A Local Museum Connects East Austin’s Past & Present
Memories are Where You Leave Them: The George Washington Carver Museum & Cultural Center
Words by Jessi Devenyns Photos by Baptiste Despois
Intricate lace handkerchiefs, a pin cushion bejeweled with mid-20th century hat pins, a pair of 18th century shackles – at first glance, these solitary objects populating the main exhibition at George Washington Carver Museum represent individual moments in the lives of community members who have come and gone. Put together in chronological order, they serve as markers on a path tread by members of the Black community through the history of East Austin.
“The museum and cultural center is a space where we can teach people about Black history and art through exhibits,” says Carre Adams, curator/culture and arts education manager. “We started with the artifacts and built a narrative around that.”
The past indisputably influences the lives of those in the present, and the Carver invites Austinites to dive deep into their relationship with the community of today. Between the center’s four long-term exhibitions and three rotating art galleries, there is ample opportunity to wile away an afternoon absorbing a curated selection of pieces that open a window into the culture that helped build, and continues to construct, this city.
“We’re educating and creating dialogue,” Carre explains. “And we’re also a space where people can gather.” On any given day, visitors, resident artists, and neighbors mill through the halls of this city center, either creating or consuming a variety of community-driven projects. From a children’s center and all-purpose classrooms to a performance theatre and dance studio, this multi-level complex offers facilities for a diverse range of community needs. The galleries and public rooms often house activations from creative individuals who are otherwise unable to access resources.
While the modern facilities in the Carver work to preserve and celebrate the contribution of Black people to the culture and history of this nation, visitors should not limit their trip to this one edifice. Outside the museum, a sculpture garden leads across the lawn that often serves as a hosting ground for festivals and outdoor markets. Flung farther afield on the grounds is a teaching garden project that offers classes and supplies the produce used in the hors d’oeuvres at many of the Carver Center’s events.
There is also the Genealogy Center located onsite, sandwiched between the modern center and the Carver Branch of the Austin Public Library. Originally the location of the Carver Museum when it opened in 1980, today the Genealogy Center specializes in assisting African Americans in tracing their familial roots.
Through telling stories about the local community and tying those individual threads into the larger quilt of community consciousness, the Carver Museum and Cultural Center allows Austinites to both access the memories of the past and create new ones through a number of community art projects and activities.
Contact:
(512) 974-3660
1165 Angelina St.
austintexas.gov
