Providence Cabinet of Curiosities

PROVIDENCE CABINET OF CURIOSITIES

We always carry with us objects that hold important stories. These may be things that live with us in our homes, are passed from generation to the next, live out in public space, or are tucked safely in the time capsules we take with us. Maybe they only exist in a memory now, but the story lives on. These precious things, what stories do they hold? These are stories that make up who we are.

People define a place, and together these stories are woven into the soul of Providence.

The Providence Cabinet of Curiosities is a love letter to our community; a mural and storytelling project that invites residents of Providence to share the objects and memories that are meaningful to their lives and root them to this place. Facilitated by artist and cultural practitioner Shey Rivera Ríos, we held two community story-sharing sessions. Participants were invited to bring one meaningful object connected to their personal journey, family history, or the land and waters of Providence. These were items such as good luck charms, found objects, heirlooms, tools, toys, spices or herbs, objects of nature, or everyday artifacts infused with memory.

During these sessions, stories were collected and documented with audio and photographs. The objects and their histories were incorporated into the design of the PVD Cabinet of Curiosities, on a prominent wall of AS220’s Mercantile Building. This large-scale mural represents a visual archive of collective memory in the city of Providence, becoming a vessel of Providence’s rich and layered histories told through the stories of the people who live here.

Providence Cabinet of Curiosities is a public art project is led by artist and cultural practitioner Shey ‘Rí Acu’ Rivera Ríos — founder of Studio Loba; with audio production by Nan Joubá and Shubbapoi. The mural installation is produced by The Avenue Concept in collaboration with AS220 and Amber Art and Design; and in partnership with the City of Providence Department of Art, Culture and Tourism and the Mayor’s Office.