Exclusive Interview with Kristin Taylor and Kyli Hawks on Art, Activism, Policy, and Power at MOCP

How can art be a catalyst for activism and policy change? The Art, Activism, Policy, and Power program offers high school students a unique opportunity to engage with artist-activists who are using their work to challenge injustices and inspire action. Through exhibitions at the Museum of Contemporary Photography (MoCP), interactions with visiting artists, and deep dives into curated collections, students explore pressing social issues and discover how creative expression can drive meaningful change. By examining the ways artists integrate research into their practice, participants gain a deeper understanding of the transformative role of the arts in activism.

We asked a few questions to Kristin Taylor, Curator of Academic Programs and Collections, and Kyli Hawks, Education and Curatorial Assistant at the MoCP.

All About Photo: Can you tell us a little about your background?

Kristin Taylor: I studied painting at the Kansas City Art Institute where I received my BFA and then came to Columbia College Chicago a few years later to complete my master’s degree in Visual Arts Management. While I was a graduate student, I began working as an intern at the Museum of Contemporary Photography. I was hired as the Collections Manager full-time in 2007 and then became the Curator of Academic Programs and Collections in 2017. In this position I run the museum’s education department, curate exhibitions from the collection, and research and propose new acquisitions for the collection.

Kyli Hawks I am a third-year photography student at Columbia College Chicago and have been working as a Curatorial and Educational Assistant since my freshman year, a position originally created for graduate students. Day to day I work as a docent giving tours of exhibitions and leading print viewing discussions of work from our collection, but last year Kristin brought me on as a collaborator for ‘Art, Activism, Policy, Power’ where I get to curate the final exhibition of the student’s work.


How did your personal journey with art start?

KH: I stumbled into my passion for photography the summer before high school through a darkroom photography program at After School Matters where all materials and cameras were accessible and free to us. I was able to experiment and create in this unlimited way which I definitely miss now. This program was the first place I was also introduced to fine art photography by artists like LaToya Ruby Frazier and Zanele Muholi who created work in which I felt represented in a way that was humanizing, true and not monolithic.

Are there any personal experiences or moments in your career that have particularly shaped your curatorial philosophy?

KT: Since my background was in painting, I did not know a lot about photography when I began working here as a student years ago. But during my time working in the collection caring for the (now) 17,000 photographs, I learned so much about the stories and conceptual underpinnings of each piece. I became more and more interested in sharing the stories of this collection, and very passionate about finding new ways to help people access this incredible archive. This led to me working in exhibitions, education, and programs. One of the things I love about working at MoCP is how intrinsically linked the departments are. What we do educationally informs exhibitions and collection acquisitions, and vice versa.

MoCP has a strong focus on photography and contemporary art. What excites you most about working within this medium, especially in the context of community-centered programs?

KH: Photography has not only historically been one of the more accessible mediums of art in terms of who was being photographed and who was photographing, but it also shows a tangible reality that allows its viewers more freedom to read into the image based on their own inner dialogue. A photograph is also quite literally the act of freezing a moment in time experienced by a specific person of group and gifting it to the world, and I really love that with Art, Activism, Policy, Power we get to prompt students from around the city to be more grounded in their own reality and more intentional with their voice through the medium of photography.


How did the concept for Art, Activism, Policy, Power come to fruition, and what inspired its focus

KT: In 2020, we were planning an exhibition at MoCP focused on guns in the United States. One of the featured artists had created work about school shootings, and we wanted to offer high school students an opportunity to engage with the exhibition on a deeper level than a typical tour since this is a topic that is very close to their daily lives. Reflecting on the many one-off programs we had done with high schools over the years, I saw an opportunity to develop a more structured and meaningful program for high school learners—one that could also serve as an ongoing commitment.

Because so many of our exhibitions address pressing social issues, and since so many young people are interested in voicing their beliefs on these issues, we decided to focus the program on how artists act on issues important to them through the creation and distribution of their artwork.

What do you hope high school students will take away from participating in this program, both as artists and as individuals?

KT: I have seen many museums and organizations explore the intersection of art and activism, but we wanted to add a unique edge by having students work closely with artists whose practices are deeply rooted in research. At the start of each program, we focus on helping students understand the issue the artist is addressing, as well as the artist’s process of gathering data and analyzing the policies and systems that contribute to the problem.

Before students create their own photographs, they learn strategies for articulating the “why” behind their art and activism—building a strong foundation for their work.

How do the program’s themes—art, activism, policy, and power—intersect in the work being created by the students?

KH: As teenagers you are just starting to develop a sense of self while still, in potentially belittling ways, being treated as a child by society at large. By providing this avenue in which students can reflect on policy and systems of power that directly affect them and create artwork that shares their personal sentiment, we get to hear voices that are not always given a platform. Last year working with Tonika Lewis Johnson and the Folded Map Project allowed us to amplify the effects of redlining and gentrification through the perspectives of Chicago youth in a really fruitful way. This year, I remember asking a student from South Shore College Prep, Sheena, how being in the show made her feel and her response is definitely something that will stick with me: “It made me feel seen”.


What makes Chicago a compelling city for a program centered on migration stories, and how does its history influence this project?

KH: Being born and raised here in the city and getting to experience many different neighborhoods through childhood friendships and family gatherings, I really got to see the sense of home that many different ethnic groups cultivate here in Chicago and what makes this city what it is – a cultural melting pot. Chicago has long been a beacon of hope and new opportunities for many different migrant groups which is a sentiment you hear a lot of with the different student interviews in this year’s high school exhibition but that also aligns with the idea of the ‘American Dream’. What is so prevalent in this year’s work are the primary accounts of the reality of chasing that deceptive dream.

