Stop by Commongrounds anytime between April 24th and June 6th to view artwork created as part of the Long Memory Project: Farmland. The exhibit will be located on the 2nd floor.

The third edition of The Long Memory Project is in collaboration with MSU's Broad Art Museum. Elders with ties to the state's farming history shared their stories with participating artists: ceramist Debbie Carlos, painter Lilian Martinez, poet Alex Rivera-Sastre, and mixed-media artist Mike (Michaela) Nichelle.

In July, they visited the Farmland exhibition in East Lansing to kick off this summer pop-up residency. 

Late August brought the second gathering. Artists and elders attended the Northern Michigan Small Farm Conference, then gathered for a day of facilitated discussion about farming in Michigan. 

Sitting in the shade as water softly lapped the shore, the conversations flowed between heartfelt memories, laughter, and important equity work within the farming world. More than once, these conversations brought people to tears. At one point, elder Gail Holman gestured to everyone sitting together and said,  “You are my people. I knew coming here that I would be heard.” 

Artists returned to their home studios to create work based on this experience and the stories they heard. Visit the exhibition to explore the artists’ work.

The Long Memory Project’s (LMP) mission is to cultivate the passing down of our community’s stories. Not just the ones considered worthy enough to make headlines and history books, but the small acts of courage, action, good governance and community building—the songs, poems and stories that help us understand where we came from, who we are, and what we envision for our future—both regionally and beyond.

This program is supported in part by an award from the Michigan Arts and Culture Council and the National Endowment for the Arts.