.
Ragdale Anniversary, Chicago Cultural Center, Chicago, Illinois.

2005

Summarize, Jan Weiner Gallery, Kansas City, Missouri.
Magnificent Extravagance, Racine Art Museum, Racine Wisconsin.
Scapes, Virginia Lynch Gallery, Tiverton, Rhode Island.

2004

A Forest Somewhere, Dean Jensen Gallery, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
From Nature, BCC Gallery, Fall River, Massachusetts.
Contemporary Drawing, U. of Nebraska Galleries, Lincoln, Nebraska.
Hands to Work, Mind to God, Borusan Art Museum/Foundation, Istanbul, Turkey.

2003

Artists and the Cultivated Landscape, Racine Art Museum, Racine, Wisconsin.
20 Years, Virginia Lynch Gallery, Tiverton, Rhode Island.

2002

Natural Selections: New England Artists Interpret Nature, Newport Art Museum, Newport, Rhode Island.
Art Educates the World, Exhibition to benefit the Fulbright Legacy Fund, Sotheby's, New York, New York.

2001

Seascapes, Virginia Lynch Gallery, Tiverton, Rhode Island.
Garden Art, RISD Museum, Providence, Rhode Island.
Artists Alumni, Block Museum, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois.
Artists Examine Myth, Wustum Museum of Fine Arts, Racine, Wisconsin.

2000

Snapshot, Contemporary Museum, Baltimore, Maryland.
In the Spirit of Landscape, V, Nielsen Gallery, Boston, Massachusetts.
Virginia Lynch, A Curatorial Retrospective, Rhode Island School of Design, Rhode Island Foundation Gallery, Providence, Rhode Island.
Drawing and Painting, Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri
Artists Interpret Geography and Time, Charles A. Wustum Museum of Fine Arts, Racine, Wisconsin. Catalogue.
Fire and Ice, Attleboro Museum, Center for the Arts, Attleboro, Massachusetts.
Works From Nature, Virginia Lynch Gallery, Tiverton, Rhode Island.
All You Can See, Wendy Cooper Gallery, Madison, Wisconsin.

1999

Landscape, University Art Gallery, UMass Dartmouth, Dartmouth, Massachusetts.
Collage Artists, Clark House Gallery, Bangor, Maine.
Virginia Lynch Gallery, Tiverton, Rhode Island.
Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, Illinois.

1998

Libertad, Diversidad, Pluralismo, Museum of Contemporary Art, Santiago, Chile.
Ragdale/Cliff Dwellers, Borg-Wagner Building, Chicago, Illinois.
Still Light II, Jan Weiner Gallery, Kansas City, Missouri. Border Crossings, James Baird Gallery, St. John’s, Newfoundland.

1997

Lisa Parker Fine Art, New York, New York.
Waking to the World, Fulbright Anniversary Exhibition, Meridian International Center, Washington, D.C. Catalogue.
Generations, New Bedford Art Museum, New Bedford, Massachusetts. Catalogue.
Dryden Galleries, Providence, Rhode Island. Curated by Virginia Lynch.

1996

a:e,iuo, Centro Cultural Recoleta, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Contemporary Landscape, Virginia Lynch Gallery, Tiverton, Rhode Island.
Just Add Water: Artists and the Aqueous World, Charles A. Wustum Museum of Fine Arts, Racine, Wisconsin. Catalogue.

1995

Imagining Angels, Howard Yezerski Gallery, Boston, Massachusetts.
Painting, Dorry Gates Gallery, Kansas City, Missouri.
Total Solar Eclipse-A Collaboration, Boston Museum of Science, Boston, Massachusetts.
Landscape Invitational, Jan Weiner Gallery, Kansas City, Missouri.

1994

Whitten, Palliard, Manzalla, and Introducing Joan Backes, Virginia Lynch Gallery, Tiverton, Rhode Island.
Boxes: Artists Respond to the Object, University of Nebraska Gallery of Art, Lincoln, Nebraska.
The Aesthetics of Athletics: Sports, Games and Exercise, Charles A. Wustum Museum of Fine Arts, Racine, Wisconsin. Catalogue.

