Crania Americana and the Archive of Scientific Racism Exhibition Viewing
Event Details
Crania Americana And the Archive of Scientific Racism Exhibition Viewing
Tuesday, September 17, 2024 at 5:30 PM ET
In-Person Event | Free
Please join us for a Beyond Glass Cases exhibition viewing and reception for Crania Americana and the Archive of Scientific Racism, curated by former Library Company Fellow Paul Wolff Mitchell. This exhibition comprises part of Project Obtuse, a collaboration between the Library Company, Mitchell, and Jicarilla Apache artist Zachariah Julian, whose composition will premiere the following evening. Together, Mitchell and Julian examined the work of Samuel George Morton (1799-1851), whose papers reside, in part, at the Library Company. Morton is known today as among the most influential architects of scientific racism in the United States, both for his publications – most notably Crania Americana (1839) – and for his collection of nearly one thousand human skulls from across the world, amassed and measured during his lifetime to supply the “data” for these works. In this exhibition, Mitchell contextualizes the work of Morton and explores how Morton’s thinking developed and how his theories still affect us today. During this opening reception and viewing event, guests will have the opportunity to meet Mitchell and Julian and ask questions about their work.
Beyond Glass Cases is supported by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage.
