In February and March 2019 we worked with Redux Contemporary Art Center to explore Gullah ancestry, genealogy and stories through art. Using the results from the archaeological and DNA analyses as a source of inspiration, participants imagined ancestral spaces, cultures and stories. Free weekly workshops, facilitated by artists working with diverse media (Dontre Major, Arianne King Comer, Nic Jenkins and Quadre Stuckey pictured below), were available for elementary, middle and high school students and seniors.
In workshops with Peggie Hartwell, for example, students used collected materials, students to create textile art, where the fabric of their lives is literally woven into the work that they created and reflects their ancestry as much as their genetic history. Storytelling served as an audio backdrop in classes. Participants created meaningful public art that was displayed in the Community Art Exhibition at the Civic Design Center on Calhoun Street, in May 2019.