In 2018 the Walters Art Museum’s historic townhouse, Hackerman House at One West Mount Vernon Place, reopened after a major refurbishment. This was the occasion for new reflection on the history of the building and its residents. The current installation takes as its starting point a letter written during the Civil War by Sybby Grant, an enslaved woman who was a cook for the Thomas family and lived in the house between 1850 and 1888. Contemporary artists Roberto Lugo and Herb Massie worked with members of the Baltimore community to create artworks that respond to Sybby Grant’s story, the history of race in the United States, and works in the Walters collection.
The first floor of the house features an ornate double parlor. In one half, visitors can see bronzes by Antoine-Louis Barye (1796-1875), who specialized in depicting animals. Barye sculpted the large lion that sits in the park outside One West Mount Vernon Place, as well as four smaller allegorical bronzes that adorn the square. In the south parlor, star pieces from Majolica Mania, which was exhibited in the house and closed in August 2022, remain on view. This installation includes a life-size ceramic peacock manufactured in 1876 by Minton & Co. loaned from the collection of Philip and Deborah English.