Beyond Statues: A Convening on Land, Space and Memory

Focused on memorial spaces and preservation, this event will bring together practitioners engaged in the work of land, space and memory.
About this Event

The Monuments Workshop at the University of Kentucky invites cultural workers, community leaders, preservationists, artists, scholars, lawyers, students, descendants, and public officials engaged in the evolving work of monuments, memorialization, preservation, and public memory to join us for a two-day convening in Lexington, KY. This event is free, but pre-registration is required, and tickets are limited.

Our Story: Beyond Statues

This gathering builds on the journey of Workshop co-founders, Dr. Melynda Price and Professor Zachary Bray, beginning in 2019 with an academic symposium,. In 2023, they received a grant from the Mellon Foundation’s Monuments Project to establish the Monuments Workshop, a grant-funded program designed to integrate legal expertise into efforts to improve the monument landscape in Kentucky and beyond.

In Spring 2025, the Workshop hosted a 100-person gathering of invited collaborators for Making Space: Expanding Kentucky’s Monument and Memorial Landscape, to introduce regional experts, cultural workers, and community practitioners. Beyond Statues is our inaugural national conference and a reflection of the workshop’s path from focusing on monuments as a symbol of public memory to a holistic understanding of how land, spaces (including monuments), and memory shape our society.

Parking

The Workshop has reserved a parking lot adjacent to the student center with 100 spaces. If you need a guaranteed parking space or have access concerns, please contact us at [email protected] or let us know in your registration. The conference venue, the University of Kentucky Student Center, is .90 miles from the Hyatt Regency hotel, and approximately a 20 minute walk.

Lodging

Rooms are held through a reservation block at the Hyatt Regency hotel in downtown Lexington through August 13, 2026. To receive the conference rate of $199 per night you must book via this link.

Please note that because of the Kentucky versus Alabama football game scheduled for 3pm on Saturday, September 12 in Lexington, many of the downtown Lexington hotels have limited availability. Please make your room reservations as soon as possible.

Sessions

Breakout sessions during this gathering may include, but are not limited to this following topics. For the most current information on sessions after registering, please visit the Monuments Workshop event website.

• Cemetery Preservation Stories
• LBGTQ Monuments and Memorial Spaces
• Ethical Stewardship of Natural Spaces
• Working with Artists
• Public Historians Panel
• Introduction to Cemetery Law
• Technology Demonstrations
• Connecting with Local Government
• MAAP Convene Workshop (by registration only)
• Building Archives & Preserving Legacies
• Getting Organized: Building from a community group to a nonprofit
• Public Archeology