Zoe Tishaev (T'24)

I am a senior studying Political Science with minors in Economics and Sociology. I entered Duke during the peak of COVID-19. With a freshman class split between two campuses we struggled to understand what it meant to live in a university community, much less what it meant to live in the city of Durham. Sealed-off common spaces and a shuttered dining hall meant I also took an interest in the correlation between architecture, physical space, and the formation of community. Thus, in approaching this exhibit, I took a special interest in the role of relationships: between different individuals, groups, spaces, and institutions, and how they shaped Duke. I encourage visitors to take a critical look at the interactions between the various elements of Duke and the incongruities and hypocrisies among them. Note where Duke students and faculty chose to leverage their influence, and when administration chose to listen. As the members of the Duke community begin to look ahead to our next century, as we ponder our future direction and where we shall lead next, we must not forget the wisdom of the past. In the words of George Santayana, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”