Who We Be

This exhibition takes a close examination of visual culture—particularly images, works, and ideas in the contemporary arts, justice movements, and popular culture to reflect on North American demographic and cultural change and cultural politics—since 1965. From the Watts uprising to the #BlackLivesMatter movement, from multiculturalism through hip­hop to the reception of post­identity art, we explore the questions: How do Americans see race now? Do we see each other any more clearly than before? Inspired by award­winning journalist and Stanford faculty Jeff Chang’s 2014 book Who We Be: The Colorization of America, this exhibition combines selections from the Cantor’s collection, objects and artwork from Stanford’s Institute for Diversity in the Arts, and loaned artworks specific for this project.