The Nasher Public: Urban Historical Reclamation and Recognition Collective, left to right: Angel Faz, Vicki Meek, Jonathan Norton, Christian Vazquez. Photography by Jonathan Zizzo, courtesy of Nasher Sculpture Center.
Local artist Vicki Meek is heading up a new project for the Nasher Sculpture Center’s public art initiative.
Meek, who lives in East Dallas, is the inaugural Nasher Fellow in Urban Historical Reclamation and Recognition. She will be the curator, community facilitator and lead investigator for the next offsite Nasher Public: Urban Historical Reclamation and Recognition.
The project will focus on the Tenth Street Historic District Freedman’s Town, which is in Oak Cliff. Meek, along with artists, scholars, community members and partners, will research, document and interpret the history of the neighborhood.
“I have always had a passion for exploring African American history as an inspiration for my work, both in my studio and pubic art practice,” Meek said in a news release. “Nasher Public: Urban Historical Reclamation and Recognition will allow me to indulge my love of art making and study of African American history and culture, while establishing a structure for potential future iterations.”
In 2021, Meek had a Nasher Public exhibition called “Stony the Road We Trod,” which was dedicated to the Black community. The Tenth Street project follows the 2021 exhibition as well as her 2013 Nasher XChange project at Paul Quinn College, “Black & Blue: Cultural Oasis in the Hills.”
A capstone public art project, which could be a performance, installation or exhibition, will be the result of the research and public programming efforts. Meek and the other people involved will showcase their work through artist-facilitated gatherings, photos, videos and archival documentation.
Playwright Jonathan Norton, filmmaker Christian Vazquez, social practice visual artist Angel Faz and historian Marvin Dulaney are members of the collective and will be helping memorialize the historic district.
