Black Memory Scholar: The Language of Storytellers Opening Reception

Black Memory Scholar explores the legacy of Black scholarship in art, literature, and design. The exhibition traces the position and discoveries of staff member Jada Simone Haynes as an artist and memory worker engaged with ancestry, identity, and memory. As both curator and subject, Black Memory Scholar maps their relationship to these themes within the collection they care for. 

Not long enough ago, Black Americans were denied access to reading, writing, and formal interactions with letters. Yet, they found powerful alternatives to preserve and transmit their legacies. These constraints often led to the most compelling forms of creativity and storytelling. At the heart of this work are Black women and femmes, often the original archivists of Black life, who carry the responsibility of preserving lineage through oral histories, family rituals, and community practices. 

Black Memory Scholar takes place in a cultural moment where there are many efforts to publicly discredit, erase, or undermine Black intellectual and creative contributions. In response, this exhibition foregrounds art and design as a site of remembrance and resistance. Featuring works from Letterform Archive alongside selections from Haynes’ personal and family collection, the exhibition showcases how creatives protect, preserve, and envision Blackness of the past, present, and future.