Mischief at the Bodleian
Saturday 11 May, 1pm – 4pm
Weston Library
On Saturday 11 May 2024, join world-renowned musician and artist Peter Brathwaite, for a special event from 1pm – 4pm, which includes ‘Mischief in the Lecture Theatre: In Conversation with Peter Brathwaite’ from 2pm – 3pm, at the Weston Library. This event will offer a behind-the-scenes look and exploration of his family history, while telling the stories of three of his ancestors, whose lives intersected amid the grim reality of slavery in 18th-century Barbados.
This event will include a guided tour of his pop-up display ‘Mischief in the Archives’ and provide an opportunity to hear about the personal stories behind his family history research. Attendees will learn about conducting Caribbean and African family history research using the Bodleian’s rich archival collections, and participate in a hands-on activity to create their own ‘Mischief in the Archives’ keepsake.
Explore the power of the archives
This event invites you to go beyond the ‘Mischief in the Archives’ display and delve into the stories that lie within the Bodleian's collections. Learn how the We Are Our History project is shining a light on diverse histories and empowering individuals to reclaim their narratives. Don't miss this unique opportunity to engage directly with the curator and discover the transformative potential of archival research.
About Mischief in the Archives
Since opening in Blackwell Hall at the Weston Library on 27 January 2024, Mischief in the Archives has engaged audiences through a humanising history and ancestry, challenging preconceived racialised narratives, and giving voice to those the archives have long muted.
After tracing his roots back to the British-owned Codrington plantations in Barbados, Brathwaite discovered ancestors who had been enslaved and other ancestors who had been slave traders. These include John Brathwaite, the white plantation owner and colonial agent who leased the plantation, and Margaret and Addo Brathwaite, an enslaved, then freed, Black couple who lived and worked there. ‘Mischief in the Archives’ reveals their humanity and gives a platform for their little-known stories. Spanning continents and centuries, items from Brathwaite’s personal family collection are combined with the Bodleian’s collections to create an intimate exploration of his family history, while telling the stories of three of his ancestors, whose lives intersected amid the grim reality of slavery in 18th-century Barbados.
In historical archives, enslaved individuals were often labelled ‘mischievous’ for simply trying to assert their humanity and personhood; resisting oppression was seen as unruly behaviour. By placing his own family artefacts alongside the archives researched at the Bodleian Libraries,
Brathwaite has challenged the colonial records narrative, surfacing hidden voices buried within them, in what he calls the ‘counter-archives’ and as an act of creative ‘mischief.’
Presented in partnership with the Bodleian Libraries, this exhibition comes as part of the libraries’ Mellon Foundation funded research project, We Are Our History. The project's title takes inspiration from a quote by the American writer James Baldwin: "History is not the past. It is the present. We carry our history with us. We are our history." Through the project, the libraries are taking a closer look at its collections, work with audiences and its staffing through the lens of race and the legacies of the British Empire, with the overall goal of actively fostering inclusion and diversity in everything it does.
Recent examples of this work have included partnering with the Museum of Colour for the exhibition ‘These Things Matter: Empire, Exploitation and Everyday Racism’, a pop-up event; Trailblazers: Black Oxford Untold Stories in partnership with Westgate Oxford and a series of talks by artists, scholars and researchers opening up critical engagement with archives and what they can tell us about race and identity.
