A few of my favorite things: Jennifer Morris
Smithsonian staff and volunteers work countless hours in the halls of our museums and research centers, in the field, at the Zoo, in our gardens and facilities. We are privileged to spend time with some of the nation’s most cherished treasures as we go about our duties. Sometimes, these unique experiences find a special place in our own personal stories. Amy Kehs introduces Jennifer Morris and a few of her favorite Smithsonian things.
Jennifer Morris, archivist at the Anacostia Community Museum. (Photo by Jenelle Cooper.)
Jennifer Morris, the archivist at the Smithsonian’s Anacostia Community Museum, began her career at the museum almost 30 years ago as a contractor assisting Dr. Gail Lowe with research for the exhibition Speak to My Heart: Communities of Faith and Contemporary African American Life. The exhibit was the first in a series developed for display on the National Mall. Speak to My Heart appeared at the Arts and Industries Building from May 1998 to December 1999. The exhibition examined faith and spiritual traditions in contemporary African American communities, and explored the ways that African American congregations were responding to challenges affecting their families, neighborhoods, and communities. Jennifer really enjoyed the project and learned a lot from Dr. Lowe, who as part of her research for the exhibition, offered training to religious communities to help them document their stories and preserve their keepsakes. “It was an impactful experience,” says Jennifer. “I learned how artifacts were selected for exhibition and used to give voice to the experience of underrepresented groups.” Work on the exhibit and other contracting positions outside the Smithsonian shaped her career path to becoming an archivist.
The Archives of American Art’s exhibition space, The Lawrence A. Fleischman Gallery, is located two blocks away from the D.C. Research Center in the Donald W. Reynolds Center for American Art.
The Archives of American Art collection is the world’s preeminent and most widely used research center dedicated to collection, preserving, and providing access to primary sources that document the history of the visual arts in America. (Courtesy Smithsonian Institution Archives)
The first of Jennifer’s three favorite things at the Smithsonian is the Archives of American Art. AAA’s research center is massive and its catalogue includes descriptions of more than 20 million primary source materials. Jennifer loves the breadth of materials AAA’s collects—from personal papers and gallery records to oral histories and artworks. As an archivist herself, Jennifer also is inspired by the way AAA organizes information and make it easily accessible to the public. She relies on the AAA website for examples of how to tackle organization questions pertaining to art-related collections, as well as for her own research. “I enjoy the ability to listen to artists such as Sam Gilliam speak about their career and influences. It’s even better that I can download the transcript of the interview for future reference,” she says.
Jennifer’s second favorite thing is a 1991-1993 exhibition she saw at the National Museum of Natural History, Seeds of Change: 500 years of Encounter and Exchange. The exhibition examined the exchange of plants and seeds between the Old and New Worlds following Columbus’s journey to America in 1492. The five thematic “seeds” were the introduction of horses, sugar, and disease to the New World; and the introduction of potatoes and corn to the Old World. At the time, this was the largest temporary exhibit in NMNH’s history. “Seeds of Change was one of the first Smithsonian exhibitions that I visited when I moved to the Washington, DC area,” Jennifer says. It is one of her favorites because, she was “intrigued by the unique way the Smithsonian looked at Columbus’ influence in the Americas.”
The entrance to the “Seeds of Change” exhibition at the National Museum of Natural History. The exhibition examined the exchange of plants and seeds between the Old and New Worlds following Columbus’s discovery of America in 1492; themes included the introduction of horses, sugar, and disease to the New World and the introduction of potatoes and corn to the Old World. On view in the Museum’s Evans Gallery from October 26, 1991 through May 23, 1993. (Courtesy National Museum of Natural History)
Jennifer’s third favorite thing is a collection of autograph books in the Percival Bryan collection at the Anacostia Community Museum. Born in Jamaica, Percival Bryan (1906-1996) came to the United States as a stowaway at the age of 18. After obtaining his citizenship, he worked as a White House butler under Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry S. Truman, and Dwight D. Eisenhower. He then served as personal chauffer for Attorney General Homer S. Cummings, and as a cab driver on the side. Cummings collected autographs, and inspired Bryan to start his own collection of signatures and comments. Over a period of 53 years, Bryan accumulated approximately 300 books containing more than 100,000 signatures and comments from both notable and ordinary individuals. Jennifer says, “Bryan’s autograph books provide a glimpse into the public interests of the time, from politics and literature to the art of the 1960s, especially after his retirement from government service.”
Pages from Percival Bryan’s autograph book collection, showing an autograph from educator and civil rights activist Mary McLeod Bethune at the top of the right page. (Courtesy Anacostia Community Museum.)
Jennifer hopes to work towards digitizing the entire Percival Bryan collection and making it more accessible to visitors through the Smithsonian Transcription Center.
Pages from Percival Bryan’s autograph book collection, showing autographs and newspaper clippings from government officials and celebrities. (Courtesy Anacostia Community Museum.)
“The beauty of the Smithsonian is that it is such a diverse collection,” she says. “The fact that a president’s top hat can sit alongside the autograph collection of a cabbie is just really amazing.”
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Posted: 12 March 2024
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