‘Sites of Memory: Bulbancha and Mi’kma’ki’ runs Oct. 11-16
Tulane’s Mellon Foundation–sponsored Sawyer Seminar, “Sites of Memory: New Orleans and Place-based Histories in the Americas,” co-organized by Adrian Anagnost and Mia L. Bagneris, art history professors at the School of Liberal Arts, presents its final events in the multipart series from Oct. 11–16.
“Sites of Memory: Bulbancha & Mi’kma’ki” centers on preservation of community and memorialization of historic sites imperiled by climate change-driven land loss in maritime Canada and southeastern Louisiana.
On Oct. 11, students, staff, faculty and community members are invited to a free screening of Mi’kmaw documentarian Catherine Martin’s The Basket Maker at 6 p.m. in Stone Auditorium in the Woldenberg Art Center.
On Oct. 12, the virtual panel: “Advancing Climate Adaptation and the Reality of Trade-Offs,” will be hosted by FEMA’s Resilient Nation Partnership Network at a screening at noon in Room 201 of the Woldenberg Art Center. A panel discussion will follow.
Finally, on Oct. 16, a daylong site-visit of disappearing lands in Terrebonne and Lafourche parishes, including the Theriot Lock and Golden Meadow, Isle de Jean Charles, and Dulac, will be offered. This event is open to 20 guests, and registrants must RSVP by emailing Miriam Taylor at mtaylor11@tulane.edu. The event will run from 9:45 a.m.–5:30 p.m., with snacks, lunch and transportation provided. Attendees will be guided to the sites by Janie Verret Luster, who will serve as the guide, and guest speakers and council members from the United Houma Nation will be present.
“Sites of Memory” is supported by a grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. It is a yearlong site-specific inquiry that engages scholars, artists and activists in exploring changing historical narratives in New Orleans and the greater Gulf South region.
It takes New Orleans as a key case study for a broader understanding of settler-colonial, formerly slavery-fueled economies in the Americas, using the theme of site-based public history and memorialization.
Combining scholarship and public history, the seminar examines accretions of myth and memory at contested sites of public history such as heritage sites, plantations and historic houses, monuments and memorials, “historic” districts, and site-specific artworks.
This final “Sites of Memory” seminar about Bulbancha & Mi’kma’ki invites participants to learn how those experiencing loss of place develop practices of persistence and presence amidst ongoing recovery from hurricanes Ida and Ian.
More information and registration for the events can be found here.
The 2021/ 2022 Sawyer Seminar at Tulane University is organized by the Newcomb Art Department and School of Liberal Arts and sponsored by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
