Thursday, October 1, 2026
79 ° Clear
79 ° Clear
A towering ceramic vessel set to debut at the Michener Art Museum this month tells more than one story. It commemorates America's 250th anniversary while also honoring the voices of people once incarcerated within the building's original walls.
The Michener Art Museum will unveil a newly commissioned work by acclaimed Philadelphia artist Roberto Lugo on June 5, inviting visitors to reflect not only on the country's semiquincentennial, but also on the history of the museum itself.
Titled 'Permanence: We Were Here,' the four-foot-tall ceramic vessel serves as both a celebration and a reckoning. Created specifically for the Doylestown museum, the piece examines the transformation of the site's original purpose as the Bucks County Jail into one of the region's leading cultural institutions.
The commission arrives at a significant moment for the Michener. While many America250 programs focus on patriotism and national milestones, Lugo's work encourages visitors to consider whose stories are preserved, whose are forgotten, and how art can help bridge those gaps.
“We are thrilled to unveil the artwork commissioned by Roberto Lugo for Michener Art Museum,” Executive Director Anne Corso said. “The piece 'Permanence: We Were Here' is timely as we honor our nation’s semiquincentennial, reflect on the history of our site as the former Bucks County Jail, and celebrate the role of contemporary craft in our collection—with a nationally recognized artist who makes his home here in the Delaware Valley.”
The lidded ceramic storage jar draws inspiration from the color and black- and red-figure pottery styles of ancient Greece and Rome. Lugo incorporates imagery of the Michener's distinctive architecture, with references to the original stone walls of the jail.
A vibrantly colored narrative at the top of the work incorporates drawings from the Pine Street Express, a magazine published by people who were incarcerated at the jail in the 1970’s as part of a writing program facilitated by Vita Education Services.
For Lugo, the project offers an opportunity to tell a fuller version of American history.
“One of the things that is really important in my work is telling the full history, the scope of the American experience, especially with the 250th anniversary of America,” Lugo said. “So much of history is told from certain lenses and perspectives that don’t really tell everybody’s full truth. For me, this commission is profound because it’s telling a truth, uncovering history.”
Based in Philadelphia, Lugo is an artist, poet, educator and activist who blends classical pottery traditions with portraiture, graffiti aesthetics and influences from his North Philadelphia upbringing.
His work often addresses themes of poverty, racial injustice and social inequality while challenging traditional notions of who belongs in museums and art history.
The new artwork expands upon the museum's 'Behind These Walls: Reckoning with Incarceration' initiative, a multi-year project supported by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage that examines the site's former life as a correctional facility.
Museum officials say the commission was inspired in part by conversations with a community advisory committee assembled through the initiative. Members expressed interest in finding new ways to present the building's history through contemporary art.
“Art can be a pathway to new beginnings,” said Laura Igoe, Gerry and Marguerite Lenfest Chief Curator. “This piece speaks about overcoming systems of oppression while acknowledging and honoring the people who were incarcerated here.”
Once unveiled, 'Permanence: We Were Here' will become part of the museum's permanent collection.
