Sam Durant
The Meeting House, 2016
Art & the Landscape / The Trustees
The Old Manse
July - October, 2016
“My proposal is to focus on the African presence in colonial and post-revolutionary Concord. It seeks to make the connection between our difficult past, slavery and segregation, to the fact that we are still today unable to create the just society that our revolution promised.” Sam Durant
The Old Manse has a storied history. Built in 1770, it became the center of Concord, Massachusetts’ political, literary, and social revolutions in the mid-19th Century. A National Historic Landmark sited near the banks of the Concord River and the North Bridge, it is recognized as a gathering place for the Transcendentalists, and as the site where the first shots of the Revolutionary War were fired.
In a field next to Old Manse, Durant erected The Meeting House, a contemporary pavilion, which was a venue for a public dialogue about the legacy of slavery and the difficult subject of race. In the spirit of 19th Century, a series of public “Lyceum” events were hosted and conceived by the artist. The gatherings at The Meeting House were developed in collaboration with local organizations to encourage visitors to engage in difficult and critical discussions on systemic forms of discrimination and racial bias. Programming included workshops, readings, and discussions focused on African American writing, philosophy, music, food, and spirituality. As a means to extend the Lyceums, organizations and individuals were invited to use The Meeting House as a venue for discussions about the legacy of race.
Open House was intended to broaden the conversation by providing a venue for community groups to meet and discuss these issues inside the pavilion. Durant further extended the discourse via artistic interventions on site, utilizing objects located within The Old Manse, as well as via provocative signs placed throughout the property. In this manner, The Meeting Housesimultaneously presented an opportunity for discussion and tested our tolerance to deal with difficult topics.
Lyceum and Open House Events:
Lyceum I: The Picnic, August 13, 2016
Food on the table brings families and communities together. This event, in partnership with Haley House, dealt with food culture as a means to start a willing dialogue of healing.
Featuring: Fulani Haynes, nurse, musician, organic farmer and food justice activist.
Open House: Making Visible the Invisible – Restoring Black Lives and History, Saturday, September 17, 2016
This program focused on two exemplary late 18th-early 19th century Black Concordias, Thomas Dugan, successful yeoman farmer and Ellen Garrison, educator and activist.
Presenters: David would/Curator Concord Museum, Maria Madison/President of Board of Directors of Robbins House, Sandra Harbert Petrulionis/Penn State Altonna, Professor of English and American Studies
Lyceum II: Poetry Reading, September 24, 2016
A select group of leading poets were invited to compose new work specifically for a reading at The Meeting House at The Old Manse. Writers responded to Concord and The Old Manse’s rich literary political and social history. They also choose to respond to issues left out of the official narratives, imagining futures where the promise of 1776, the 1860s and 1960s are fulfilled.
Featuring: Kevin Young, Danielle Legros Georges, Robin Coste-Lewis, Tisa Bryant
Open House: A House of My Own: A Musical Narrative by Castle of Our Skins, October. 8
“A House of My Own” explores the concept of whom through a black lens. Home of the blackbody, home of the Plaquemine, home of the oppression through the walls of a prison cell and the homebound with one’s community and culture. Told by Boston’s concert and educational series dedicated to celebrating black artistry through music. Castle of our skins weeds together poetry and music by leading black luminaries both past and present.
Lyceum III: A New Framework for Dialogue, October 15, 2016
While explicitly racist policies and structures have been dismantled, systemic forms of racism and inequality remain. It is time to change perspective, to use science and experience to reveal how we think, instead of what we think. In collaboration with Tim Phillips and Beyond Conflict, the Meeting House will function as a venue for a dialog that utilizes shared experience as a means to develop a framework to engage in productive discussions about race.
Moderator: Tim Phillips
Barbara Lewis – Director, Trotter Institute for the Study of Black History and Culture, UMass Boston; Adam Foss, prosecutor and juvenile justice reformer; Penny Outlaw, Co-President Royall House and Slave Quarters; Giled Sher, Former Chief Israeli Negotiator in Camp David Peace Talks.
Lyceum IV: New England Town Hall Meeting, October 16
In the spirit of a town hall meeting, the public was invited to share their thoughts about the Meeting House. After 3 lyceum events, it was time for the experts to quiet down and allow the public to speak. The artist and curator were present but did not make any formal presentations. They were there to listen and respond if needed. Mary Jane Jacob, curator and professor at The School of the Art Institute Chicago, moderated the conversation.
Commissioned by the Trustees as part of Art & the Landscape, Sam Durant’s The Meeting House was installed on the historic grounds of The Old Manse in Concord, MA.
Guest Curator: Pedro Alonzo
IG @studiosamdurant / samdurant.net
Photo credits: Alex Jones, Above Summit