Histories on Public Display: Queens and Protests

My name is Eve Barden, I am an upcoming second-year graduate student in the Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures, Film and Media Studies Program, pursuing an Interdisciplinary Ph.D. degree in Film and Media studies with a concentration in Russian film and animation.

This summer, due to the efforts of Pitt’s Humanities Engage initiative, I was given a chance to work as a remote intern at Monument Lab, a non-profit independent public art and history studio located in Philadelphia, PA. The core mission of my host organization is to work with artists, students, activists, municipal agencies, and cultural institutions on exploratory approaches to public engagement and collective memory, while cultivating and facilitating critical conversations around the past, present, and future of monuments.

The two exciting projects I am currently taking part in at Monument Lab are as follows. One is to research and document current protests at or about public monuments for one of the lab’s databases, which, needless to say, turned out to be an acutely important and timely undertaking due to current societal and political developments. The second assignment I am currently working on is a creative project called Queens Who Rule (QWR), where my role is to help edit and produce a series of educational videos on historical topics intended for the general public that are related to under-represented women in history. The project is devised by Dr. Patricia Eunji Kim, Ph.D. (History of Art and Archaeology) as a multi-media public history platform that “brings life to the art, stories, and political experiences of women throughout history, specifically centering on the stories and voices of ancient royal women from Asia, Africa, and the Mediterranean world.” This type of work I am undertaking at Monument Lab is an ideal amalgamation of the research and production skills that I have acquired at Pitt and broadly throughout my academic and artistic career. Moreover, I have a chance not only to hone these skills invaluable on the job market, but also to positively impact the critical mission of Monument Lab, which, simply put, is to change the way we view history while using creative research methods to challenge the existing systems of power and influence public conversations in generative ways. Especially in this historical moment, critical discourse and action around monuments are bringing about tangible paradigm shifts in collective opinions and subsequently forcing regional administrations around the country to finally re-think and re-contextualize over- and under-represented histories on public display.

I was eager to apply for (and happy to accept) this invaluable and timely opportunity. The practical experience I am gaining this summer at Monument Lab is especially valuable for me as a production-focused media studies scholar, as I am striving to prepare myself for humanistic careers inside and outside of academia, which will require film/video production and archiving skills. Second, during these uncertain times in connection with the global COVID-19 pandemic, this remote professionalization opportunity was a great practical head-start towards working out more sustainable and resilient ways of day-to-day operation and professional communication with colleagues and peers.

Eve Barden
Slavic Languages and Literatures, Film and Media Studies Program
July 27, 2020
 

For my reflections post-immersive, please see A Rare Glimpse into a New Field and Old Histories.

Learn about all the Summer 2020 Immersive Fellows and their experiences with their host organizations.