A Proposal to Replace the “Alma Mater” Mural in Sterling Memorial Library
In 1718, Mr. Elihu Yale, a former governor with the East India Company, sent a large donation of books, a painting, and “goods” that was used to establish Yale College, the largest donation the University would receive for over a century. Despite being the most valuable component of the donation, scarce records were made or maintained of the “goods.” The records that do survive clearly indicate that they consisted specifically of 1 case of soy sauce, 2 jars of mango chutney, 1 jar of nutmeg, and 3 bales of various textiles handwoven by weavers in India. These items were all sold in the port of Boston by 1721, likely to slave traders who went on to exchange them for captives in West Africa. The money from their sale was used to secure the future of Yale University.
These works attempt to re-create the donation that founded this University, with a particular focus on the parts of the gift that have not been discussed, studied, or preserved. The process included extensive archival research, historical contextualization, painting with soy sauce and chutney, and weaving, by hand, the various types of cloth which formed the bulk of Mr. Yale’s gift. The installation includes इतिहास (Itihāsa), an embroidered facsimile of the original account document, created in 1721 and preserved in Yale’s Manuscript and Archives division, which lists out the types of goods in Mr. Yale’s gift. Accompanying the installation is Literary Prowess, which was filmed in the Rare Books section of Yale University’s Library where the 300+ volumes Mr. Yale shipped are carefully kept and can still be accessed.
2019 - 2022
Oil on linen, handwoven cotton, wool, and silk cloth, found trunks, 1 case of soy case, 2 jars of mango chutney, and a jar of nutmeg
Painting (top): 93 x 80 inches (approximate)
Overall dimensions variable
2022
Encaustic, oil, mango chutney, and soy sauce on linen
Triptych, 22 x 18 inches each (without frame)
2022
White thread on white muslin, stretched on wooden frame
31 x 36 inches
Made in collaboration with Rachael Anderson
2022
16mm film
5 minutes 48 seconds
