Representation & the Public Record will convene artists, historians, and designers to draw out the intersection of two key themes: how individuals and groups are represented in public discourse, media, and institutions, and the role of public records in shaping this representation. The day will include presentations and conversations with artists delving into practical aspects of investigative journalism, archival research methods, and data analysis. Presenters include Bilal Ansari, Heather Hart, Michael Hartman, Jeffrey Gibson, Steve Locke, Jami Powell, and Nate Young.

Saturday, March 15, 2025
All presentations are held in Club B10 (Building 10, 3rd Fl.) unless otherwise noted.

9:30 am Coffee, tea, snacks

10:00 am Welcome – Lisa Dent, MASS MoCA Director of Public Programs

10:15 am In Conversation with Nate Young and Steve Locke to discuss how their personal research contributed to projects in the Like Magic and Steve Locke: the fire next time exhibitions.

11:30 am Heather Hart, artist and co-founder of Black Lunch Table (BLT), will share the origins and current status of this radical archiving project. BLT’s mission is to build a more complete understanding of cultural history by illuminating the stories of Black people and our shared stake in the world.

12:30 pm Lunch

1:30 pm Mariam Ghani and Chitra Ganesh discuss their collaborative project, Index of the Disappeared, an archive that foregrounds the difficult histories of immigrant, ‘other,’ and dissenting communities in the U.S. since 9/11, as well as the effects of U.S. military and intelligence interventions around the world. Through official documents, secondary literature, and personal narratives, the Index archive traces the ways in which censorship and data blackouts are part of a broader shift to secrecy which allows for disappearances, deportations, renditions, and detentions on an unprecedented scale.

2:00 pm In Conversation with Jeffrey Gibson and Jami Powell
Throughout the run of Jeffrey Gibson’s exhibition POWER FULL BECAUSE WE’RE DIFFERENT, the project hosts a series of performances by Indigenous creatives across North America. Join us for a conversation about the naming and recognition of these artists in the public record.

3:00 pm 18th c. Williamstown – Bilal Ansari, Assistant Vice President for Campus Engagement and Director of the Davis Center at Williams College
Bilal Ansari will present his research into the White Oaks neighborhood of Williamstown in the 18th and 19th centuries.

3:45 pm Break

4:00 pm Jami Powell and Michael Hartman – MASS MoCA Director of Public Programs Lisa Dent talks with curators Jami Powell and Michael Hartman of the Hood Museum of Art, editors of the just-published Reenvisioning Histories of American Art: Transforming Museum Practice (University of Washington Press). A progress report and a how-to guide, this collection includes approaches from art history, anthropology, gender, sexuality, and ethnic studies to consider the flawed past and inclusive future of how American art is displayed and taught.

5:00pm Artist Reception – the Research & Development Store

Steve Locke, A Partial List of Unarmed African-Americans who were Killed By Police or Who Died in Police Custody During My Sabbatical from Massachusetts College of Art and Design, 2014-2015, 2016, Vinyl lettering and neon. Photo credit Jon Verney.