Monumental Shift
Kirk Savage
When art historian Kirk Savage tucked a provocative suggestion into his 2009 book, “Monument Wars,” he figured it would go ignored or be written off as untenable. But, to his surprise, the public art world was ready to embrace the idea of ephemeral monuments.
For Savage, the William S. Dietrich II Professor in the Dietrich School’s Department of History of Art and Architecture, producing ephemeral, or temporary, public art is an opportunity to sidestep the often inscrutable process of placing permanent memorials and monuments and to tap into fresh ideas and more diverse voices.
The idea caught the attention of the National Capital Planning Commission in Washington, D.C., and Paul Farber, a co-founder of Monument Lab. Over the past several years, the planning commission and the public art nonprofit, alongside the Trust for the National Mall, have grown that idea into Beyond Granite, an initiative designed to “create a more inclusive, equitable and representative commemorative landscape on the National Mall.” The inaugural exhibition, Pulling Together, funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, placed work from six contemporary artists of color in and around the Lincoln Memorial and Reflecting Pool.
Savage, who has been studying the impetus and impact of public monuments and memorials for nearly three decades, was thrust into the spotlight in 2017 as the country grappled with the future of Confederate monuments. He became an in-demand expert, offering analysis and insight.
Savage’s contention has always been that permanent, public art should reflect the experiences of the many rather than the specific agendas and ideals of a few. Only then can art truly represent history rather than obscuring it. One way to accomplish that goal is to engage the public in the planning process. Another is to commission temporary works from a range of artists to “speak to society as its needs and perspectives change,” says Savage. Monument Lab seeks to do both.
Savage is also co-authoring a book with his wife, Elizabeth Thomas, about a group from the Cherokee Nation who were able to escape the Trail of Tears. Until now, that story has focused largely on Thomas’ great-great grandfather, a white man who acted as their agent, rather than the hundreds of Cherokees who took great risks to fight the relocation. He also authored a magazine article about a North Carolina man who, upon his death, gifted his land to the enslaved people who worked it as an act of reparation. The family had the will reversed in court, establishing a long-debated civil rights law in the state.
Though neither project specifically involves public art, they pull on the same thread that runs through all of Savage’s research—seeking to give voice to those who history made voiceless. “They’ve been drowned out for too long,” Savage says.