Myth & The Psyche

This live virtual program takes us on a mythic journey across time and into the human mind, exploring the ways in which archetypal stories influence artistic and human expression, through the scholarship of guest lecturer Li Sumpter, Ph.D. This program is part of Southern Art/Wider World, a digital humanities project that places the treasured collection in dialogue with contemporary voices, in order to speak to the interconnectedness of Southern and American ways of life. Cost: Free to the public.  

Registration requested. Click the RSVP button to register.  

WHERE TO WATCH: 1) WAMA Facebook page; 2) WAMA Youtube page; or 3) WAMA website 

LI SUMPTER PH.D. is a scholar and multidisciplinary artist who applies strategies of worldbuilding and mythic design toward building better, more resilient communities of the future. Her academic research explores the anatomy and aesthetics of apocalypse myths focusing on the role of feminine archetypes in End Time and afrofuturist narratives. Li’s creative research and collaborative design initiatives engage the art of survival and sustainability through diverse ecologies and patterns of change. Li recently completed artist and writer residencies with Haverford College’s Urban Ecology Arts Exchange (2018), Leeway x NextFab Art and Technology Residency (2019) and SWIM PONY’s Trail Off project (2019/2020). She is a 3-time recipient of the Leeway Art and Change Grant and was awarded support for her transmedia project Graffiti in the Grass from the Sundance/Knight Alumni and Puffin Foundations. Li is also an active independent educator and eco-arts activist working through MythMedia Studios, the Escape Artist Initiative and various arts and community-based orgs in Philly and across the country.

Southern Art/Wider World has been made possible in part by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities: NEH CARES. Additional support is provided by the Mississippi Humanities Council. Presented in partnership with the Center for the Study of Southern Culture at the University of Mississippi.  

Learn more about the project at www.walterandersonmuseum.org/widerworld. Learn more about the National Endowment for the Humanities at www.neh.gov. 

Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this program do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.