News

MCE Affirms that Black Lives Matter

Thu, 11 Jun 2020 09:56:07

June 11, 2020

The CWU Museum of Culture & Environment affirms that Black Lives Matter. We acknowledge the systemic racism and structures of white supremacy that have built universities and museums.

We recognize the need to move forward and to be accountable to this history. And we want to do so in ally-ship, supporting Black students and faculty. Because museums should not speak for/over the communities whose material culture resides in their collections. Rather museums should be a forum for amplifying their voices whenever and wherever possible.

We acknowledge that the Museum would not exist without exploitative legacies of colonialism that have resulted in collecting, displaying, and appropriating the material culture and Traditional Knowledge of peoples around the globe. We acknowledge that the land our Museum sits upon was ceded by the Yakama in 1855—this fact must inform everything we do.

We are here to answer the call and to be held accountable to the actions outlined by Dr. Kandee Cleary, CWU’s Vice President for Inclusivity and Diversity.

We will collaborate with educators across CWU—from general education to the Graduate School—to provide hands-on, experiential, and collaborative programs/exhibits that promote equity, ally-ship, restorative justice and for recognizing the pervasive impacts of bias, discrimination, and structural racism.
We will promote racial equity not just in programs/exhibits but across our museum—in how we care for the collections, in how we train interns, and in our strategic planning.
We will reach beyond the CWU campus to connect to communities that are among the most underserved populations in the country.

We will think carefully about the work we do how it can address issues of race and inequity more directly. We will draw upon expertise among faculty, staff, and students who are experts in the field of racial equity to develop opportunities to address white fragility, white privilege and white awareness.

We will think hard about the systems and policies we work with every day and flag those things that may have inadvertent consequences for people or, worse, latent biases.
We will seek out the training to help us better understand our own biases and ways to better serve colleagues, students of color, and communities of color.
We will dig deeper when we see students of color at risk, fight harder for them, and let them know it matters to us that they are part of CWU.

Exhibit by Jane Orleman featured at CWU Museum

Thu, 03 Oct 2019 16:30:53

The Central Washington University Museum of Culture and Environment (MCE) is holding a preview of three new exhibitions for Fall 2019 at an opening reception on at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, according to a news release from CWU.

In the main gallery, viewers will see “Telling Secrets: An Artist’s Personal Journey Through Family Trauma,” which features the paintings and stories of well-known Ellensburg artist Jane Orleman. In this exhibition, Orleman addresses her experiences of childhood sexual violence and other forms of domestic abuse. Through therapy and painting, Orleman comes to terms with the past, accepts her emotions, and imagines a healing future.

As a survivor of abuse, Orleman seeks to empower other survivors, “Verbal, physical, and sexual violence in the home is a closely guarded secret. The first step in stopping crimes against ourselves and our children is to acknowledge the truth.”

The MCE will also be recognizing the new Window on Central display, “Monkeys Do . . . We Do Too?,” which showcases the research of CWU primatologists who studied Tibetan Macaques at Mt. Huangshan, China.

And finally,” Shattering the Veil: A Reclamation of Female Indigenous Identity” is a photography exhibit located in the MCE lobby, curated by CWU student Autumn Adams (Yakama Nation). Shattering the Veil invites viewers to examine how Indigenous women use culture to empower themselves in spaces of oppression.

The reception will include light refreshments and a few words of acknowledgment to honor the curators, artists, and researchers who made each exhibition possible.

The MCE is located in Dean Hall on the CWU campus, 1200 Wildcat Way. The MCE is open Wednesday – Friday 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. and Saturday 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. Parking on the CWU campus is free after 5:30 p.m. and on weekends. For more information, email museum@cwu.edu or call 509-963-2313.

CWU’s Museum of Culture & Environment Offers an Event-Full May

Wed, 08 May 2019 10:48:54

Displays and exhibitions exploring Peruvian dance and guitar, Latinx pioneers, and the art of yarning fill out the schedule during the month of May at Central Washington University’s Museum of Culture & Environment.

