Marquette University celebrates 125 years by looking at the big picture of the university… actually, 42 pictures to be exact. “Marquette Then and Now: Images Celebrating 125 Years of Faith and Learning in Action” pays tribute to the achievements and overall growth of Marquette throughout the years.

The exhibit runs until April 1 at the Haggerty Museum of Art. Contributors to the exhibit include the Department of Special Collections, University Archives, the Instructional Media Center and the Haggerty Museum of Art.

The display features historic pictures that have been digitally reprinted alongside recent pictures that capture the same component of campus. With an emphasis on the “then and now” aspect, photographers retook the pictures from the same angles.

“Originally, the idea was take an archive picture and try and recreate it,” said Dan Johnson, official university photographer. Instead, Johnson decided to first find themes that are relevant on campus today, and then match them with older pictures.

One such example of this striking similarity is a picture of a Peace Corps student in the 1960s, which was then matched with a current picture of a student’s service trip to Honduras.

“This pair reflects especially the Cura Personalis that Marquette wishes to be known,” said Annemarie Sawkins, associate curator at the Haggerty Museum of Art.

Johnson, who has photographed Marquette for the past 30 years, collaborated on the project with Matt Blessing, director of Marquette’s Special Archives and member of the 125th committee. Blessing approached Johnson with the idea for the exhibit a year ago.

For the past year, Johnson and other photographers took pictures of the aspects of Marquette that still capture its early beginnings. The photos document many different features of Marquette’s campus, including its evolution throughout the years.

The physical makeup of Marquette’s university grounds was captured with pictures of Schroeder Hall, first as a busy street and now a part of Marquette’s greening campus.

Pictures of women’s sports at Marquette also displayed the changes prior to Title IX of the Education Amendment, which allowed women’s sports teams. The most prominent change reflected in the photo display is the advancement of technology on campus. In one example, an archive photo shows a crowded Memorial Library filled with students studying. In a current photo, however, a student studies on the bridge of Raynor Librarywhile listening to her iPod, using her BlackBerry and working on her laptop.

“The photographs reflect the various acts of Marquette students have and continue to participate in throughout the years,” said Sawkins.

The Haggerty Museum of Art is privileged to display this historic exhibit.

“Haggerty is one of many collaborating on Marquette’s campus and using it as an opportunity to celebrate,” said Sawkins.

Others see the exhibit as an opportunity not only for the museum, but also for students and faculty as well.

“I think it’ll be interesting for anyone not affiliated with Marquette,” said Lynne Shumow, Curator of Education at the Haggerty. “It’s a great opportunity for faculty and students to learn about Marquette what they didn’t know before.”

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