Aligning Your Work and Practice with Stephanie Cunningham
Release Date: 04/25/2018
Responding to the Capitol Insurrection with Kayleigh Bryant-Greenwell
Cultura Conscious
What is the responsibility of museums in the wake of the Capitol Insurrection? Kayleigh Bryant-Greenwell, a DC-based cultural equity strategist, joins us to talk about how critical museums are in the struggle to dismantle white supremacy. We originally spoke with Kayleigh about her practice in late 2020 and planned to release that conversation on January 6, 2021. Instead, she graciously joined us for a new recording to process the violent images of that day, the care museum workers deserve from their institutions, and reflect on the power of collective action in this moment. Kayleigh...
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Building a Community Museum with Chelsea Ridley and Jonathan Kelley
Cultura Conscious
In community organizing work, there are no shortcuts or gimmicks, only relationships built on trust and continued investment. The Lawndale Pop-Up Spot is a community-led museum located in a shipping container at the Spaulding Memorial Garden, a community garden in Chicago’s North Lawndale neighborhood. Chelsea Ridley and Jonathan Kelley, the museum’s founders, trace the evolution of this project from an idea seeded in the classroom to a living space rooted in a collective vision. Along the way, they highlight moments of uncertainty, talk about forging authentic partnerships, and offer...
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Bonus Episode: Welcoming Collaboration
Cultura Conscious
In this mini-episode, Paula talks with Gwendolyn Fernandez, a recovering museum educator and fellow Museum Workers Speak organizer, about embracing collaboration and breaking up with your career. Gwen will be joining the Cultura Conscious team to produce a series of new episodes featuring inspiring museum and culture workers. Look for fresh conversations on the first Wednesday of every month. Gwen has a long fascination with what goes on behind the scenes to transform ideas into experiences that enrich our lives. As a museum educator, she focuses on developing programs, designing...
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Personal and Collective Grief with Diane Exavier
Cultura Conscious
Loss has been a constant over the past few weeks. Writer, educator and theatermaker Diane Exavier joins me to talk about personal and collective grief during a pandemic. We talk about how coping in our current moment requires some of the resiliency we’ve built through other experiences of loss, and yet those well-trodden maps still fall short of helping us navigate the present. Diane discusses how she’s processing being a writer right now, especially since she defines poetry as being about the encounter and being obsessed with the truth. Plus we finally get to talk about 90 Day Fiance, the...
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Our Need to Connect with Mayra Cecilia Palafox
Cultura Conscious
Mayra Cecilia Palafox shares with me why connecting with people and meeting their needs is so important to her. We discuss why humility is a useful practice for the present moment. When dealing with the uncertainty of a worldwide pandemic, what strengths do we have as cultural workers that prepare us to weather challenges as they present themselves? We also welcome a special guest, José Alfredo Guerrero, a musician and educator who reminds us of the strength and joy we gain from music. Show Notes: Instagram: @mayraceciliapalafox Instagram: @josealfredochicago...
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Storytelling Through Exhibits with Jackie Peterson
Cultura Conscious
Jackie Peterson, a Seattle-based exhibit developer and independent curator, is passionate about the ways exhibits can tell important stories in ways that are compelling to the public. Jackie grounds her practice on the trust she develops with communities whose stories she’s working to tell. Her research and development process adds another layer to the necessity of community engagement in cultural work. In particular, Jackie is invested in telling stories that benefit the black community and add nuance to the public’s understanding of African-American history. Like many of us invested in...
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Economic Development at the Border with Cristina Garza
Cultura Conscious
Cristina Garza, Director of Social Impact at Mission EDC, shares the journey that led her to leave her small town in Texas for New York City, to her various roles in museums, and then back to her hometown area working in local government. She reflects with candor on all the reasons it was important and necessary for her to move on from museums, including the skills she has developed in her new career that were once out of her reach. Through her work at Mission Economic Development Corporation, she is committed to improving the financial mobility of area residents and fostering community and...
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Docents as Educators with Stephanie Samera
Cultura Conscious
Docents play a vital role in museums across the country. As museum education departments change and evolve, tensions have surfaced on what the role of docents should be as teaching in museums becomes more specialized. Stephanie Samera, Lead for Gallery Learning at the , joins me to discuss all things docent. She shares how building genuine relationships with docents has allowed her program to flourish and how her museum’s unique vision for learning and visitor experience has spurred docents to take ownership over their teaching and professional development. We touch on the role of museum...
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What Does Success Look Like? with Anabel Roque Rodríguez
Cultura Conscious
Anabel Roque Rodriguez has been asking women in arts and culture this question for over a year. Anabel shares findings and reflections from her project so far. We touch on the power of solidarity and community in achieving success, especially for women, and how making choices that center well-being can illuminate professional and personal paths. We are frank about how job loss and institutional authority has affected our careers so far, plus how career healing is important and necessary. is an independent curator, art historian and writer currently based in Switzerland. She has curated...
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Live from MESC's Annual Institute with Elena Muslar
Cultura Conscious
Live episode recording from 's 2018 Annual Institute at the Skirball Cultural Center. My guest was , Assistant Director, Entertainment and Fine Arts Professions at Loyola Marymount University. Elena was so wonderful and insightful! Our discussion veered in many directions, including breaking down the buzz versus the actual work of social justice work in arts and cultural organizations and how that manifests from our individual selves to the field at large. Her experience in museums and now higher education is so valuable. If you need a pick me up, this is definitely the episode for you!...
info_outlineOn this month’s episode, Stephanie Cunningham shares her efforts to create alignment in her work after ten years of experience in the field. As a speaker, consultant, and educator, Stephanie has been a leading voice on race and equity in museums. After so many conversations, workshops and conferences discussing race and equity in museums, how far are we in achieving our goals? (Spoiler: we need to be reading a lot more!)
How have the principles of museum education guided her journey through different roles in cultural institutions and museums? Plus, I ask her to demystify the process of consulting for the rest of us.
Stephanie is an arts professional with over ten years in the field. She has written about her work for Curator: The Museum Journal and the Center for the Future of Museums as well as headlined talks about her endeavors at the American Alliance of Museums and Museum Next conferences. Her aptitude aligns with Museum Hue, an organization she cofounded that fosters the social cohesion well-being, and economic impact through the arts for people of color.
Reading:
Social Justice & Museums Resource List initiated by La Tanya S. Autry
Should I use the adjective "diverse"? by Alex Kapitan
For questions or feedback contact Paula Santos at [email protected].