On May 11, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., learn about native Peruvian dance during an interactive workshop with Fabiola Serra, lifelong dancer and director of Ellensburg dance group TusuyPeru! Try out Peruvian dance techniques while also exploring the cultural roots of these dances. Show off your dance skills, learn something new, or just spend time with family and friends.

There is a $10 suggested donation for the dance workshop, with all proceeds going to “Kids at the Crossroads Peru,” an organization that works to end poverty in Peru.

The following Wednesday, May 15 at 5:30 p.m., the MCE hosts “Triunfar: Moving Forward.” This will conclude the MCE’s Window on Central series, Being the First: Latinx Pioneers in Public Service, for 2018–2019.

Throughout the year, student researchers involved in this project have interviewed a diverse group of Latinx leaders throughout the Pacific Northwest, including entrepreneurs, journalists, and public servants. Along the way, they expanded their research into a new project, “Triunfar,” which means to not only succeed in an endeavor, but to triumph!

Join the MCE and the “Triunfar” students for food and conversation, while considering both the challenges and triumphs shared by interviewees. Topics will include: What is the future for Latinx communities at CWU and beyond? And how do the Triunfar students envision the legacy of their research for future generations at CWU?

Join the MCE again on May 23 at 5:30 p.m. for Peruvian Guitar with John Paul Shields. This will be a musical expedition of Peruvian guitar as he plays and provides some cultural background. Shields spent 2 1/2 years in Peru studying guitar, including a year’s study with the late virtuoso Raúl García Zárate, who was listed as one of the top 15 cultural contributors to Latin America.

Finally, wrap up spring quarter with the Spin-in @ the Museum event on June 1 from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Yarn spinners and non-spinners are invited to attend.

The Spin-in will help participants learn how to make yarn. The museum will provide materials and teach the basics. Those who already know how to spin can bring your own spindles, spinning wheels, and join the MCE for an afternoon of fiber-y fun.

All events are free and open to the public, though there is the $10 suggested donation for the May 11 dance workshop.

For more information contact the MCE at Museum@cwu.edu or (509) 963-2313. The MCE is located at 1200 Wildcat Way in Ellensburg and parking is free on Saturdays. You can also view the MCE’s website, cwu.edu/museum or Facebook page, facebook.com/CWUmuseum.

Media contact: Dawn Alford, Department of Public Affairs, 509-963-1484, Dawn.Alford@cwu.edu.

Civil Rights Exhibit, Events Examines Race in the U.S., Jan. 20-March 16 at MCE

Wed, 30 Jan 2019 13:38:14

In 1955, shortly after 14-year-old Emmett Till was murdered by white supremacists in Mississippi, his grieving mother, Mamie Till-Mobley, distributed a gruesome black-and-white photograph of his mutilated corpse to newspapers and magazines.

The mainstream media rejected the photograph as inappropriate for publication, but Mobley was able to turn to African-American periodicals for support. Asked why she would do this, Mobley explained that by witnessing with their own eyes, the brutality of segregation, Americans would be more likely to support the cause of civil rights.

For All the World to See: Visual Culture and the Struggle for Civil Rights, a nationally-touring exhibition from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEH) on the Road, will be at the CWU Museum of Culture & Environment (MCE) from January 30 thru March 16, 2019.

A companion exhibit that situates this history within the Pacific Northwest, discussing civil rights struggles and activism at home, will be open from February 1 thru February 28 in the Diversity and Equity Center (DEC), Black Hall 105-1.

Through a compelling collection of photographs, television clips, art posters, and historic artifacts, the exhibit traces how images and media disseminated to the American public transformed the modern civil rights movement and jolted Americans, both black and white, out of a state of denial or complacency.

Visitors will explore dozens of forceful and persuasive visual images, including photographs from magazines, such as LIFE, JET, and EBONY; CBS news footage; and TV clips from The Ed Sullivan Show. Also included are civil rights-era objects that exemplify the range of negative and positive imagery—from Aunt Jemima syrup dispensers and 1930s produce advertisements to Jackie Robinson baseball ephemera and 1960s children’s toys with African American portraiture.

