Blog Post #30: Producing the short film “Sēmata (Signs)” for the curated exhibition, “An Archaeology of Disability” with Christopher Tester, Pia Hargrove, and Caroline Cerilli

As a continuation of “New Projects Month”, we bring you an interview with three collaborators who worked on the original film-work, “Sēmata (Signs)” that appears in “An Archaeology of Disability”, curated by David Gissen, Jennifer Stager, and Mantha Zarmakoupi for the Biennale Architettura 2021. Actor Christopher Tester, voice actor Pia Hargrove, and creative consultant Caroline Cerilli reflect on the inspirations and hopes behind their work on the film, and what “An Archaeology of Disability” teaches us, both about people in the past and about ourselves in today’s world.

What was the inspiration behind your project? How did it come about? 

The theme of this year’s Biennale Architettura, curated by Hashim Sarkis, is How Will We Live Together? organized into five subsets of that larger question: Among Diverse Beings, As New Households, As Emerging Communities, Across Borders, As One Planet. Our research station, “An Archaeology of Disability” opens the Among Diverse Beings section in the Arsenale space and takes up forms and languages designed and used by disabled people to explore the art and architecture of the Acropolis in Athens, a notoriously inaccessible site

Historic preservation and accessibility need not be pitted against each other; rather, as this research station argues, languages and forms used by disabled people in the present shed new light on the historic past. Underlying this research are two important arguments: the first is that while disability is an important modern political category, impaired bodies have always been a part of history; the second is that forms and languages used by contemporary disabled people are as valid for analyzing the ancient past as any other forms and languages.

Touchstones for the project include Georgina Kleege’s work on blindness and art, David’s work on the path to the Acropolis, and Christine Sun Kim’s contemporary art practice. In addition to the curatorial collaboration between David Gissen (experimental history and architectural theory, New School), Mantha Zarmakoupi (ancient Greek and Roman architecture, Penn) and Jen Stager (ancient Mediterranean art, Johns Hopkins), a strength of this project was the international coalition of people from Baltimore to Berlin who worked with us. Their formations and interests span a wide range—from political activism to material fabrication—and many languages, including Greek sign language, American sign language, modern Greek, Serbian, German, and English.

One component of the installation was a film, “Sēmata (Signs)”. Pausanias, the 2^nd century CE travel-writer and geographer, notes a picture gallery that once stood inside the gateway to the Acropolis in Book One of his Description of Greece. The film presents an extended ekphrasis of paintings that Pausanias mentions and situates those paintings within the orthogonal between the Agora and the Acropolis. One aspect of the art and architecture of the city that emerged in and through writing the original script was the reciprocal relationship between the art and architecture of the marketplace and that of the Acropolis.

Actor, educator, and interpreter, Christopher Tester, performed the extended ekphrasis in a combination of Greek and American sign languages. Caroline Cerilli, an undergraduate at Johns Hopkins who has focused on accessibility in museums, consulted on the script and captions and joined via zoom for the film shoot. Pia Hargrove, a professor of social work at NYU and political activist, performed the film’s audio description. We’ve asked each of these collaborators to respond to parts of the questionnaire.

How did your work on this project come about?

Caroline Cerilli: I came to the project in my sophomore year, when I took Professor Stager’s introductory art history class. I am minoring in Museums, but while we talk about meaning making with objects, this type of close looking was new and interesting for me. At the same time, outside of the classroom, I was becoming more involved with the disability community at Hopkins and finding what that meant for my own sense of identity. A few weeks into the semester, everything connected when Professor Stager assigned David Gissen’s article about viewing the architecture of the Acropolis through a disability lens. I was fascinated that there had been a ramp up to it so long ago that was more inclusive and accessible, and that people could help one another walk up in a collective experience. I had no idea when I approached Professor Stager about the piece that she was already working on “An Archaeology of Disability,” much less that she would welcome me into learning more about the process. It has been really meaningful to work on a project led by people who identify as people with disabilities and by people who support the community. It is important to me to participate in work that represents the goals of individuals within our community, because these perspectives are too frequently missed.

Christopher Tester: My thought process changed as I did this project. I initially viewed it as making the text accessible in ASL for the Deaf American audience, in part due to who was on the team (Jennifer was my point of contact). However, I wanted to honour Greek mythology and its origins and contacted a friend of mine who is Deaf and from Greece to see whether famous Greek characters and places in the script have names in Greek sign language and sure enough they did. Incorporating these Greek sign language names influenced the translation. These name signs will not be recognizable to the film’s Deaf American audience, and perhaps to most of audience members. One thing I did not initially consider was the location of the exhibition in Venice and not in the US. Perhaps I should’ve used International Sign (IS) so that any deaf individual who encounters the exhibition can enjoy it. However, I always prefer to promote a national sign language rather than international sign (note I do not use language after IS) because it is not a language that is based in one location, but a way of communicating when deaf individuals from different countries converge and converse on a specific topic/event.

When performing, who is your audience? Which audiences would benefit most from your performance?

Pia Hargrove: In performing, I hope that my voice truly captures the essence of the narrative and presents it to those who may not be able to see the visual art of, “An Archaeology of Disability.”  I was deliberate about the expressiveness of my pitch and tone to enliven the work while being authentic.

What was most challenging about designing this project?

CT: The challenging part of this project was not having a real deaf audience with whom I could check to see whether my translation was clear, made sense, and remain artistic. Finding the balance between being creative/artistic and providing clarity and respect to ASL is important to me. ASL is not a tool for ‘beautifying’ a project but a full-fledged language that our deaf and signing audience can enjoy and understand. 

