South Street Seaport Museum Announces New Exhibition: Signs of Origin

This Fall the South Street Seaport Museum will host an outdoor photographic exhibition featuring six American individuals of Norwegian descent who share their personal interpretation of their own ethnic origins. Signs of Origin opens on October 1 and runs through November 30 2025. No tickets are required. seaportmuseum.org/signs-of-origin

In 2019 Norwegian photographer Inger-Maren Slagsvold (b. 1978) and visual artist Lucia Aragón (b. 1988) visited Minnesota Iowa and Washington State to interview and photograph 40 descendants of Norwegian immigrants. The interviews took place in the participants’ own homes where they were asked to choose a single object that they felt represented their ethnic identity. After photographing both the participants and their chosen objects Aragón and Slagsvold spoke with the individuals about their personal connection to the object and their interpretation of their ethnic origins. The resulting photographs and excerpts from these interviews form the exhibition Signs of Origin which was first exhibited in 2020 at the Anno Museum — Norwegian Emigrant Museum.

Beginning this October a visit to the Seaport will include exploring a portion of the original exhibition reproduced for outdoor exhibition along the historic streets of the Seaport. Strolling down Water Street and Fulton Street audience members will experience six of the interviews selected for an outdoor photographic exhibition. Each display pairs a portrait of the Norwegian descendant printed alongside an image of their selected object displayed together with explanatory quotes from the interview in both English and Norwegian.

This limited-time outdoor exhibition is free and open to all—no registration required. Beginning in October you’re invited to stroll through the historic streets of the Seaport and explore the displays at your own pace. While at the museum step inside the Seaport Museum to experience the Maritime City exhibition climb aboard historic ships and discover everything admission to the Museum has to offer.

About South Street Seaport Museum Admission Tickets

Regular admission to the Seaport Museum is $18 for adults $15 for seniors and students and $5 for children under the age of 18. Admission for Seaport Museum members is free. Tickets are available for purchase online and in-person. Museum Admission tickets grant access to the 1885 tall ship Wavertree and 1908 lightship Ambrose at Pier 16 as well as all exhibitions on view in the introduction galleries inside Schermerhorn Row located at 12 Fulton Street. Admission also include access to the the three-floor exhibition Maritime City in A.A. Thomson & Co. located at 213 Water Street. In addition to regular admission Pay What You Wish admission is available for purchase in-person at any check-in station at the Museum. seaportmuseum.org/admission

More About the Exhibition 

Ethnic identity is generally viewed as a subjective notion. It is based on a sense of common origin common beliefs a common language or other characteristics that set a group of people apart from other similar groups. Yet ethnic identity is much more than merely a “feeling” or a sense of social unity.

Identity is not only a mental category. Ethnic identity is also manifested through objects and artifacts that exist in the physical world. These artifacts anchor the actual physical world to mental constructs such as a “feeling of common identity.” Some artifacts can be large church buildings for example others small such as buttons and pins. A common characteristic of all artifacts is that they are tangible expressions of human ideas and as such have symbolic value to those who acquire and possess them.

Signs of Origin has been planned in conjunction with the 2025 jubilee commemorating the bicentennial of the first organized emigration from Norway to America. In 1825 the Restauration sailed from Stavanger to New York with 52 Norwegian emigrants on board.

Emigration and immigration still take place. Whereas Norwegians previously emigrated to America and elsewhere in search of a better life others now immigrate to Norway to find freedom security and new opportunities.

About the Artists

Inger-Maren Slagsvold was born in Norway in 1978. She graduated from the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen. She lives in Stange municipality and works as a mediator at the Norwegian Emigrant Museum. She was project manager and photographer for Signs of Origin.

Lucia Cristerna Aragon was born in Culiacán Mexico in 1988. She graduated from the Oslo National Academy of the Arts and works with print drawing murals and video production. In Signs of Origin she assisted Slagsvold during photography and was responsible for audio.

About Anno Norwegian Emigrant Museum

The Norwegian Emigrant Museum is a national museum and the largest museum in Norway that focuses on emigration from Norway to various global destinations especially to the United States. Its mission is to spread knowledge about Norway’s migration history through collections research and communication. The Emigrant Museum is part of the Anno Museum operating company established in 2009 to consolidate other museums in Hedmark County Norway and to assist the various museum departments with services such as marketing accounting and object preservation. In 2025 the Norwegian Emigrant Museum functions the administrative office for Crossings 200 the Norwegian national bicentennial commemoration of Norwegian emigration.

About Photoville

Photoville is a New York-based non-profit organization that works to promote a wider understanding and increased access to the art of photography for all. To fulfill its mission Photoville produces an annual citywide open-air photography festival in New York City along with a wide range of free educational initiatives and a nationwide program of public art exhibitions. By transforming public spaces amplifying diverse visual storytellers and creating innovative exhibition and programming environments Photoville works to nurture new perspectives and broaden representation through photography.

Acknowledgements

Signs of Origin is organized by the South Street Seaport Museum with the Anno Museum — Norwegian Emigrant Museum. Design and Production: Photoville Special thanks to the Norwegian Consulate General in New York and the CROSSING 200 1825-2025 Migration in 200 years.

About the South Street Seaport Museum

The South Street Seaport Museum located in the heart of the historic seaport district in New York City preserves and interprets the history of New York as a great port city. Founded in 1967 the Museum houses an extensive collection of works of art and artifacts a maritime reference library exhibition galleries and education spaces working 19th century print shops and an active fleet of historic vessels that all work to tell the story of “Where New York Begins.” seaportmuseum.org

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Host or Publisher Michelle Tabnick PR