What led you to select Regina Agu and Dawit L. Petros as teaching artists for this program?

KT: We typically pair students with artists who are on view in MoCP exhibitions. Dawit L. Petros held a solo exhibition at MoCP last fall, and Regina Agu has a solo exhibition in the museum now (until May 2025).

Both Agu and Petros deeply explore migration histories in their work. How do their practices complement each other, and what unique perspectives do they bring to the students?

KT: Both Agu and Petros are conveying complex histories of migration. Agu is focused more on migration from the US South to the North via the Underground Railroad and then, later, through the Great Migration. Petros is focused on histories of Italian colonialism in East Africa and how these histories shape the whole globe, including Chicago. Since so many students at Chicago Public Schools are first- or second-generation Americans, we thought that they would relate to Agu and Petros’s work, and have a lot of interest in conveying migration stories by people in their own communities.

How do you think projects like this one contribute to bridging cultural divides and fostering empathy in a city as diverse as Chicago?

KH: Incorporating oral narratives into this year’s program created a more immersive experience for the students making the work but also the people experiencing the work. Some students were able to creatively depict their sitter through still-lifes of objects that represent them or not capturing their sitter’s full identity for their safety and privacy. Hearing the sitter’s voice and empowering them by giving their story a public platform prompts our audience to perceive this work more from a place of curiosity rather than judgement, which I think is crucial for fostering more empathy for our local and global communities.


What do you see as the unique role of photography and oral history in preserving migration stories and amplifying marginalized voices?

KT: At our museum, we regularly discuss the critical role of visual representation. It can be profoundly isolating not to see people who look like you reflected in pop culture, media, or the arts. Photography offers endless possibilities—deciding where to set the frame’s edges and who to include within it is a powerful act of choice.

We want students to gain confidence and feel valued by recognizing that their stories matter and that there is an audience for those stories. This program—though it may seem like a small act to create a portrait—encourages students to see storytelling as a form of activism. Activism isn’t limited to protests, campaigns, or rallies; it can also mean prioritizing your voice and the voices of those in your community.

Amplifying underrepresented voices and preserving community memory is a meaningful form of resistance. We believe this work has the power to inspire change and create a lasting impact.

How does this program align with MoCP’s broader mission of fostering dialogue about contemporary social issues through photography?

KT: The museum’s mission is to cultivate a deeper understanding of the artistic, cultural, and political roles of photography in today’s world. A significant focus of our programming is visual literacy—learning to read images as we would read a text and recognizing how images influence us in our daily lives.

In 2020, during the height of COVID, I experimented extensively with virtual programming. One of my favorite initiatives was a weekly program where participants from around the world gathered every Friday at noon to closely examine and discuss a single photograph from the museum’s collection. People truly engaged, sharing their observations and forming friendships with other regular attendees. These sessions sparked incredible conversations, all centered on the experience of looking at photographs together. It was a powerful reminder of how museums can resonate with people on intellectual, social, and emotional levels.

Photographs naturally lead to discussions about contemporary social issues. Artists and photographers are constantly documenting, translating, and processing the realities we live through, making these conversations both relevant and essential.


With your background in curating exhibitions like Beyond the Frame and Reproductive: Health, Fertility, Agency, how does this program align with your curatorial philosophy?

KT: Curating is storytelling. As a curator and educator, I often see myself as a translator—taking complex artworks and ideas and making them accessible to a broad audience. Through clear descriptions and the thoughtful sequencing of artworks, I aim to create experiences that engage every visitor meaningfully, regardless of their background.

The Reproductive exhibition addressed topics such as miscarriage, abortion, menopause, and infertility, giving visual presence to the often-unspoken realities of women’s reproductive lives. The goal of that exhibition was to foster understanding so that when visitors go to vote or seek healthcare, they might be better informed about the female body. They also might feel less isolated about experiences, like miscarriage, that can be tremendously painful, but that people are not encouraged to share publicly.

After we installed Reproductive, I was overwhelmed by how many people reached out to tell me and my co-curator, Karen, how much they related to the content and that they never expected to see these topics presented in an art context. Soon after, artists began sharing deeply personal projects with us—works about miscarriage, loss, and fertility that they had created but never shown, believing there was no audience for them. It was an incredibly moving reminder of the power of representation and the importance of creating space for these stories.

Similarly with the Art, Activism, Policy, Power program, it's about teaching our future artists to be bold and to know that there is an audience for their stories, that their stories do matter, and that the arts are an incredible platform to get people’s attention.

What are some of the most rewarding aspects of curating educational programs like Art, Activism, Policy, Power?

KH: For me with curating the final exhibition, the most rewarding part of contributing to this program is always working closely with the students and their artwork. It truly is inspiring and so fulfilling to be able to help provide a space and experience where teens can exhibit their work that they put so much time and intention into. I hope it also expands their relationship to photography in a meaningful way. It always feels so full circle to be able to take on the role of my previous mentors and teachers from when I was their age and starting to take my own practice and relationship to photography more seriously.


Do you envision this program expanding in the future, perhaps including more schools, artists, or even communities outside of Chicago?

KT: Yes! We are always looking to work with new schools and encourage teachers who might be interested to reach out to us.

How do you plan to archive or showcase the student projects? Will their work become part of MoCP’s permanent collection or featured in public exhibitions?

KT: We keep permanent digital exhibitions of the student-created works on our website.

What’s next for MoCP in terms of educational programming that connects art with activism and social justice themes?

KT: This fall, we will pair students with artist Colleen Plumb. They will be working on the topic of environmental pollution and actions they can take to care for the earth within an urban environment. They will be making a public video mural about trees that will be installed near their school, and we will also collaborate with a local environmental advocacy nonprofit to engage the students in a service day of tree planting in the same area.