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At The Speed Art Museum, 'Unraveling' Is About More Than Deconstructing A Confederate Flag

Speed Art Museum/ Sonya Clark

Symbols of the Confederacy—from monuments to the flag—have sparked protests and civil unrest for decades. But in recent months, that has intensified.

Here in Louisville, debate has centered on whether to remove a Confederate statue in the affluent Cherokee Triangle neighborhood.

At the same time, a special exhibition at the Speed Art Museum has had its run. “Southern Accent” is a collection that seeks to address the South’s complex racial and cultural history.

As part of the exhibition, textile artist Sonya Clark spent several hours on Saturday pulling apart a Confederate battle flag, thread-by-thread. The performance piece is called “Unraveling.”

Visitors were asked to participate and, as I found out, many had their own reasons for unraveling. You can listen to some of them in the audio player above.

WFPL's Roxanne Scott contributed to this report.