Local Artist's Portraits of American Veterans on Display At Library

Everyone has a story, and Algonquin artist Jeanine Hill-Soldner is using her talents to help tell the stories of local American veterans. Hill-Soldner’s exhibit “Portraits of American Veterans Project: A Continuing Dialogue” is currently on display at the through the end of February.

Hill-Soldner, now 54, began painting when she was 12 years old. She has a master’s degree in art education from the University of Illinois-Urbana-Champaign and has experience teaching art and art history, but for now she is focusing on her latest project. “This is where I am now,” she said, “painting portraits of veterans and working in my studio.”

Hill-Soldner comes from a military family: Her father, Sgt. Maj. Dan L. Hill, was a career U.S. Marine and served in WWII, Korea, and twice in Vietnam. He passed away in 1993 due to prostate cancer, and Hill-Soldner began concentrating more on war stories and images in her artwork. The result was a large collection of oil paintings called “Memories of an Era” which was first showcased at the National Veterans Art Museum in Chicago in 2007.

In 2009, Hill-Soldner began working as a volunteer with the Vet Art Project in Chicago. Through this organization, she met American veterans who wished to tell their story. “They are all different ages, and they all have very different stories,” said Hill-Soldner.

After exhibiting the first four portraits, Hill-Soldner says the response was overwhelming. "Several hundred people came to the reception," she said. "So many people were interested in it."

The veterans who wish to be included meet at her Crystal Lake studio, and Hill-Soldner gets to know their story. She’ll then spend up to two hours creating a basic portrait on a 40 by 30 inch canvas. After that, she takes photographs and uses those to complete the portrait, which will take an average of 60-80 hours. She has even included a portrait of her sister, Sharon Sprenger, who was in the air force for four years and spent time as a peacekeeper in the Philippines.

In the foreground of each painting is a collection of memorabilia that are significant to the featured veteran. “It’s like a still life,” Hill-Soldner said. “I use those to help try to tell their story.” Whether it is a collection of medals, a copy of the Constitution, or an old photograph, she uses these items to help connect the image of the veteran to the back story that makes each veteran unique.

Hill-Soldner was a board member of the Algonquin Friends of the Library for seven years. Recently, the board’s vice president, Virginia Fryre, mentioned to Hill-Soldner that the library was looking for art to display from January to February. Fryre said that she’d love to show Hill-Soldner’s portraits, so she put her in touch with Deb Morton, the public relations manager for the library who helps arrange art exhibits. “The portraits are so revealing into the character of each veteran,” said Morton. “It’s something that really touches the community.”

Hill-Soldner is sensitive to the fact that many veterans she works with have post-traumatic stress disorder and disabilities. “This is partly a healing project,” said Hill-Soldner. “It’s really hard for some veterans to talk, especially combat veterans. This is therapeutic."

Family members of the veterans are often thankful to Hill-Soldner for giving these veterans the chance to open up and share stories they’ve never been able to tell before. "You see tears that have never flowed before,” she said.

With 17 portraits finished, Hill-Soldner already has three more veterans lined up. After she has 20 finished, she may consider a traveling exhibit of her project. She will also be showing her portraits at McHenry Country College later this year, and she has permanent collections of her work throughout the Chicagoland area.

Jeanine Hill-Soldner will also be discussing her Portraits of American Veterans Project at the Algonquin Area Public Library on Sunday, February 20 from 2-3:30 p.m. Some of the veterans depicted in the paintings will also be on hand to share their stories. The event is free, but registration is recommended. You can register at www.aapld.org.