Monuments Reimagined
"What does a word like "belong" mean in a city, state or nation which increasingly discriminates between who is welcome and who is not?"
—Katherine Megumi Shozawa
Presented by the artist collaborative Art In Between and featuring artwork by Katherine Megumi Shozawa, Monuments Reimagined invites you to participate in a conversation about art in public spaces.
Browse the exhibition online to see Shozawa’s piece — belong — then share your own ideas for new public art using the answer box below.
Monuments Reimagined & belong
Over the last year, engaged citizens and active protesters called for numerous monuments to be removed from public spaces, in Boston and around the world, because of their role in upholding the harmful systems of racism, colonialism, xenophobia, and white supremacy.
But what comes after the removal of these monuments and statues? Art In Between believes public art should contribute to the formation of a positive collective identity and dares us to reimagine the role of art in our communities.
Artwork Details
Katherine Megumi Shozawa
belong
2021
Neon tubing and plexiglass
40" L x 15" H
Shozawa’s piece, belong, sparks this conversation. As a word, belong challenges us to consider the question, "Who is welcome?" As a work of art, belong invites us to reflect on the past and present function of art in public spaces and to imagine a future in which public art invites all of us to belong.
Public Art Panel Discussion
Public art has the potential to make a community a more vibrant and welcoming place. Free and accessible to all, it also has the power to provoke debate about our shared cultural experience. As engaged citizens call for the removal of certain public monuments that evoke harmful systems, the conversation about the role of public art in our communities gains momentum.
This panel, including City of Boston Chief of Arts & Culture Kara Elliott-Ortega, Harvard Graduate School of Design professor Sara Zewde, and Cambridge-based artist Katherine Megumi Shozawa, came together for a discussion (moderated by Art in Between co-founder Brian Hone) focused on the future of public art and its potential to express our collective public values.
What Do You Think?
What kind of art would make your community more welcoming?
Behind the Scenes
Go behind the scenes of the installation process for Monuments Reimagined, featuring Katherine Megumi Shozawa's piece belong.
Video and photo credit: Faizal Wescott
Meet the Artist
Photo by Timothy Lee
Visit Website
Katherine Megumi Shozawa
Katherine Megumi Shozawa is an interdisciplinary artist and educator whose socially engaged art practice begins with intimate examinations of stories and qualities of memory in marginalized communities in the U.S. and Canada, including her own. Spanning more than twenty years, her work is diverse in scope while linked by a common focus on the visual and cultural vitality of inclusive public space.
Katherine attended the Whitney Museum of American Art’s Independent Study Program and earned her MFA in Art Practice from the University of California, Berkeley and BA in American Studies from Yale University. She has received numerous grants and fellowships, including a recent Massachusetts Cultural Council LCC Artist Grant for the participatory public artwork The Vita Project.
Kelsey Hammond
Kelsey Hammond is a middle school art teacher in Lowell, MA who views creating, observing, and questioning art as a way to critically reflect on the world around us. Kelsey is a graduate from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University (Boston, MA) where she received her Masters of Arts in Teaching in art education. Kelsey brings a unique perspective to the arts through her undergraduate studies at Lesley University (Cambridge, MA) in Holistic Psychology and Art Therapy, and values an inclusive approach while making space for personal expression and creative problem solving.
Brian Hone
Brian Hone is an arts professional and designer based in Boston, MA who transforms museum and cultural spaces through interactivity, creativity, and collaboration. As founder of Brian Hone & Studio, and in his current role as Manager of Studio Projects with the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, he works to make art more accessible to everyone. Prior to joining the Gardner in 2015, he began his career with the Taft Museum of Art in Cincinnati, OH. He holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in painting and a Bachelor of Science in art education from Miami University (Oxford, OH) and a Master of Liberal Arts in museum studies from Harvard University, Extension School (Cambridge, MA).
As an active participant and leader in the local arts ecosystem, Brian breaks down barriers to arts and culture within the city of Boston. In September 2020, he was appointed as a Commissioner to the Boston Art Commission. In this role, he works with the other Commissioners and staff within the Mayor's Office of Arts and Culture to maintain the city's art collection and to commission new, transformative public art that enriches and enlivens the urban environment.
In his free time, Brian enjoys singing with the Boston Gay Men’s Chorus.