Professor Alexandra Stern's Research Inspires Oregon Art Installation
American Culture Professor Alexandra Stern's work on how the medical, social, and cultural landscape of reproductive and genetic technologies has changed since the ’50s, and what these changes mean for Americans navigating genetic medicine today inspired an art installation at the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art at the University of Oregon. The installation, Shades of White, was created by Geraldine Ondrizek, Reed Professor Art. Professor Ondrizek cited Professor Stern's books, Eugenic Nation: Faults and Frontiers of Better Breeding in Modern America (2005) and Telling Genes: The Story of Genetic Counseling in America (2012) in her artist's statement and praised Professor Stern's work for "expos[ing] the deeply problematic charting of physical and mental anomalies and skin color by medical professionals in her books." Professor Ondrizek aimed for a visual interpretation of Professor Stern's groundbreaking research.
Professor Stern visited the installation and gave a lecture entitled "The Legacy of Eugenics in the Contemporary Era of Human Genomics" on October 15.
The installation will be open through December 14. Read more about the exhibit and see pictures here.