Samek Voices

In the early planning stages of “What You Think You Know”, set to open March 14th, 2023, I wanted to include the story of Zitkála-Šá  (Zit-ka-la-Sa) and the Sun Dance Opera in a section of the exhibition that focused on performance, music, and tradition-reclamation. But after talking to my co-curator Sierra Nizhonii Pete (Diné (Navajo)),…

From Black Panther to the Smithsonian Institute’s Benin Bronzes to the Parthenon Marbles at the British Museum, repatriation is being brought up more often in conversation, but it isn’t simply a buzz word or a trend; repatriation involves ethical decisions that sometimes challenge the very historical foundation of museums. American museums have collected objects from…

Here is a short story that Bucknell student TJ Freeman ’25 wrote in response to his visit to the Samek Art Museum with Michael Drexler’s first-year Fiction! class. Thank you for sharing your story, TJ. Girl in the Glass Marsh Lane, the tiny street between Esther Road and Jacob Drive, almost never saw anyone on…

Located in a bucolic (and affordable) rural college town just a couple hours drive to NYC, Philly, and Baltimore for weekend excursions. “The Samek” has a fun crew that gets to do interesting work. Join us at the frontier of the art world. Preparator and Operations Coordinator The Preparator & Operations Coordinator reports to the…

Here is a short story that Bucknell student Leland Calistri ’25 wrote in response to his visit to the Samek Art Museum with Michael Drexler’s first-year Fiction! class. Thank you for sharing your story, Leland. Wayfarer Something terrible happened on Main…. The street wasn’t on the awful side of town. But it did share one…

Here is a poem that Bucknell student Ariel E. Ulrich’ 25 wrote in response to her visit to the Samek Art Museum with Roger Rothman’s Art of Protest Class. Thank you for sharing your beautiful words, Ariel.   Let’s have a talk About opioids About oppression   Let’s have a talk About lives lost About…

If you are like many visitors to a museum, you might take for granted that after one exhibition comes down, another goes up in its place. You might notice that the gallery is closed for a week or two – and might wonder what takes so long. After all, someone just needs to take down…

From the Greek ek (out) and phrazein (to speak), ekphrasis is a written description of or response to a work of visual art. Samek Museum Guide Joshua Garcia, an incoming Stadler Fellow at Bucknell University’s Stadler Center for Poetry and Literary Arts, shares an ekphrastic poem responding to the Samek’s permanent collection. This week, Garcia’s…

From the Greek ek (out) and phrazein (to speak), ekphrasis is a written description of or response to a work of visual art. Samek Museum Guide Joshua Garcia, an incoming Stadler Fellow at Bucknell University’s Stadler Center for Poetry and Literary Arts, shares an ekphrastic poem responding to an artwork in the Samek’s permanent collection.…