Troubling Images: Curating Collections of Historical Photographs

February 26, 2021
Mark Sealy, Director of Autograph A.B.P. and Principal Fellow Decolonising Photography at University of the Arts London
Makeda Best, Richard L. Menschel Curator of Photography, Harvard Art Museums
Ilisa Barbash, Curator of Visual Anthropology, Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Harvard University
David Odo, Director of Academic and Public Programs, Division Head, and Research Curator, Harvard Art Museums

Historical photography collections sometimes contain images that can be deeply troubling to contemporary viewers. What should be done with collections that include photographs of colonial violence, enslaved subjects, racist stereotypes, or other difficult imagery?

Join moderator David Odo and photography curators Mark Sealy, Makeda Best, and Ilisa Barbash for a conversation about the challenges and possibilities of curating legacy collections of photographs today.

Presented in partnership with the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology and the Harvard Museums of Science and Culture

Support for the lecture is provided by the M. Victor Leventritt Fund, which was established through the generosity of the wife, children, and friends of the late M. Victor Leventritt, Harvard Class of 1935. The purpose of the fund is to present outstanding scholars of the history and theory of art to the Harvard and Greater Boston communities.