For All the World to See is not a history of the civil rights movement, but rather an exploration of the vast number of powerful images that influenced how Americans perceived race and the struggle for equality.

Throughout winter quarter, the MCE, in conjunction with CWU’s Africana and Black Studies and the DEC, is hosting a series of events that address themes from the exhibition to include:

• Jan. 31, 5 p.m. Opening Celebration – Music, food, and speakers to honor the opening of For All the World to See

• Feb. 19, 5 p.m. Being Black in Ellensburg – A safe space for CWU’s black students, faculty, and staff and Ellensburg community members to share stories.
Location: Wellington Events Center

• Feb. 21, 5 p.m. Un/Belonging: Can People of Color Call Ellensburg “Home”? – A panel featuring the voices of people of color in our community as they reflect on living in Ellensburg.

• Feb. 28, 5 p.m. Intersectionality and Solidarity: A Roundtable Discussion with Masonya Bennett, PhD – Join Bennett along with a diverse group of students, faculty, staff, and community members as they consider new forms of solidarity going forward.

Also offered are tours of For All the World to See, led by CWU black student leaders from CWU’s Black Student Union, S.I.S.T.E.R.S., Brother 2 Brother, and Scholars in Action. These tours, called “Walking in Our Shoes,” are open to the public and will take place during the following dates and times:

• Feb. 7, 5 p.m.
• Feb. 14, 3 p.m.
• Feb. 21, 11 a.m.

For All the World to See: Visual Culture and the Struggle for Civil Rights was curated by Maurice Berger, research professor and chief curator at the Center for Art, Design and Visual Culture at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. It was co-organized by The Center for Art, Design, and Visual Culture and the National Museum of African American History and Culture, Smithsonian Institution.

For All the World to See has been made possible through NEH on the Road, a special initiative of the NEH. It has been adapted and is being toured by Mid-America Arts Alliance (M-AAA). Founded in 1972, Mid-America Arts Alliance is the oldest regional nonprofit arts organization in the United States.

For more information about programs at the CWU Museum of Culture & Environment email museum@cwu.edu, or call the gallery at 509-963-2313. The MCE is free and open to the public Wednesday through Friday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturday 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Parking on CWU campus is free after 4:30 p.m. and on Saturdays.

Photo courtesy of NEH On the Road

Media contact: Dawn Alford, Department of Public Affairs, 509-963-1484, Dawn.Alford@cwu.edu.

CWU Museum of Culture and Environment Receives Two NEH Grants

Wed, 12 Dec 2018 14:18:50

The Museum of Culture & Environment @CWU is pleased to announce that two MCE projects were funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) this year!

The NEH On the Road grant allows the MCE to bring a world-class exhibit to Ellensburg this coming winter 2019, For All the World to See: Visual Culture and the Struggle for Civil Rights.

The Preservation Assistance Grant for Smaller Institutions will fund improvements to the MCE’s permanent collection storage space that will better preserve fragile cultural objects.

The National Endowment for the Humanities provides funding for museums all over the U.S., from innovative exhibits that open up critical dialogues, to the preservation of historic and cultural objects, to projects that increase community access to museum collections.

A big ‘Thank You’ to the National Endowment for the Humanities from the MCE!

Read the NEH Press Release.

For more information contact the MCE at museum@cwu.edu or 509-963-2313.

CWU “Latinx ‘Firsts’” Topic for Oct. 25 Roundtable Discussion

Thu, 18 Oct 2018 14:27:24

What is it like to be the first member of your community to hold public office? How does it feel to be the only person of color to attain a position of governmental authority? Last spring, 12 Central Washington University students sought to answer these questions by interviewing Latinx pioneers in public service.

