US artist representative at the 2003 Venice Biennale, Fred Wilson will speak about his exhibition "Speak of Me as I Am" and related works that imagine the psychological state of Africans in Venice in the early centuries. Wilson is known for challenging the concept of the museum as an institution and the visitor’s perception of how an institution presents its collection. “Speak of Me as I Am” is no exception to this concept. Through this exhibition, originally created for the Venice Biennale, Wilson touches on the irony of the hidden-in-plain-sight history of Africans in Venice and its effect on the contemporary Venetian unconscious.

About the Speaker
Fred Wilson is an artist whose work includes painting, sculpture and photography. He is known for his sculptures in glass and for his site-specific installations in collaboration with museums and cultural institutions throughout North America, Europe, Africa, and Asia. Wilson’s work has been the subject of solo exhibitions and retrospectives worldwide, including, amongst others, the critically acclaimed Mining the Museum: An Installation by Fred Wilson, sponsored by the Contemporary Museum at The Maryland Historical Society, Baltimore (1992–1993). Fred Wilson lives and works in New York City, where he is represented by The Pace Gallery.

This is the 32nd Annual Theodore L. Low Lecture. This lecture honors the memory of Theodore Low, director of education and public programs at the Walters for 34 years.

This event will conclude with a book signing.