For this talk, Kelly Nguyen will discussing her new project, the Refugee Material Culture Initiative (RMCI), which aims to 1) digitally preserve art and artifacts made/used by refugees, 2) create a free and accessible database of the digital outputs, and 3) generate educational resources on refugee histories. By centering refugee narratives and agency, RMCI works to counter dehumanizing statistics and sensationalized visualizations that portray refugees as victims, threats, and/or problems to be solved. It is our expressed goal to feature the diversity and complexity of refugee experiences and to affirm that refugees are powerful knowledge producers. At this initial stage, RMCI is working closely with a community partner, the Vietnamese Heritage Museum located in Westminster CA, to digitize their refugee artifact collection. Her presentation will showcase a small portion of the museum’s collection that have been 3D scanned, including a refugee boat that fled the Vietnam War in 1984 and various items that were made and/or used by refugees.

 

5:30- Doors Open

6:30- Opening Introduction