We’re entering the final stages of Tryon Palace’s Inclusive Public Art Project, a monument honoring the Black artisans and craftspeople of Craven County.
This project has been a three-year journey—one that has given me the opportunity to work closely with the community of New Bern, North Carolina, while learning about the people, stories, and histories that have shaped the city. It has also been an opportunity to explore some of the lesser-known and often overlooked histories of Black craftsmanship and entrepreneurship in the region.
The monument was inspired in part by Crafting Lives: African American Artisans in New Bern, North Carolina by Catherine W. Bishir. The book provided an important foundation for understanding the lives and contributions of Black artisans who helped build and shape New Bern, yet whose stories have not always been fully represented in the public landscape.
Our goal with this project has been to create more than a monument. We wanted to create a space for discovery—one that honors the past while using contemporary technology to connect audiences with these histories in new ways.
The work incorporates interactive and Augmented Reality elements that allow visitors to engage with additional stories and historical information through a virtual lens. In this way, the physical monument becomes a portal into a larger narrative, creating opportunities for audiences to learn, explore, and connect with the people being honored.
Working on this project has reminded me of the importance of public art as a tool for storytelling. Monuments can preserve memory, but they can also challenge us to ask whose stories have been remembered, whose have been overlooked, and how we can create new ways of bringing those histories into the present.
I’m incredibly grateful for the opportunity to contribute to this project and to learn from the New Bern community throughout the process.
A special thank you to my colleague, sculptor, and creative partner Stephen Hayes, whose collaboration, craftsmanship, and vision have been an essential part of bringing this work to life.
After three years of research, design, collaboration, fabrication, and community engagement, we’re finally approaching the finish line.
Stay tuned for the completed monument and more about the stories behind the work.
