MAKING MONUMENTS
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Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

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Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was an African American Baptist minister and activist who became the Civil Rights movement leader from 1955 to 1968. Inspired by his Christian beliefs and the activism of Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. King promoted Civil Rights for People of Color through nonviolent protest and civil disobedience.

Through exploring the history of Dr. King and his activism, I learned about the impact that he had on many activists and his influence on modern Civil Rights movements.  I was impressed by Dr. King speech "I have a Dream," and I aspire to realize his vision for a society where everyone will be treated equally regardless of race and racism no longer exists. More than just a vision, Dr. King dared to make this dream into reality, and his legacy has not only set the foundation for many modern activists but for many generations to come in the future. 

So for me, "Vision" and "Legacy" are the two words that best describe the works of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Moreover, I chose the font "Petersburg" because it was a popular font for the press during the 1960s. This decision was my throwback reference to the Civil Rights era.

I was inspired by the metal doves of the MLK monument, "Free at Last," at Boston University. I chose to use doves to represent Dr. King’s memory and because doves symbolize love, peace, and freedom. These are some of the virtues that Dr. King stood for. 

They are many reasons that I chose blue as the background. The color blue represents the blue sky that we can see from the windows across from my Wayfinder. Also I believe that the blue will make it stand out and that more people will notice, remember,  and pay tribute to Dr. King. For the color of the doves and the words “BLM,” I decided to use a mirror pen because my Wayfinder is located in a place that attracts sunlight, and I wanted the doves and BLM to really stand out. I also believe words alone aren't enough to do justice to the legacy and vision of MLK, so I decided to create a collage on the back of my Wayfinder. With my collage, I wanted to show Dr. King not only as an inspiring Civil Rights leader but also as a good person who lived a full, dynamic life that was violently cut short too soon.



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In the first week of summits, we explored various ways that artists represent different communities, events, and histories of discrimination, oppression, and resistance, in both explicit and subtle ways. We spent time in Cal Anderson at the AIDS Memorial Pathway and the Black Lives Matter mural, we went to the Pacific Bonsai Museum, and we learned about dismantling confederate statues. We also studied the controversy around the statue of George Washington at UW. Moreover, we learned various techniques that were used to create monuments. For me, the techniques that I  really enjoy are murals and collage.

For me, this is more than just a sketchbook. It means so much to me. I had so much fun with this and I learned a lot. I learned vocabulary, art skills, and more about monuments and the histories related to them. I learned to understand the stories they are trying to convey and I made my own monument to tell a story of honor for MLK.

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ARTIST BIO:
My name is Alan Vuong (he/him), class of 2024. I like reading sci-fi books and painting miniatures. I hope that my work acts as a“Wayfinder” and will help future faculty and students to learn more about the short but brilliant life of MLK.

Shoutout to James Blake who constructed the Wayfinders.
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  • Home
  • ABOUT
  • LAS ABUELAS DE LA PLAZO DE MAYO
  • IWAO MATSUHITA
  • ERNESTINE ANDERSON
  • KATHERINE DUNHAM
  • MOFFAT TAKADIWA
  • ELLA BAKER
  • KIYOSHI KUROMIYA
  • OCTAVIA BUTLER
  • SYLVIA RIVERA
  • STANDIFER
  • MLK
  • CARSON
  • LIN
  • SULLIVAN
  • HARING
  • KNIGHT
  • GILLES
  • Research Examples