Join artist Bob Dilworth in assembling a community textile dedicated to Cato Vernon. Using fabric printed with photos created by Lead Artist Dominique Sindayiganza that trace Cato’s footsteps, the piece will develop throughout the 7-week residency with Bob leading workshops on four Saturdays in October.
Join artist Bob Dilworth in assembling a community textile dedicated to Cato Vernon. Using fabric printed with photos created by Lead Artist Dominique Sindayiganza that trace Cato’s footsteps, the piece will develop throughout the 7-week residency with Bob leading workshops on four Saturdays in October.
This book talk from author and historian Jan Lancaster will share the story of Arthur Bowler, an enslaved African, who lived in the house later called the Vernon House for at least a decade — before Cato Vernon’s time. She’ll discuss the clues available about his life in Newport, and his subsequent life in Portsmouth, New York, Nova Scotia and Sierra Leone. As a so-called Black Loyalist his life followed a very different trajectory from that of Cato Vernon.
Join Lois Harada for an artist talk about her practice, recent projects and her work on encouraging a name change for the RI holiday Victory Day.
Join artist Bob Dilworth in assembling a community textile dedicated to Cato Vernon. Using fabric printed with photos created by Lead Artist Dominique Sindayiganza that trace Cato’s footsteps, the piece will develop throughout the 7-week residency with Bob leading workshops on four Saturdays in October.
Join artist Lois Harada for a drop-in hands-on workshop featuring moveable, wood type and a printing press. Participants will set a word using antique letters, add ink in their favorite color, then make a unique print. No experience necessary and appropriate for children with adult help.
Created as part of a larger body of work titled Welcome Home, this series contributes to an ongoing exploration of the carceral experience in the United States. The broader project includes contemporary portraits and personal narratives of individuals impacted by incarceration today, situating these historical artifacts within a continuum of justice system experiences across time, which will be introduced at the artist talk.
In this special singing circle, we will sing songs from the American Revolution in honor of folks like Cato Vernon, who fought for personal and communal liberty.
Join artist Bob Dilworth in assembling a community textile dedicated to Cato Vernon. Using fabric printed with photos created by Lead Artist Dominique Sindayiganza that trace Cato’s footsteps, the piece will develop throughout the 7-week residency with Bob leading workshops on four Saturdays in October.
Cato Vernon's struggle for freedom reverberates throughout history. At this community reading, you and your neighbors will pick up a script and join the 1500, a group of sharecroppers and tenant farmers from the bootheel of Missouri, as they camp out on the highway to protest the failings of the president’s New Deal. Based on historical and familiar events from peoples who take to the road. Discussion to follow.
Though many people know that African heritage people served in the American Revolutionary War, we sometimes overlook the Narragansett and Wampanoag people who fought. In this presentation from Chrystal Mars Baker of the Tomaquag Museum we’ll learn more about their crucial contributions and the long history of Indigenous service.
Soul Value is an interdisciplinary, duet performance project created by April H. Brown and Jessica T. Pearson which brings to life the stories of New England Black women—Elleanor Eldridge, Elizabeth Freeman, and Margaret Kinnicutt—and the men of the 1st Rhode Island Regiment during and after the American Revolutionary War. Through a compelling blend of monologue, dance, ritual, and song, Soul Value illuminates the often-overlooked contributions of Black and Indigenous people in New England history, centering their advocacy, resilience, and determination to survive and thrive. The work invites audiences to engage with a more complete and inclusive understanding of the American story while creating meaningful connections between the past and the present.
