Methodology

This project employs qualitative research methods, oral history interviews, and digital public history practices to investigate how public art serves as a tool for preserving the memory of historically Black neighborhoods in North Carolina that were affected by urban renewal. Centered on Durham’s Hayti neighborhood and Charlotte’s Brooklyn neighborhood, the study foregrounds the voices of preservationists, artists, and displaced residents to illuminate how visual storytelling supports historical remembrance, cultural preservation, and community advocacy.

The primary research method is oral history. Semi-structured interviews are conducted with three groups: (1) preservationists working to document the histories of these neighborhoods, (2) artists whose work commemorates these communities through public art, and (3) individuals or descendants of families displaced by urban renewal. These interviews provide firsthand perspectives on how public art expresses community memory, how artists engage with and reinterpret historical narratives, and how displaced residents assess contemporary efforts to memorialize their former neighborhoods.

Complementing the interviews, the project includes a visual analysis of public artworks that reference Hayti and Brooklyn. Murals, sculptures, and installations are examined for their themes, symbolism, aesthetics, and community reception. This analysis situates public art within broader efforts to reclaim histories that were marginalized or erased by mid-twentieth-century redevelopment policies.

The digital format of this project reflects core principles of public history, including accessibility, public engagement, and the dissemination of historical knowledge beyond academic settings. Because urban renewal displaced thousands of residents from neighborhoods such as Hayti and Brooklyn, many former residents and their descendants are now geographically dispersed. A digital platform allows these individuals, as well as scholars, artists, and community members, to engage with the research regardless of location.

The website serves as a multimedia public history space that integrates oral histories, historical interpretation, photographs, and documentation of public artworks. Structuring the content into sections focused on Durham and Charlotte facilitates comparative analysis of how different cities use public art to preserve the histories of neighborhoods transformed by displacement.

Digital presentation also enables the project to function as a living archive. Unlike a traditional written thesis or a temporary exhibition, a website can expand over time as new interviews, artworks, and historical materials are added. In doing so, the platform supports ongoing documentation and fosters continued dialogue about how communities remember, interpret, and preserve their histories.

By integrating oral histories, visual analysis, and digital public history, this project argues that public art operates not only as a medium of historical remembrance but also as a catalyst for community engagement and advocacy.