The cowboy, that rough and tumble icon of the American West, will be celebrated as part of First Friday events on Feb. 2 at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln.

The Great Plains Art Museum will hold a special opening reception for its new exhibition, “Cowboys from the Collection,” from 5 to 7 p.m. Feb. 2. The event is free and open to the public.

The exhibition features many iterations of the cowboy ranging from portraits to action scenes. Photographs by L.A. Huffman, Charles W. Guildner, and George Tuck capture working cowboys. Romaticized versions grace canvases by Olaf Wieghorst, Frank Tenney Johnson, and Thomas Hart Benton and in bronzes by renowned cowboy artists Charles M. Russell and Frederic Remington. Even a cowboy president and a few cowgirls make appearances. In the Wunder Library on the mezzanine level, visitors can browse through the Museum’s collection of Western novels.

Learn more about the exhibition.

Other campus venues participating in the First Friday art walk include:

• Sheldon Museum of Art, 5 to 7 p.m. — Sheldon will offer a variety of programs and activities highlighting current exhibitions. Learn more about what is on display in the museum.

• International Quilt Study Center and Museum, 4:30 to 7 p.m. — The museum will host a 5:30 p.m. performance by the First Nebraska Volunteers Brass Band. The ensemble offers living history, education and musical entertainment by portraying the original First Nebraska Volunteer Infantry Regiment. The band wears Union infantry uniforms and plays period music from Civil War band publications.