2016- "Coronations are grand ceremonies that indicate a single transferring of power. In The Crown Futures, artist Shani Peters has worked with our Museum to partner with young people in disseminating the empowering message of self-determination.
The anchor of this exhibition is Shani’s piece entitled The Crown Installation. This work was initially produced in 2014 for inclusion in If You Build It, an exhibition curated by No Longer Empty to christen Broadway Housing Communities’ seventh affordable housing effort. In 2014, Shani’s canopy of crowns captured the extraordinary light affiliated with the history of this neighborhood and featured paper interpretations of crowns from African, Indigenous American, and European monarchies; honoring the layers of her heritage.
Shani’s exhibition in the Museum is the first to be produced under the guise of the Artist-Children’s Collaborative, a hands-on art making program, led by an artist through which children play a lead role in the development and creation of a new art work or installation. In preparing for this exhibition Peters focused on the core concept of her 2014 installation--self-determination. To lead children through her artistic practice, which is rooted in social justice principles, the artist facilitated a 5 week art making program that included discussions of power, class, and stressed the importance of loving one’s self by prompting children to design crowns with materials inspired by their individual heritage. The laser cut paper sculptures on view are Shani’s abstractions of collages that children have fashioned from locally sourced materials. The crowns in this installation are indicative of each child’s family members, and future aspirations."
-Lauren Kelley, Curator