New USU Exhibit Focuses on Anthropology in Today's World

The Utah State University Museum of Anthropology and Special Collections and Archives in the Merrill-Cazier Library open the year with a new exhibit Wednesday, Jan. 10. All are invited.

The opening takes place in the library lobby at 4:30-6:30 p.m. Student exhibitors will comment on their experience, and refreshments will be served. Visitors are encouraged to mingle with the student designers and USU faculty members.

The exhibit, “Anthropology: What’s it to You?,” is funded by the Utah Humanities Council and begins a seven-month run in the lobby of the USU Merrill-Cazier Library. Display cases have been provided by Special Collections and Archives.

USU students and members of the public are invited to learn more about anthropology and to celebrate the exhibit’s opening. The exhibit was conceived and created by a team that includes four USU students, five anthropology faculty mentors and the coordinator of USU’s Museum of Anthropology.

The exhibit focuses on the dynamic field of anthropology and its increasingly important role in the world today, exhibit organizers said. Student exhibit designers include undergraduates LuJean Kirby (American studies), Jessica Alexander (liberal arts and sciences) and Rebecca Laymon and Holly Andrew (anthropology).

“We developed this exhibit in response to the frequent questions fielded by museum staff and anthropology faculty about what anthropology is and what students can ‘do’ with it,” Kirby said. “Our interpretation shows how anthropology is relevant to all of us through examples drawn from the past and present and from all of anthropology’s sub-fields.”

Alexander said producing the exhibit was a team project for an intensive seminar style course — museum development (Anth 5800).

“We learned so much about the creative process and about the field of anthropology,” she said. “Creating an exhibit is fun and challenging. We hope visitors will leave the exhibit excited about anthropology and wanting to learn more about it.”

The exhibit is presented in four display cases, each highlighting an anthropology sub-field — linguistic, cultural, physical and archaeological.

Laymon’s linguistic anthropology interpretation shows the centrality of language in culture through an ancient Aztec case study.

Andrew’s cultural anthropology case focuses on music as a form of cultural identity in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Alexander highlights physical anthropology by showcasing anthropologists who helped identify the remains of those lost in the 9-11 World Trade Center tragedy.

Kirby’s archaeological case interprets Utah’s ancient Fremont culture, emphasizing the key role of north-bound immigration in the founding of this [Fremont] early agricultural society.

The exhibit and opening are free. For more information about the exhibit or the Museum of Anthropology, contact museum coordinator Sara Lundberg, (435) 797-7545, or via email.