Hidden in Plain Sight: Public History in Public Space

3 credits · Undergraduate

This course explores the ways history and memory are represented or erased in public space and how this affects policies and futures. We will examine monuments, public art, streets, parks, museums, archives, performative traditions and virtual space. Students will propose ways of representing history in public space as a way to shape future histories. We will explore the concept of “public history” and study artistic and literary representations of the past. We will consider the ways that city planning and urban design have used or ignored memory and meaning. Highlighting landscapes shaped by economic inequality, migration, incarceration, and racism, we will analyze what is hidden, forgotten, missing, or in need of representation.