PH: The most challenging part about voice acting in this project was the inability to connect with collaborators in person.  It would have been even more amazing to synergize with the actor and with the exhibition space.

CC: This work showed me how people adapt and projects change, as the planning began before the pandemic, but continued to be produced during the pandemic. In March 2020, I did not know what would happen to this project, and certainly had no idea that it could be completed in a virtual space. The final week I was on campus for in-person classes, we were discussing logistics for filming, all of which dissolved the next week. While the original plans changed, the most exciting day for me in this process was getting to listen in on the filming and recording day (shot in Berlin with Clear Cut Films). I had never seen a film set before, so I was too busy taking in the artistic directions, adjustments of the lights, and decisions on signing space to even consider how we were meeting on zoom. Last year, I might have been intimidated by the idea of everyone meeting from their homes in various countries in different time zones, but it was a very effective way to stay safe while still communicating and learning from one another enough to remain focused on the work.

CC: I’m interested in how museums can be more welcoming and inclusive for disabled people to join the galleries. This happens in two main ways: first, providing access to the existing materials, whether through ensuring there is enough seating available or through providing Braille copies of labels. Second is actually representing disabled people’s art, stories, history, and experiences on the walls. Disability is so often forgotten or ignored as a culture beyond impairment, but it is critical to show that disabled people have always existed, will always exist, have an equal right to be here, and have interesting lives. This project was so interesting for me to see develop because I believe it accomplishes both goals. The film included a Deaf signer, accurate captioning, and a professional voice-over. For either an ASL user or English user, this is generally very accessible. And of course, the content itself is told by Christopher, who visually represents a place that no longer exists as he tells it. It is both inclusive and artistic, which is an attainable goal that, in my experience is sometimes seen as impossible. Accessibility and artistry tend to be positioned as binaries when they can really enrich one another.

PH: Telling our stories is incredibly powerful in bringing history to life.  I hope that rendering my voice brings diversity and difference to the listening experience. I look forward to helping the curatorial team bring awareness to the importance of accessibility in its various forms.

How would you like to see your work implemented in a classroom setting?

CT: I have always loved Greek mythology/ancient Greek history and a wonderful way to view and learn these stories is through a national sign language (ASL in my case). The Greek sign language names of all of these special characters and places in Ancient Greece should also be learned. These Greek signs were developed and recognized by the deaf community members in Greece. I did not want to try and come up with new names based on my American lens. 

PH: Students of all disciplines can engage with, “An Archaeology of Disability.”  Learning about the spirit of community and of human difference and impairment in antiquity can inform greater sensitivity to people of all identities, ages and abilities in the present.  The audio and the visual descriptions of the ancient Athenian experience highlight that, “Storytelling brings together these spaces, colors, bodies, images…”  Diverse students can be challenged to document their own stories through interviewing significant people in their lives about the inter-generational experience of human difference and creatively sharing their account accessibly through various artistic and media platforms.

PH: My work across platforms is focused by my passion for community cultivation.  “The personal and the political have never been separate,” and I use my voice and political agency to amplify the stories of marginalized people.  “An Archaeology of Disability,” evidences the presence of violence and trauma in antiquity through the present.  My work emphasizes the importance of collective healing in the midst of intergenerational trauma.  Celebrating humanity, supporting human difference while building community with love is how I engage with people globally.

How does this project help shed light on real people, either those in the past, or those in the present?

CC: To me, this project states in no uncertain terms that people have always had disabilities and been a part of society. Much of what I have been taught in my education has shown the tragedy of disability and how people have long been excluded because of their disabilities. While ableism is and has been very real, there is more to this history. Disability can be viewed neutrally, and it can be viewed positively. By considering how disabled people have used one of the most iconic architectural structures, we uncover more about how people existed then and now.

Another point I believe this touches on is that we still do not live in a fully accessible world. Progress towards inclusivity is not linear, and we certainly have not achieved it yet. While upwards of 25% of people in the U.S. have a disability, not even 1% of U.S. homes are equipped so that a wheelchair user can navigate them freely*. Even the Acropolis today has decreased in accessibility. There is a singular elevator to take visitors to the top, but this is slow and a distinct experience from traveling up the way the original architects had intended. This is as much an academic exercise in considering disability in history as it is an acknowledgement of our continued inaccessibility today.   

*https://www.huduser.gov/portal/pdredge/pdr_edge_research_101315.html

PH: The film recounts that, “In ancient Greece, Athenians of all ages and abilities would have helped each other to ascend together…” We are challenged in the modern world to examine how we ascend together and hold each other accountable as we evolve together with dignity and humanity.

“We are challenged in the modern world to examine how we ascend together and hold each other accountable as we evolve together with dignity and humanity.”

Pia Hargrove

Author Bios:

Deaf and a Vermont native, Christopher Tester lived and worked in New York City as an American, British Sign Language, and International Sign Interpreter, actor, consultant, and educator for nearly 15 years. He is currently a Ph.D student at Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Pia Hargrove, LMSW is a licensed social worker, author, community cultivator and political activist.  As an evocative speaker, Pia engages global audiences, rendering her voice to honoring difference, bringing awareness to race and cultural humility, political agency, collective trauma and healing and the importance of self-care.  Pia continues to share her expertise as an adjunct associate professor of social work at NYU Silver with a particular emphasis on the needs of immigrant communities and those reflective of the African Diaspora.

Caroline Cerilli is a student majoring in Public Health and minoring in Museums and Society at Johns Hopkins. She is currently a student researcher with the Disability Health Research Center. Previously, she has assisted with research at MDisability of the University of Michigan and has helped develop accessibility projects at Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum.