The Division of Diversity and Community Engagement’s inaugural “Dialogues on Diversity” series will begin next Monday with an event called “A Peace of My Mind.” During the studio event, students, faculty and other members of the UM community will have the chance to answer the prompt, “The UM I want to create is…”
“A Peace of My Mind” was an initiative started in 2009 by photographer John Noltner, who has since visited college campuses and other public spaces around the country. Noltner said the idea for the event all began with the question: What does peace mean to you? Since then, it has expanded into several multimedia ventures, including a podcast and two books.
Alysia Steele, assistant professor of multiple platform journalism, recommended Noltner to the university after meeting him last year. Steele said she hopes this event will prompt students to talk to each other.
“His work is quite powerful, and I was happy to share (one of his) book(s) with Vice Chancellor Katrina Caldwell,” Steele said. “I am thrilled John is on campus to enlighten our campus with forward-thinking, thought-provoking work.”
Noltner will set up his studio on Monday and Tuesday in Bryant Hall, where participants can describe the Ole Miss they want to create.
“What we hope to do every place we go is … help the community articulate their mission, vision and values,” Noltner said. “We want to encourage people to recognize that there’s a lot of work to do in the world, and it’s our work. And … if we see something that we want to change and something that we want to improve, then we should go to work and do that.”
Noltner said he will explore different backgrounds than he has in his previous work when he heads to Oxford. He said the closest he’s been to Mississippi is Memphis, and he is interested in seeing what people have to say about the often divisive history of the state and the university.
“I grew up and have always lived in the upper Midwest, so I haven’t spent much time in the Deep South,” he said. “I know there’s a lot of amazing history — both on campus and in the area — and I hope that some of that is reflected in the stories that we gather.”
After spending time in the studio gathering stories and ideas from those in the community, Noltner will deliver the “This is UM” keynote address. Noltner said he plans to incorporate the common themes of the week and weave participant stories into his speech.
Though most of the exhibits and studio events focus on answering questions about peace and humanity, Noltner said that questions and responses can vary depending on important issues facing the place where the event is held. Common questions from university audiences often revolve around ways to shape the school into a place for everyone.
Noltner said he has noticed the importance of small gestures throughout his years traveling the country.
“When we talk to people and ask them what has impacted their lives, it’s not enormous, earth-shattering changes that people have made but somebody who sat down next to them in the lunchroom, who offered an ear when they were struggling or … who listened to their story,” he said. “For a lot of people, their world has been changed by small actions.”
At every exhibit and studio session, Noltner said he hopes that all participants and attendees learn the important lessons he aims to share.
“One (lesson) is a willingness to listen to other people’s stories,” he said. “Another is a patience with people who disagree with us. So we can slow down the conversation a little bit and have a little grace with one another and be willing to hear each other out, which as a society, we’re not doing very well at all, these days.”
April Grayson, an Oxford resident, said she is looking forward to meeting Noltner in person, after being a long-time fan of his work and corresponding with him through social media.
“It’s great that UM is hosting an artist who has dedicated his vocation and artistic vision to promoting peace and giving voice to a wide range of people,” Grayson said. “We often get trapped in our own small circles of influence and input, and this project shows us how rewarding getting outside of our bubbles can be.”
