
Project Overview
To document the cascade of public health, social, and financial crises set in motion by COVID-19, the Archives of American Art created an oral history series that recorded responses to the global pandemic across the American art world. Conducted virtually, the Pandemic Oral History Project features eighty-five short-form interviews with a diverse group of artists, teachers, curators, and administrators. Averaging twenty-five minutes long, each interview provides a firsthand account of and urgent insights into the narrator's triumphs and tragedies in the summer of 2020. With more than thirty hours of recorded video and audio, the series bears witness to an unprecedented era as it unfolded in real time.
Interviewers
- Nyssa Chow, lecturer and Princeton Arts Fellow, Lewis Center for the Arts and codirector, NYC COVID-19 Oral History, Narrative and Memory Archive, Columbia University/INCITE
- Fernanda Espinosa, oral historian and cultural organizer
- Lara M. Evans, associate professor of art history, Institute of American Indian Arts
- Melissa Ho, curator of twentieth-century art, Smithsonian American Art Museum
From the Archives curatorial staff: - Josh T. Franco, national collector
- Ben Gillespie, Arlene and Robert Kogod Secretarial Scholar for Oral History
- Jacob Proctor, Gilbert and Ann Kinney New York Collector
- Matthew Simms, Gerald and Bente Buck West Coast Collector
Participants
For the selection of interviewees, we sought to capture diverse voices and multigenerational perspectives. The team continued to assess the breadth of narrators throughout the project, adjusting outreach as needed. When so many feel isolated and when traditional art spaces are disrupted and face existential risks, we are grateful to have reconnected with narrators already present in the Archives through personal papers, institutional records, and oral histories, while integrating many new voices into the collections.
View the full list of participants
How to Watch
The videos will be released in batches on our YouTube Channel, iTunes, and on this page. Together they form a chorus of resilience and despair, creation and loss. We hope the testimonies of artistic leaders and luminaries convey the interconnectedness and vibrancy of the art world in 2020.
Acknowledgments
Thirty-five interviews were supported with federal funding from the Latino Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Latino Center.
For further information about this project, contact:
Ben Gillespie, Arlene and Robert Kogod Secretarial Scholar for Oral History, Archives of American Art, GillespieB@si.edu
The video on this page is hosted by Youtube (Privacy Policy, Terms of Service)
Pandemic Project Transcripts
- Albuquerque, Lita, 1946-
Oral history interview with Lita Albuquerque, 2020 August 12 - Arcangel, Cory, 1978-
Oral history interview with Cory Arcangel, 2020 August 14 - Autry, La Tanya S.
Oral history interview with La Tanya S. Autry, 2020 July 31 - Bengston, Billy Al, 1934-
Oral history interview with Billy Al Bengston, 2020 July 29 - Benton, Jessie, 1939-
Oral history interview with Jessie Benton, 2020 August 10 - Bereal, Edmund, 1937-
Oral history interview with Ed Bereal, 2020 July 8 - Bernstein, Judith, 1942-
Oral history interview with Judith Bernstein, 2020 July 21 - Bob & Bob
Oral history interview with Bob & Bob (Francis Shishim and Paul Velik), 2020 July 10 - Bradford, Mark, 1961-
Oral history interview with Mark Bradford, 2020 August 14 - Bustamante, Nao, 1969-
Oral history interview with Nao Bustamante, 2020 July 3 - Ceruti, Mary
Oral history interview with Mary Ceruti, 2020 July 1 - Chinn, Lenore
Oral history interview with Lenore Chinn, 2020 July 30 - Clarke, Allana, 1987-
Oral history interview with Allana Clarke, 2020 August 18 - Corbett, John, 1963-
Oral history interview with John Corbett, 2020 July 2 - Cornell, Lauren, 1978-
Oral history interview with Lauren Cornell, 2020 July 16 - Coronado, Pepe, 1965-
Oral history interview with Pepe Coronado, 2020 August 31 - Delvalle, Susan
Oral history interview with Susan Delvalle, 2020 August 17 - Demi, 1955-
Oral history interview with Demi, 2020 September 2 - Eversley, Frederick, 1941-
Oral history interview with Frederick Eversley, 2020 August 19 - Ganesh, Chitra, 1975-
Oral history interview with Chitra Ganesh, 2020 September 1 - Gonzales-Day, Ken, 1964-
Oral history interview with Ken Gonzales-Day, 2020 July 31 - Gómez-Peña, Guillermo, 1955-
Oral history interview with Guillermo Gómez-Peña, 2020 September 11 - Haggag, Deana, 1987-
Oral history interview with Deana Haggag, 2020 August 14 - Heap of Birds, Hock E Aye VI Edgar, 1954-
Oral history interview with Hock E Aye VI Edgar Heap of Birds, 2020 August 12 - Herrera, Cadex, 1975-
Oral history interview with Cadex Herrera, 2020 August 11 - Hicks, Sheila, 1934-
Oral history interview with Sheila Hicks, 2020 July 21 - Hom, Nancy, 1949-
Oral history interview with Nancy Hom, 2020 August 30 - Honda, Margaret, 1961-
Oral history interview with Margaret Honda, 2020 August 17 - Jaar, Alfredo, 1956-
Oral history interview with Alfredo Jaar, 2020 July 29 - Jimenez Underwood, Consuelo, 1949-
Oral history interview with Consuelo Jimenez Underwood, 2020 July 10 - Lomahaftewa, Linda
Oral history interview with Linda Lomahaftewa, 2020 September 2 - Lord, Erica, 1978-
Oral history interview with Erica Lord, 2020 September 9 - Luger, Cannupa Hanska, 1979-
Oral history interview with Cannupa Hanska Luger, 2020 July 13 - Meris, Jeffrey, 1991-
Oral history interview with Jeffrey Meris, 2020 September 2 - Mismar, Omar
Oral history interview with Omar Mismar, 2020 August 25 - Moctezuma, Alessandra
Oral history interview with Alessandra Moctezuma, 2020 July 22 - Moyer, Carrie, 1960-
Oral history interview with Carrie Moyer, 2020 August 20 - Murray, Caitlin, 1984-
Oral history interview with Caitlin Murray, 2020 July 2 - Ortiz Torres, Rubén, 1964-
Oral history interview with Rubén Ortiz Torres, 2020 August 17 - Paglen, Trevor, 1974-
Oral history interview with Trevor Paglen, 2020 August 10 - Pitt, Lillian, 1943-
Oral history interview with Lillian Pitt, 2020 September 1 - Porras-Kim, Gala, 1984-
Oral history interview with Gala Porras-Kim, 2020 August 20 - Red Star, Wendy, 1981-
Oral history interview with Wendy Red Star, 2020 July 28 - Robleto, Dario, 1972-
Oral history interview with Dario Robleto, 2020 August 17 - Rodríguez, Arturo, 1956-
Oral history interview with Arturo Rodríguez, 2020 August 26 - Santos Briones, Cinthya
Oral history interview with Cinthya Santos-Briones, 2020 September 16 - Santos Solomon, Julia, 1956-
Oral history interview with Julia Santos Solomon, 2020 August 26 - Sánchez, Juan, 1954-
Oral history interview with Juan Sánchez, 2020 July 30 - Treviño, Jesse, 1946-
Oral history interview with Jesse Treviño, 2020 July 20 - Turner, Kay, 1948-
Oral history interview with Kay Turner, 2020 June 25 - Velasco, David, 1978-
Oral history interview with David Velasco, 2020 June 30 - WalkingStick, Kay, 1935-
Oral history interview with Kay WalkingStick, 2020 August 29 - Wodiczko, Krzysztof, 1943-
Oral history interview with Krzysztof Wodiczko, 2020 July 23 - Wudl, Tom, 1948-
Oral history interview with Tom Wudl, 2020 July 17 - Yawar, Layqa Nuna, 1984-
Oral history interview with Layqa Nuna Yawar, 2020 August 18 - Yonemoto, Bruce, 1949-
Oral history interview with Bruce Yonemoto, 2020 August 19
Total Records: 56
Participants Include:
- Lita Albuquerque
- Cory Arcangel
- LaTanya Autry
- Billy Al Bengston
- Jessie Benton
- Ed Bereal
- Judith Bernstein
- The Bobs
- Mark Bradford
- Sonel Breslav
- Nao Bustamante
- Gabo Camnitzer
- Juan Capistran
- Terry Carbone
- Mary Ceruti
- Lenore Chinn
- Allana Clarke
- John Corbett
- Lauren Cornell - not going on web
- Pepe Coronado
- Adriana Corral
- Suzy Delvalle
- DEMI
- Devon Dikeou
- Fred Eversley
- RYAN! Feddersen
- Chitra Ganesh
- Guillermo Gómez-Peña
- Ken Gonzales-Day
- Rita Gonzalez
- Deana Haggag
- Edgar HeapofBirds
- Cadex Herrera
- Sheila Hicks
- Nancy Hom
- Margaret Honda
- Alfredo Jaar
- Paul Ramirez Jonas
- Kim Jones
- Linda Lomahaftewa
- Erica Lord
- Cannupa Hanska Luger
- Jeffrey Meris
- Omar Mismar
- Alessandra Moctezuma
- Nabil Mousa
- Carrie Moyer
- Caitlin Murray
- Rubén Ortiz-Torres
- Trevor Paglen
- Sheila Pepe
- Lillian Pitt
- Gala Porras-Kim
- Astrid Preston
- Esteban Ramón Pérez
- Wendy Red Star
- Al Rendon
- Dario Robleto
- Arturo Rodriguez
- Moses Ros
- Juan Sanchez
- Cinthya Santos Briones
- Ilana Savdie
- Alisa Sikelianos Carter
- Julia Santos Solomon
- Jesse Treviño
- Kay Turner
- Consuelo Jimenez Underwood
- Vincent Valdez
- Tam Van Tran
- David Velasco
- Jose Villalobos
- Kay Walkingstick
- Tyrone and Stefan Weedon and Bauschmid
- James Welling
- Krzysztof Wodiczko
- Tom Wudl
- Layqa Nuna Yawar
- Bruce Yonemoto
- Elyn Zimmerman