The students gained insights from federal and state judges, lawyers, victim advocates, and other public servants. Some were highly-recognizable public figures including Chief Justice Ricardo Martinez, the first Latino judge in the U.S. District Court for western Washington and Justice Mary Yu, the first Latina and first openly-LGBTQ person appointed to the Washington State Supreme Court.

Join the student researchers for a roundtable discussion entitled, “Being the ‘First’: Latinx Pioneers in Public Service” on October 25 at 5:30 p.m. in the Museum of Culture & Environment.

The conversation will consider the importance of culture and tradition in shaping values and ethics, as well as barriers created by racism and other forms of discrimination. Moreover, with Latinx people running for public office in increasing numbers—particularly in the 2018 election—what will the new generation of Latinx “firsts” experience? And what did these CWU students learn from those who came before?

Latinx Firsts in Public Service, the new Window on Central exhibition, will also be on display.

For more information email museum@cwu.edu, or call the gallery at 509-963-2313. The MCE is free and open to the public Wednesday through Friday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturday 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Parking on CWU campus is free after 4:30 p.m. and on Saturdays.

Pictured above: CWU students Yasmeen Herrera-Flores and Samantha Saavedra stand next to lawyer and Washington State Human Rights Commissioner Guadalupe Gamboa.

Media contact: Dawn Alford, Department of Public Affairs, 509-963-1484, Dawn.Alford@cwu.edu

Fall 2018 CWU Museum of Culture & Environment Exhibits Announced

Thu, 13 Sep 2018 09:04:40

Did you know there is something different to see at the Museum of Culture & Environment (MCE) almost every quarter? Fall 2018 brings three new exhibits to the MCE starting with live music and food during a public kick-off on September 26 at 5:30 p.m.

• The Classroom: Learning by Doing at Central delves into Central Washington University’s history as the Washington State Normal School through a close examination of the work of the director of teacher training from 1924–1956, Amanda Hebeler.

• Latinx First!, the new Window on Central exhibition, celebrates recent Latinx firsts in Washington State leadership and public service.

• Finally, find out what our everyday living spaces look like through the eyes of a dust mite in Diary of a Dust Mite. The exhibit follows the journey of Margaret Mite, an adventuresome dust mite who travels to Ellensburg on the search for a new home.

In addition to these new exhibits, The Living Room continues to be in the MCE’s main gallery, but with two new photographs by noted Ellensburg photographer Rob Fraser.

The MCE is located in Dean Hall on the CWU campus at 1200 Wildcat Way. Beginning September 26, the museum is open Wednesdays through Thursdays from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Parking is available in the O-5 lot across the street from Dean Hall and is $5 on weekdays before 4:30 p.m. but is free after 4:30 p.m. and on weekends.

For more information contact the MCE at museum@cwu.edu or 509-963-1836.

Media contact: Dawn Alford, Department of Public Affairs, 509-963-1484, dawn.alford@cwu.edu.

"The Living Room," A New CWU Exhibit

Tue, 03 Apr 2018 08:52:09

Ellensburg photographer Rob Fraser has taken many photographs of living rooms, sometimes for magazines, other times for real estate sales. In his mind, these pristine, fashionable spaces were missing something, however: the “living.”

In January 2017, Fraser began photographing the everyday messes and day-to-day routines of living rooms within the community. Hope Amason, Central Washington University anthropologist and Museum of Culture and Environment director, was interested in helping. She accompanied Fraser in order to interview home owners and living-room occupants.

The resulting project, The Living Room, is the newest exhibit at the Museum of Culture & Environment (MCE), opening Thursday, April 5 at 5:30 p.m.

The public is invited to revel The Living Room with Fraser and Amason, along with MCE staff and community members featured in the exhibition. There will be refreshments and live music from Ellensburg band Cadence, who were photographed practicing in a band member’s living room.

The Living Room uses a social science method called “cultural inventory,” which combines photographs and interviews in order to understand people in a particular time and place. While Amason interviewed participants, Fraser took photographs.