1993

International Artist's Book Collaborations, Alverno College, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Catalogue.
Ut Pictura Poesis, Mulvane Museum of Art, Washburn University, Topeka, Kansas. Catalogue.
Summer Invitational, Dorry Gates Gallery, Kansas City, Missouri.

1992

Beyond Bounds, Johnson County Community College Gallery of Art, Overland Park, Kansas.
International Artist's Book Collaborations, Parkland College, Champaign, Illinois. To tour through 1993 ending at Alverno College, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Catalogue.
Portrait Salon, Dolphin Gallery, Kansas City, Missouri.
Summer Invitational, Dorry Gates Gallery, Kansas City, Missouri.

1991

Summer Invitational, Dorry Gates Gallery, Kansas City, Missouri.

1990

Midlands Invitational 1990: Painting and Sculpture, Joslyn Art Museum, Omaha, Nebraska. Catalogue.
Paschke Picks, Betty Rymer Gallery, School of the Chicago Art Institute. Invitational Exhibition curated by Ed Paschke.
The Nature Conservancy Show, Katie Gingrass Gallery, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Selected Bibliography

The Providence Journal, Art from Yellow Peril Gallery to Chase Away Summer Blahs, by Bill Van Siclen, Arts, July 30, 2015.

Mercury/The Newport Daily, The Home Stretch, illus., by Alexander Castro, June 30, 2015.

Peabody Essex Museum blog, numerous color illus., by Meg Winikates, January 23, 2015.

The Chronicle Herald (Halifax, Nova Scotia) Art inspired by home, natural life, by Elissa Barnard, Illus.,p.13, September 27, 2014.

Bedford + Bowery, Joan Backes Papiér Mâché Trees, by Scott Lynch, illus., May 12, 2014.

Artribune (Italy),New York Updates, illus., May 11, 2014.

artnet, Fun Frieze Week Guide, by Benjamin Sutton, May 5, 2014.

Standard Times (New England), Perfect pairing… by Keith Powers, Coastin’ cover image and illus, pps. 8 and 9, March 20, 2014.

Grandlife Guide to Scope New York, review by Lori Zimmer, March 6, 2014.

artnet, SCOPE New York 2014, by Benjamin Sutton, Friday, March 7, 2014.

New England Home, (Feature Article) In Her Nature, by Lisa E Harrison, pp. 38-45, numerous color illus., November/December, 2013.

Yale Daily News, New Haven, CT. Lines and Letters, by Dalia Wolfson, October, 18, 2013.

reinMein, Germany, Vogelfrei zwischen Darmstadts Grün, by Dörthe Krohn, August 26, 2013.

www.echo-online.de, Kunstspaziergang auf fremden Rasen, August 17, 2013.

Post Independent / Citizen Telegram, The Art Center, by Camille Silverman, Grand Junction, Colorado, July 3, 2013.

Art New England: Contemporary Art and Culture, SPOTLIGHT REVIEW - Joan Backes: Home, Newport Art Museum and Dedee Shattuck Gallery, by Stephen Vincent Kobasa, p. 65, illus., July/August, 2012.

Standard Times, (New England), Exhibition illuminates the many facets of drawing, by Don Wilkinson, p.B1, October 20, 2012.

Sunday Standard-Times (New England), Backes Probes Concept of 'Home,' by Don Wilkinson, p.E2, July 22, 2012.

Mercury, (Newport, Rhode Island), Home is Where the Art Is, by Mary Mack, p.13, illus., May 30-June 5, 2012.

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Seeing ourselves through the trees Backes layers work with meaning, by Mary Louise Schumacher, CUE, pp. E1 & 4, illus., May 1, 2011.

Shepherd Express, Jensen Gallery’s Illuminating ‘Murmurs in the Trees’, by Peggy Sue Dunigan, p. 25, illus., May 26, 2011.

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Art blends fantasy, nature, by Sara Mulloy, illus., April 14, 2011.

expressmilwaukee.com, The Art of Making Art, by Peggy Sue Dunigan, Art Talk, April 17, 2011.

Shepherd Express, Art Talk, by Peggy Sue Dunigan, January 6, 2011.

