Monuments & Memorials: An Oregon Humanities Conversation Project
As long as humans have sought to honor the present and remember times past, we have built monuments and memorials. Our traditions around monuments and memorials have changed over time. Today, each monument prompts many questions: What should be remembered, and why? And who gets to decide? This interactive Community Conversation is co-sponsored by Oregon Humanities, as part of their "Beyond 250" community conversations, and by the City of Lake Oswego, Respond to Racism, and the Arts Council of Lake Oswego in conjunction with the upcoming Echoes of Belonging public art installation.
This community conversation will be facilitated by Master Artist Michael Bernard Stevenson Jr., who identifies as Black, Italian, Queer, Nonbinary, Neurodivergent and practices primarily in America. Their collaborative approach results in artwork by and for the people. Stevenson’s practice has been dedicated to supporting young people in kindergarten through collegiate educational settings develop skills to encourage advanced imaginative thinking and self-confident expression. In 2019 they developed the Afro Contemporary Art Class at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. School, which has had many forms since, including Afro Futurist February and three years of Fred Hampton Summer Camp. Their recent work “Mapping the Pipeline” was shown at the Portland Institute for Contemporary Art as part of the Policing Justice exhibition. Stevenson is currently working in the Albina community to develop a living archive at Jefferson High School with students, community, and the architectural design team. Stevenson has been involved in conversations surrounding Portland monuments since 2020 and continues to interrogate how the city explores remembering our most significant characteristics as a community of people living life at the same time and in the same place.
This event is free, but registration is required, as the program is limited to 25 participants. To register, please complete the form on the righthand side of this page. For more information, contact Allison Arnold at aarnold@lakeoswego.city and 503-534-5665.
This event will take place in the Trillium Room on the lower level of the Adult Community Center, located at 505 G Avenue, Lake Oswego.
