THE POWER OF EXPERIMENTATION AT ELFRETH'S ALLEY
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The experience of collecting and validating archival information is the foundation of history: its creation, interpretation, and recording. Observers have built most public records based on what is present and absent in the assemblage of documents, images, and found objects in particular settings. An example of these processes is the record of Elfreth's Alley; a residential street considered a National Historic Landmark for its structures built between 1720 and 1830, that has been home to everyday Philadelphians for three centuries and is still a thriving residential community for artists, artisans, educators, entrepreneurs, and everything in between.
In this exhibit's experimental experience, the record of the Alley life has been deconstructed to expose the understanding and perception of personal narratives that offer alternative views of collective memory and public history. The experimental processes in the creation of these objects based on analog experimental photographic processes and algorithmic new media creations with partial unpredictable results have been used to analyze and question ideas of presence and absence of ethnic groups, the exercise of power and control, patterns of privilege assigned to race, gender and ethnicity, as well as concerns of domestic and child labor, environment, gentrification, and social networks, offering a rich description of the Alley. In the collaborative work with the museum professionals of the Alley, the artworks prepared for this exhibit have multiple intellectual, theoretical, and creative layers. They are metaphors, memorials, and personal interpretations motivated by the power and desire for experimentation in dialogue with the Museum spaces. They build a contemporary archival record of the Alley based on the interaction with the community and scholars of this historical place. [For more information about the artworks click on the icons]
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Windows, 2022
(21st-Century Stories)
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House # 135, 2022 (20th-Century Stories)
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Gladys, Elinor or Nettie, 2022 (20th-Century Stories)
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William Wright, 2022 (19th-Century Stories)
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Margt, 2022 (19th-Century Stories)
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Wanishi, 2022 (18th and 19th Century Stories)
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Feme Sole, 2022 (18th-Century Stories)
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For more information about Elfreth's Alley check:
Thanks to:
Board of Directors of Elfreth’s Alley, Residents of Elfreth’s Alley, Elfreth’s Alley Museum, Ted Maust, Jared Christopher, Jim Hadfield, Renzo Rospigliosi, Peter Wool, Isabel Steven, Seth Bruggeman, Erin Pauwells, Roderick Coover, Jille Mandel, Rebecca Michaels, Byron Wolfe, Chet Pancake, Shel S. Diaz, William Robertson, William Richards, Bernard Appelbaum, Robert Mahar, William Grace, Larry Sweigert, Lauren Kennedy, Alex O’Gorman, Adam de Paul, John Mendell, Michael Brantley, Charles Schulz, The Paper Lion Gallery, Rob and Sue Kettell, Eric and Patricia Silverman, Barbara Barry, Liz Welsh and Stephan Matanovic, Susan Poulton, Temple University, Tyler School of Art, School of Theater, Film and Media Arts - Temple University, Temple University Libraries - Special Collections Research Center
Board of Directors of Elfreth’s Alley, Residents of Elfreth’s Alley, Elfreth’s Alley Museum, Ted Maust, Jared Christopher, Jim Hadfield, Renzo Rospigliosi, Peter Wool, Isabel Steven, Seth Bruggeman, Erin Pauwells, Roderick Coover, Jille Mandel, Rebecca Michaels, Byron Wolfe, Chet Pancake, Shel S. Diaz, William Robertson, William Richards, Bernard Appelbaum, Robert Mahar, William Grace, Larry Sweigert, Lauren Kennedy, Alex O’Gorman, Adam de Paul, John Mendell, Michael Brantley, Charles Schulz, The Paper Lion Gallery, Rob and Sue Kettell, Eric and Patricia Silverman, Barbara Barry, Liz Welsh and Stephan Matanovic, Susan Poulton, Temple University, Tyler School of Art, School of Theater, Film and Media Arts - Temple University, Temple University Libraries - Special Collections Research Center