Deutsche Press.de, 5 Internationaler Waldkunstpfad, illus., September 8, 2010.

Offenbach-Post, (Germany), Playing With Perceptions, by Reinhold Gries, p1 Kultur, illus. August 31, 2010.

Frankfurter Allgemeine, (Germany), House of Sticks.., by Jan Schiefenhovel, p. 57, illus. August 21, 2010.

Frankfurter Rundschau, (Germany),Transplant Under the Trees, by Helen Knust, p.21, August 1, 2010.

Darmstadt Echo, (Germany), The Forest House, by Charlotte Schnitsphan, p.17, iillus. July 29, 2010.

ART IN AMERICA, Joan Backes, by Constance Mallinson, p.153, illus. March 2009.

Upsala Nya Tidning, (Sweden), Stilt House is Installed in Linnaeus Garden, by Sebastian Johans, Kultur, illus., May 13, 2009.

Upsala Nya Tidning, (Sweden), Beautiful Art Around the Corner, by Sebastian Johans, Kultur, pB4, illus. July 18, 2009.

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Big, Big Bangs, by Mary Louise Schumacher, CUE p.4E, Jan. 8, 2009.

Vital Source, A Poem as Lovely as a Tree, by Judith Ann Moriarty, illus. Nov, 20, 2008.

artcritical.com, Nature Interrupted, by Jonathan Goodman, illus. Sept. 2008.

MANAGER Daily, (Bangkok, Thailand), by Pornpimol Pomsuwan, p.36, illus., Dec. 25, 2007.

Bangkok Post, Celebrating Nature, by Samila Suttisiltum, Outlook p.8, illus., Dec. 20, 2007. (Bangkok, Thailand)

Newport Mercury, Safe Arbor, by Lisa Utman Randall, p 16, illus., Sept. 12-18, 2007.

The Chicago Tribune, Joan Backes, Paper House, by Alan Artner, p16/sect.7, July 13, 2007.

Time Out, (Chicago, Illinois), Joan Backes, by Lauren Weinberg, p.68, illus., July12-18, 2007.

The Providence Phoenix, Perspectives, by Bill Rodriguez, p.13, February 2, 2007.

Morgunbladid, (Iceland), Cataloguing the Forest, by R. Sigurdsdottir, p.19, illus, July 19, 2006.

Lansi-Suomi, (Finland), Joan Backes by Johanna Krappe, p.14, illus, Nov.12, 2005.

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Trio Plants Environment in Their Art., by James Auer, Aug.3, 2004.

The Providence Journal, …show in Fall River is Second Nature, by Bill Van Siclen, p.18, illus. June 3, 2004.

Morgunbladid, (Iceland), Tre, by R.Sigurdardottir, p. 22,Jan.16, 2003.

Newport This Week, (Newport, RI), Natural Selections, by S. Strong, Arts, Oct.16, 2002.

The Kansas City Star, Natural View, by K. Hackman, Preview Art, p.22, illus., Aug. 3, 2001.

REVIEW, (Kansas City, MO), Man and Nature, by Jan Marsh, illus. Vol.3, No.9, July, 2001.

The Standard Times, (New Bedford, MA), Intimate Exhibit is Rewarding, by D. Boyce, Arts & Entertainment, pp. 1 & 6, Nov. 5, 2000.

The Chronicle Herald, (Halifax, NS, CA), Audio, Video, and Visual Exhibit a Thought-Provoking Blend of Art, by E. Barnard, p.2, Jan. 29, 1999.

Arts Atlantic Magazine, (Canada), no. 62, Joan Backes, by C. Koch, pp. 16 & 17, illus., Fall/Winter 1998-99.

The Kansas City Star, Second ‘Still Light’ Offers Variety and Depth, by E. Kirsch, Preview/Art, p.42, illus. P. 41, July 17, 1999.

The Evening Telegram, (St. John’s, Newfoundland), U.S. Artists Explore Newfoundland Imagery, Sunday Digest, p. 15, June 21, 1998.

Art New England, Virginia Lynch Gallery, by A. Faxon, pp. 58 & 60, Dec/Jan 1998.

