Promise, Witness, Remembrance
Promise, Witness, Remembrance
April 7 – June 13, 2021
An exhibition reflecting on the life of Breonna Taylor, her killing in 2020, and the year of protests that followed in Louisville and around the world.
Promise, Witness, Remembrance brings together artists from Louisville and across the United States to reckon with one of the most galvanizing moments in recent American history. At its center is Breonna Taylor—her life, her death at the hands of Louisville police in 2020, and the nationwide protests her killing ignited.
The exhibition explores the dualities between a personal, local story and the nation’s reflection of too many Black lives lost to gun violence. The exhibition takes its structure from three interconnected ideas: promise, witness, and remembrance. Each a lens through which artists examine history, resistance, grief, and legacy.
PROMISE
In “Promise,” artists explore ideologies of the United States of America through the symbols that uphold them, reflecting on the nation’s founding, history, and the promises and realities, both implicit and explicit, contained within them.
WITNESS
In “Witness,” they address the contemporary moment, building upon the gap between what a nation promises and what it provides through artworks that explore ideas of resistance across time, form, and context.
REMEMBRANCE
In “Remembrance,” artists address gun violence and police brutality directly—honoring victims, mourning loss, and grappling with what it means to hold memory in the face of ongoing harm.
Promise, Witness, Remembrance was developed with the direct guidance of Breonna Taylor’s family, a Steering Committee of Louisville artists, activists, mental health professionals, researchers, and community members, convened by the Speed’s Community Engagement Strategist Toya Northington, and a National Advisory Panel, convened by Curator Allison M. Glenn. The exhibition’s collaborative foundation reflects a commitment to doing this work responsibly: not as a museum institution speaking about a community, but in genuine partnership with one.
About the Curator
Allison M. Glenn is an Associate Curator of Contemporary Art at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, where she works across the contemporary program at Crystal Bridges and the Momentary—a contemporary art space and satellite of Crystal Bridges. Since joining Crystal Bridges in 2018, Glenn has collaborated with artists at all stages of their careers around themes of history, temporality, language, site, and identity. Promise, Witness, Remembrance represents a profound extension of that practice—one that demanded not only curatorial vision, but deep civic and human responsibility.
Contributing Artists
The exhibition brought together twenty-three artists whose practices collectively span painting, sculpture, photography, film, installation, and performance.
- Terry Adkins
- Noel W Anderson
- Erik Branch
- Xavier Burrell
- María Magdalena Campos-Pons
- Nick Cave
- Jon P. Cherry
- Bethany Collins
- Theaster Gates
- Tyler Gerth
- Sam Gilliam
- Jon-Sesrie Goff
- Ed Hamilton
- Kerry James Marshall
- Rashid Johnson
- Kahlil Joseph
- Glenn Ligon
- Amy Sherald
- Lorna Simpson
- Nari Ward
- Hank Willis Thomas
- Alisha Wormsley
- A. Yero
Steering Committee
Toya Northington, founder and leader, local steering committee
Research Committee
Dr. Maruice N. Gattis
Dr. Lesley Harris
Dr. Jelani Kerr
Dr. Emma Sterett Hong
Research Team
Stephanie Henry, BSW, Research Assistant
Gaberiel Jones, Jr., PhD, MPH, Photovoice facilitator
Sirene Martin, Photovoice facilitator
Celes Smith, MSSW, LCSW, Photovoice facilitator
Speed Community Engagement Steering Committee
Bianca Austin
Tawana Bain
Ashley Cathey
Tiffany Farmer, LMFT
Nicole Hayden
Keturah J. Herron
Lance G. Newman II
Lopa Mehrotra
Sharlis N. Montgomery
Milly Martin
Ramona Dallum Lindsey
Ju’Niyah Palmer
Mark Pence
Dr. Brandy Kelly Pryor
Michael Wade Smith, EdD, MBA
Linda Sarsour
Antonio Taylor
Stacey Wade
Mental Health
Steven D. Kniffley Jr., PsyD MPA ABP
Strategic Planning
SteVon Edwards
Arts Activism and Education Committee
William Cordova
National Advisory Panel
Mecca Brooks, Arts Strategist
Theaster Gates, Artist and Founder and Executive Director of Rebuild Foundation
Jon-Sesrie Goff, Multidisciplinary Filmmaker, Curator, and Arts Administrator
Raymond Green, Retired Military Officer and Cousin of Alton Sterling
Le Keisha Leek, Artist Advocate and Cousin of Trayvon Martin
Amy Sherald, Painter
Hank Willis Thomas, Multidisciplinary Artist, Co-founder of The Wide Awakes and For Freedoms
Allison K. Young, Art Historian
Acknowledgements
Promise, Witness, Remembrance was made possible by a grant from the Ford Foundation.
In the press
Breonna Taylor Show Puts Art Museums on a Faster Track – The New York Times
How a Museum Show Honoring Breonna Taylor Is Trying to ‘Get It Right’ – The New York Times
Art Exhibition Honoring Breonna Taylor Is ‘Filled With Her Spirit’ : NPR
Amy Sherald’s Breonna Taylor portrait in new Louisville museum exhibit
A New Breonna Taylor Exhibition’s Curator, Allison Glenn, Speaks Out | Observer
Bearing Witness to Breonna Taylor’s Life and Death
How an Art Exhibition in Breonna Taylor’s Hometown Honors Her Life and Impact | Smithsonian Magazine
Famous Breonna Taylor portrait anchors new exhibit in Louisville