Can you talk a little bit about The John Nicholas Brown Center for Public Humanities and Cultural Heritage at Brown? How did it come to be and what is the mission of the Center?
Brown's M.A. degree in public humanities offers a unique program of study for those interested in public engagement and the work of cultural organizations. Founded as the John Nicholas Brown Center for the Study of American Civilization in 1979, and part of Brown University since 1995, the Public Humanities Center is the leading graduate program in the Public Humanities. In addition to its coursework in digital humanities, preservation and heritage, museum skills, public art and nonprofit management, the Center develops research initiatives, exhibitions and public programs with local and national partners in public history, culture and the arts.
How do you feel Gallery Night Providence impacts the community in Providence?
Providence has such a deep and rich arts community; without a lot of open studios events that get people into studios in Providence, GNP provides the public an easy way to be in touch with the arts and culture scene.
What is next for the JNBCPH? Do you have an off-season show?
For the first part of 2020, we have two exhibitions coming that we are very excited about. Defiant Spirits (January 31 - April 17, 2020) is an exhibition of the award-winning photo-journalist Fernando Brito's portraits of life in Sinaloa, Mexico, showing both the ravages of the drug wars and the resilience of the local community. Brito and the show's curator, Didier Aubert, will participate in a panel conversation about the work at the Public Humanities Center on Monday, April 6 at 5pm, so mark your spring calendar!
The Providence Album, Vol II: 1970-1979 will open in early May; it follows our exhibition on Providence in the 1960s in the spring of 2019 with a look at the city during another intense decade of change, featuring some never-before exhibited photographs of this city in transition.
What would you like to see from GNP moving forward?
Keep doing what you are doing -- working to make GNP a terrific learning and social experience that brings people out to some of the city's most creative spaces. Maybe expand to operate year-round?