Meet Toni Wynn – Anacostia Community Museum Research Project Team

Michon Boston Group is providing project management and programming consulting services to the Smithsonian Anacostia Community Museum for their 50th Anniversary celebration. One of the rewards is working with a dynamic team of historians and museum professionals that includes Toni Wynn of Word Burning Stove, LLC, who’s leading the project’s museum gallery and online exhibitions planning and writing.
 
In May, Toni was recognized by the American Alliance of Museums (AAM) for Excellence in Label Writing at the alliance’s annual meeting in St. Louis, Missouri.  Toni was a developer, writer, and editor for the “Cultural Expressions” exhibition on permanent display at the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) in Washington, DC.
 
“Cultural Expressions” is curated by NMMAHC’s Dr. Joanne Hyppolite and introduces visitors to the broad concept of African American and African diaspora culture through five frames which that culture is expressed: Style: Image and Identity; Foodways: Culture and Cuisine; Artistry: Craftsmanship and Creativity; Language: The Power of the Word; and Movement: Gesture and Social Dance.
 
Toni’s winning label, “Gestures of Acknowledgement”, was one of nine selected from 220 labels submitted to the competition. The label was displayed at the AAM’s Marketplace of Ideas. This is the second time the AAM has recognized Toni — who is also a poet and arts educator — for label writing. The first time was for the African Burial Ground Visitor Center in New York City.