Visitors to the exhibit will be able to explore Fraser’s large, colorful panoramas of local living rooms, getting a glimpse of everyday life in our community. And they can also read interview excerpts that reveal the hidden stories behind seemingly mundane living-room objects.

Fraser and Amason are looking for more living rooms to feature in the exhibit as it continues into fall quarter 2018. The Living Room will be at the MCE through December 8, 2018—though due to staffing, the Museum is only open by special request from June 13 to September 15, 2018.

For more information visit our webpage or email museum@cwu.edu, or call the gallery at 509-963-2313. The MCE is free and open to the public Wednesday through Friday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturday 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Parking on CWU campus is free after 4:30 p.m. and on Saturdays.

Above Photo: Jane Orleman's living room, owner of the well-known Dick and Jane's Spot. Photo by Rob Fraser.

Media Contact: Dawn Alford, Department of Public Affairs, 509-963-1484, dawn.alford@cwu.edu.

CWU's Puzzle Room Hopes to Draw More Students to its Museum of Culture and Environment

Wed, 21 Mar 2018 10:10:38

Students from a local university have created an event which allows people to solve puzzles and unlock clues to a mystery.

Central Washington University’s Museum of Culture and Environment has a new puzzle activity that was created by students from different majors from math to anthropology.

The students developed a puzzle room, which is similar to an escape room.

Read entire article online at KVEW TV.

CWU Video: Creating a Puzzle Room at the Museum

Race, Class, Culture and the History of Hip-hop in the Northwest

Thu, 01 Mar 2018 08:23:12

From its beginnings in 1979, to Sir Mix-a-Lot's "Posse on Broadway" to Macklemore, Northwest hip-hop has been informed by local history as well as the diversity that defined the scene.

Central Washington University's Museum of Culture & Environment and Humanities Washington have partnered to bring Ellensburg a dialogue on hip-hop in the Northwest, at 5:30 p.m. on March 1, in the Dean Hall lobby.

Author and professor Daudi Abe will discuss how Northwest hip-hop is a living document of our region's social and political movements, styles, and ideologies, and how it embodies a unique sense of community.

The history behind not only the Northwest's Grammy-winning rappers, but its world champion break dance crew, its internationally read hip-hop magazine, the producers who collaborated with some of the biggest names in music, its world-renowned clothing designers, and the grassroots organizations dedicated to community service and education will be discussed.

Abe is a Seattle-based professor, writer, and historian who has taught and written about culture, race, gender, education, communication, hip-hop, and sports for more than 20 years. He is the author of the book 6 'N the Morning: West Coast Hip-Hop Music 1987-1992 & the Transformation of Mainstream Culture and From Memphis and Mogadishu: The History of African Americans in Martin Luther King County, Washington, 1858-2014, at BlackPast.org.

His work has appeared in The Stranger and The Seattle Times, and he has appeared on national media such as MSNBC and The Tavis Smiley Show. Abe holds an MA in human development and a PhD in education from the University of Washington. His forthcoming book is Emerald Street: A History of Hip-Hop in Seattle.

Parking on the CWU campus is free after 4:30 p.m. on weekdays. For more information, contact the Museum of Culture & Environment at Museum@cwu.edu or (509) 963-2313.

About Humanities Washington
Humanities Washington sparks conversation and critical thinking using story as a catalyst, nurturing thoughtful and engaged communities across our state. Learn more about Humanities Washington.

About the Humanities Washington Speakers Bureau
Speakers Bureau is one Humanities Washington's oldest and most popular programs. A roster of 31 cultural experts and scholars provides low-cost, high-quality public presentations across the state, encouraging audiences to think, learn and engage in conversation. These diverse and engaging speakers cover a variety of topics, including popular culture, photography, architecture, literature, food, film and history. Best of all - these presentations are free and open to the public. Learn more about Speakers Bureau.

Photo: Andrew Mager via Flickr

Media contact: Dawn Alford, Department of Public Affairs, 509-963-1484, Dawn.Alford@cwu.edu.