The Archive of Significant Objects During Studio Hop June 12-13

Curated by visiting artist Felicia Cooper

This is a project called the Archive of Significant Objects, wherein Felicia Cooper interviews people about significant objects in their life and put the objects on display in an impromptu museum. The interviews are edited into an oral history and shared widely. This project has been supported by the National Humanities Center as part of its 2024 Being Human Festival, and recently received a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board to tour to rural areas of Minnesota. 

INVITATION/HOW TO PARTICIPATE

This project elevates and holds dear what is important. By examining the objects which we carry, we learn who we are and where we come from. To participate in this project, set up an appointment by emailing Felicia at feliciatmcooper@gmail.com. Anticipate a 45-minute conversation where you will entrust your object to the project until it is displayed. The objects and their stories will then be on display in a pop-up museum and entered into a digital archive. Your object will be returned to you safely at the end of the display. 

In a pop up museum, Felicia presents al public viewing of the Archive of Significant Objects. This is a community-curated cabinet of curiosities and a smattering of objects made significant through personal experience. Using items collected from members of the community, this temporary museum examines our relationship to things by displaying the assembled items for contemplation.

FELICIA BIO

Felicia Cooper is a Minneapolis-based artist working in puppetry and performance across the United States. Her artistic endeavors have been supported by The National Humanities Center, the Minnesota State Arts Board, the Connecticut Sea Grant, the Heinz Foundation, the Pennsylvania State Arts Board, and others. She has held artistic residencies with the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh, The Bell Museum, the Lake Pepin Legacy Alliance,  Open Eye Theater, Winterthur Museum and Gardens, Hambidge Center, folkLAB, the New Hazlett Theater, and others. 

As an extension of her social practice, she conducts contextual research and writes about puppetry histories. She makes work embedded in community and creates platforms for others to create experimental work, including her work with the  Puppet Union, UNIMAS-USA, Puppeteers of America, and Minnesota Fringe Festival, where she serves as the Director of Audience and Volunteer Engagement. She holds an MFA in Puppetry from the University of Connecticut. Go Huskies.