Buenos Aires Herald, (Buenos Aires, Argentine), Landscape as Symbol, by Marta Garsd, p. 6, illus., July 14, 1997.

El Chronista, (Buenos Aires, Argentine), An Aesthetic View of Inapprehensible Natural Phenomena, by E, Grinstein, Arts & Culture, p. 26, illus., July 2, 1997.

The Providence Journal Bulletin, Art Wrapup, by B. Van Siclen, Section E, p. 1, June 13, 1997.

El Mercurio, (Santiago, Chile), Exhibition in July, by W. Sommer, Arts and Letters, p. E13, illus., July 28, 1996.

The Providence Journal, The More the Merrier, by Bill van Siclen, p. F8, December 15, 1995.

New Art Examiner, Joan Backes, by B. Waterman Peters, p. 40, illus. Feb., 1994.

The Kansas City Star, Artist Shifts Attention Skyward, by Alice Thorson, p. J4, illus., May 8, 1994.

Forum Magazine, Ut Pictora Poesis, by Barbara Waterman Peters, p. 5, November 1993.

The Kansas City Star, What We Hold on to and What We Give Up, by Steve Paul, Arts, January 24, 1993.

Omaha World Herald, Painter Creates "Timeless Pieces" From Rocks, by Kyle MacMillan, p.16, Entertainment, November 8, 1992.

DV, (Reykjavik, Iceland), Raw and Imposing Landscapes..., August 9, 1991.

Timinn, (Reykjavik, Iceland), Joan Backes at Hafnarborg, p.5, August 9, 1991.
Iceland Television, 1919 (Reykjavik, Iceland), Interview with the Artist, by Sigridur M. Vigfusdottir, August 12, 1991.

Forum Visual Arts/Mid-America, Manifestations in Stone: The art of Joan Backes and The Nordic Soul, Contours of Foreign Ground: A Personal Essay, By Robert Stewart, pp. cover, 7-9, January/February, 1991.

Morgunbladid, (Reykjavik, Iceland), The Mystic Landscape, by Erikur Porlaksson, p. 11, August 24, 1991.

Morgunbladid, (Reykjavik, Iceland), Simple Stones Shrouded in Mystery, by Havar Sigursson, p. 1B, August 17, 1991.

New Art Examiner, Paschke Picks, by Andy Argyropoulos, p.43, December, 1990.

The Sunday World Herald, Joslyn Invitational a Fine Example of Midlands Art, by Kyle MacMillan, p. 18, Arts and Entertainment, September 23, 1990.

Chicago Tribune, Gallery Scene, by David McCracken, p. 74, Friday, Weekly Guide, Section 7, October 5, 1990.

Selected Publications

Understanding Narrative Inquiry, by Jeong-Hee Kim, pps. 84-88, illus. 3.1; 3.2; 3.3; ©2016 Sage Publications, 341pages.
De krant van gisteren, by Koos Staal, published by Staal & Duiker Ontwerpers, The Netherlands, ©2013.
Joan Backes: Images and Essays, book published in conjunction with exhibitions at the Newport Art Museum and Dedee Shattuck Gallery with the same title - "Joan Backes: Home".
"Joan Backes: Artistic Intermediary", by Katherine Murrell, Dean Jensen Gallery, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, ©2011.
"Joan Backes Trees and Houses", by Peter Frank, L.A. Contemporary. Los Angeles, California, ©2008.
"Bamboo House: Joan Backes", by Sutee Kunavichayanont, PSG, Bangkok, Thailand. ©2007.
"A Voyage Through Forest", by Janne Koski, Rauma Art Museum, Finland, ©2005.
"Joan Backes", by Gerald Nordland, Wright Museum of Art, ©2004.
"Pleasure in a Pathless Wood", by Jon Proppe, Hafnarborg Art Museum, ©2003.
Hafnarborg 1988-1993, by Petrun Petursdottir, pub., Felagsbokdandid, Iceland, 2005.
Letter From the Living, Chapbook One, by Robert Stewart with illustrations of paintings by Joan Backes, pub. Borderline. Big Blue Prairie Editions, 1992.

