Exhibition Overview
Voyages by Road and Sea, an exhibition at the Free Library of Philadelphia (2019-20), explores the lives of Walt Whitman and Herman Melville and the ways in which travel and encounters with the natural world influenced their work. The exhibition also includes responses from 7 local artists working in a variety of media whose works celebrate and contend with the legacies of these 19th-century writers.
"Voyages by Road and Sea weaves the historical narratives of Melville and Whitman together with numerous and varied perspectives on their work,” says Andrew Nurkin, the Free Library’s Deputy Director for Enrichment and Civic Engagement. “These diverse interpretations help us consider Melville and Whitman with an empathetic yet progressive eye: What can they teach us? Where do their voices speak too softly, with bias, or not at all? Asking such questions opens up rich conversations and new understandings of these literary figures and of our own cultural history.”
Additionally, the exhibition presents the voices of influential thinkers of the past century who have engaged with Whitman and Melville through commentary and writing, such as Toni Morrison, C.L.R. James, Joseph Bruchac, June Jordan, and Langston Hughes.
Credits
Curated by Edward Whitley, Ph.D., Professor of English at Lehigh University, and Alexander Ames, Ph.D., Collections Engagement Manager at The Rosenbach and the Free Library of Philadelphia.
Featuring art by: Norma E. Cantú, Abigail Donovan, Richard Gabriele, Linda Dubin Garfield, Anna McGlynn, Kelly McQuain, and Marta Sánchez.
Art direction by Nathanael Roesch with marketing and production assistance by Grace Jonas.
