Encounters with
'Eternal Presence'

About the Film

In 1987, artist John Wilson installed Eternal Presence, a monumental bronze head, on the grounds of the National Center of Afro-American Artists in Roxbury. The neighborhood knows it simply as the Big Head, and nearly four decades on it remains one of Boston's most beloved works of public art.

Encounters with 'Eternal Presence' is a short film made for the Museum of Fine Arts Boston in which Roxbury community members share what the sculpture means to them. It accompanies Witnessing Humanity: The Art of John Wilson, the major Wilson retrospective organized by the MFA with the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

My Role

I served as director of photography and camera operator. A film about a sculpture that means this much to its neighborhood comes with a simple brief: give the people and the artwork the same care Wilson gave his subjects. That meant honest light, patient framing, and room for people to say what the Big Head actually means to them.

Knowing the film now plays for museum visitors inside the MFA, steps from Wilson's own work, is one of the quiet honors of my career so far.

Where to See It

Watch on mfa.org → The exhibition → YouTube →