"Silent Sam, Chapel Hill" by artist Ben Hamburger
The Vision
RECKONING
THROUGH ART
Public art is a vehicle for reckoning and change, a way to imagine healing, establish a common vision and build community. In 2018, the Center for the Study of the American South at UNC established a movement to create public art that imagines a shared future. The first phase of our collective effort is “Reckoning with Silent Sam.” In this first phase, we invited teams of artists to propose design concepts for public art projects that envision UNC’s future.
Our vision is a safe, equitable and inclusive UNC campus in a region that is actively reckoning with the American South’s truths and paradoxes.
As faculty, staff, and students advocated for the removal of UNC’s Confederate Monument (“Silent Sam”), they offered an opportunity to bring creativity to the forefront of our discussion as we address these questions.
How to Imagine the Future
Artists Reimagine
behind the vision
Artists Meet the Moment
Individual artists, duos, and groups submitted proposals for this initiative. We awarded five grants for artists to produce creative projects. We hope their work initiates a different kind of dialogue about UNC and engages in a sustained process of using creativity to reckon with racism at UNC and in the American South.