Selected Teaching

Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island.
Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
Maine College of Art Graduate Program, Portland, Maine.
Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, Rhode Island.
Kansas City Art Institute, Kansas City, Missouri.
Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois.

Selected Visiting Artist

School of the Chicago Art Institute, Chicago, Illinois, 2016.
Ripon College, Ripon, WI, 2015.
Pace University, New York, New York, 2014.
Tyler School of Art / Temple University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 2013.
School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois. 2012.
Milwaukee College of Art and Design, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 2011.
Hunter College, New York, New York, 2010.
Salve Regina University, Newport, Rhode Island, 2009.
Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 2008.
Silpakorn University, Bangkok, Thailand, 2007.
Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, 2007.
Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, Rhode Island, 2005, 2006.
Beloit College, Wisconsin, 2004.
Hafnarborg Institute of Culture and Fine Art, Iceland, 2003.
Pori College of Art, Pori, Finland, 2001.
University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth, Dartmouth, Massachusetts, 2001.
Hafnarborg Institute of Culture and Fine Art, Iceland, 2001.
Tomlinson Fellow in the Visual Arts, Braitmayer Arts Center, Marion, Massachusetts, 2000.
Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, 1999.
Hafnarborg Institute of Culture and Fine Art, Iceland. 1998.
Northern Illinois University, Dekalb, Illinois, 1998.
Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, 1996.
University of Chile, Santiago, Chile, 1994-95.
University of Nebraska, Lincoln, Nebraska, 1994.
Mulvane Art Museum, Symposium Panelist, 1993.
University of Missouri-Kansas City, 1993. 2000.
Yellowstone National Park, 1992
Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, 1990.

Selected Professional Experience

Backes has curated exhibitions in Chicago continuing this work in over thirty group and one person Museum exhibitions in Northeastern United States.
Serves on the Board of the Sarah Doyle Gallery, Brown University.
Served on the Board of the Ragdale Foundation.
Served on the College Arts Association Selections Committee for the Distinguished Teaching of Art Award.
Served on the Selections Panel for Fulbright Senior Scholar Awards.

Selected Public Collections

Aberdeen Art Galleries and Museum, Aberdeen, Scotland
Beach Museum of Art, Manhattan, Kansas
Boston Public Library, Boston, Massachusetts
Brown University, John Hay Library, Providence, Rhode Island
Citicorp, Chicago, Illinois
Deloitte and Touche, Chicago, Illinois
Deltak Incorporated, Chicago, Illinois
Embassy of the United States, Reykjavik, Iceland
Fidelity, Boston, Massachusetts
Hafnarborg Institute of Culture and Fine Art, Iceland
International Minerals and Chemical Corporation, Chicago, Illinois
International Biennial, Berlin, Germany (permanent installation)
International Biennial, Darmstadt, Germany (permanent installation)
Internationales Waldkunst Zentrum Gallery, Darmstadt, Germany
Nerman Museum of Art, Overland Park, Kansas
Joslyn Art Museum, Omaha, Nebraska
Kansas Arts Commission, Topeka, Kansas
Kansas City Art Institute, Kansas City, Missouri
Lawrence Art Center, Lawrence, Kansas
Linnaeus Garden, Uppsala, Sweden (permanent installation)
Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Mulvane Museum of Art, Topeka, Kansas
Nelson-Atkins Art Museum, Kansas City, Missouri
Newport Art Museum, Newport, Rhode Island
Nova Scotia College of Art and Design
Peacock Printmakers, Aberdeen, Scotland
Racine Art Museum, Racine, Wisconsin
Rauma Art Museum, Finland
Reykjavik Art Museum, Iceland
RISD Museum of Art, Providence, Rhode Island
SAFN Museum, Reykjavik, Iceland
Scottish Postal Board
Silpakorn University, Bangkok, Thailand (permanent installation)
Smith College Museum of Art, Northampton, Massachusetts
Spencer Museum of Art, Lawrence, Kansas
Sprint, Kansas City, Missouri
Wright Museum of Art, Beloit, Wisconsin
Yellowstone National Park

Gallery Representation

Yellow Peril Gallery, Providence, Rhode Island.
Dean Jensen Gallery, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.”