THE HOME PROJECT:
A JOURNEY BACK TO THE FUTURE
I cried for a week after arriving in Robeson County to start a year-long artist residency. After the initial shock of life in the rural South wore off (I’m a native New Yorker, after all!), I fell in love with the place and people and realized this complex, racially-divided region had much to reveal about the meaning and importance of home, family and community (a very different ‘journey’ from my New York City HOME PROJECT).
“Journey in a perceptual time capsule of Robeson County’s history… with a visit to the Home Project….an ever changing reflection of what home means to the people of Robeson County, with some rooms demanding the viewer’s personal perspective as a ‘ticket’ to gain entry.”
– The Robesonian

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

THE HOME PROJECT: A JOURNEY BACK TO THE FUTURE explored historical and current reflections about home from Robeson County, North Carolina residents (Caucasian, African American and Native American). Multi-media and collaborative in nature, the interactive installation, designed for various rooms of the Robeson County Railroad Depot, integrated the work of diverse artists from North Carolina and New York (painters, musicians, photographers, bookmakers, writers, and filmmakers) as well as the creative outpouring of children and community members.

“Ms. Guralnick unearths memories of home that may have been buried or forgotten. Their [senior citizens] taped voices rise and fade like ghosts, set against a haunting musical score and the occasional lonesome wail of a train whistle. Simultaneously, historical photographs and images of decaying barns and abandoned cars flash on a large screen…”
– The News & Observer

ARTISTS

Cici Stevens, Rikki Asher, Ginny Tyler, Ray Owen, Emily Whittle, and Hugh Robertson. “Readings from Home” participants: Jill McCorkle, Sam Ragan, Ron Bayes, Barbara Brayboy-Locklear, Mamie Pope, and Shelby Stephenson.

SUPPORT

National Endowment for the Arts Subgranted Funds, Nexus Contemporary Art Center, North Carolina Arts Council Interdisciplinary Program, North Carolina Humanities Council, Robeson County Arts Council, Robeson County Historical Museum, private donations.

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