The ‘State’ of Baltimore: Preservation and Memory as Tools for Revolution featuring Brennan DuBose, JJ McQueen, Martina Dodd, and Webster Phillips with Alanah Nichole Davis moderating
Community Gallery
Maryland Center for History and Culture
610 Park Avenue
Baltimore, MD 21201
Saturday, April 11, 2026
10:30 AM – 11:30 AM
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This year’s The ‘State’ of Baltimore will be a timely conversation about who gets to document a city and why it matters. Featuring Brennan DuBose, Winston Phillips, Martina Dodd, and J.J. McQueen. Moderated by the dynamic Alanah Nichole Davis, an award-winning journalist and cultural worker known for her community-rooted interviews and narrative work, this panel brings together visual storytellers working at the intersection of history, culture, and civic life. The conversation will explore how images, film, and archives shape public memory and influence the future of Baltimore. They will examine preservation, not as passive reflection, but as an active, even radical, practice. What does it mean to capture Baltimore in real time while honoring its past? How can interviews, documentation, and storytelling serve as both record and resistance? Attendees can expect an exchange grounded in lived experience, offering new ways to think about memory as infrastructure for change and storytelling as a tool for revolution. With a PhD in English from Columbia University, Brennan DuBose is the President and CEO of Lincoln Motion, a research and film production house advancing the next chapter of the Lincoln Motion Picture Company, America’s first Black production studio. Martina Dodd is an art historian, writer, and curator who specializes in the preservation, study, and expansion of African American-centered collections. Chief Photographer for the Mayor of Baltimore City, J.J. McQueen, an award-winning photographer and visual storyteller with 25+ years of experience, was featured in Forbes. He creates compelling, authentic visuals that inform and inspire, bringing stories to life with precision, creativity, and depth. Webster Phillips III is a third-generation photographer of the ihenryphoto project with a database of over 10,000 images documenting the history of Baltimore. The ‘State’ is moderated by Alanah Nichole Davis, whose work in and beyond Baltimore’s Mayor’s Office insists on the practice of preserving the city in real time, centering interviews as living archives.
A fearless storyteller, consummate craftsman, and president and CEO of Lincoln Motion, Brennan DuBose stands at the crossroads of cinematic poetry and sharp social insight, directing and writing short films that linger in the viewer’s memory long after the credits roll. Originally from the suburbs of Washington D.C., and with a PhD in English from Columbia University, Brennan has learned to craft narratives that eschew easy answers in favor of provocative questions and tactile, lived-in atmospheres. Beyond the lens, mentors emerging creatives, cultivating inclusive sets and fearless storytelling practices that empower voices traditionally underrepresented in the industry. When he’s not working, you can find him on long hikes with his 70 lb Goldendoodle Apollo.
lincoln-motion.com
X: @brennandubose
Instagram: @brennzn
Martina Dodd is an art historian and curator who specializes in the preservation, study, and expansion of African American-centered collections. She is currently the Curator of Collections & Exhibitions for the Banneker-Douglass-Tubman Museum. A Maryland native, she connects art and archival materials to provide nuanced interpretations of African American experiences and contributions. With expertise in African & African Diasporan arts, Dodd employs innovative object-based learning pedagogy to engage diverse audiences. She holds a M.A. in the Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas from the University of East Anglia and a B.A. in Anthropology & International Studies from Johns Hopkins University.
Instagram: @tracingpavements
J.J. McQueen is an award-winning photographer and master visual storyteller with over 25 years of experience across photography, journalism, and media production, with work featured in Forbes. As Chief Photographer for the Mayor of Baltimore City, he captures the pulse of civic life through compelling visuals that inform, inspire, and translate complex narratives into accessible imagery. Known for his technical precision, creativity, and collaborative approach, J.J. brings authenticity and depth to every project, shaping stories that resonate and bring moments to life.
Webster Phillips III is a third-generation photographer with the ihenryphoto project, an archivist focused on making the photographs from the archive available for educators and anyone with the thirst for knowledge. A large part of the project is connecting with elders to identify the unknown people and places in many of the photographs. Currently, they have a database of over 10,000 images capturing everything from Jackie Robinson and Billie Holiday to the kid on the street skating or the local corner store or dentist.
Alanah Nichole Davis (she/her) is a Baltimore-raised, award-winning journalist and storyteller whose work lives at the intersection of culture, community, and civic life. With a background in reporting on technology, design, and public systems, she is known for translating complex ideas into stories that feel accessible, grounded, and deeply human. Her work reflects a long-standing commitment to documenting the people, histories, and everyday moments that shape Baltimore. She holds a Master’s degree in Social Design from Maryland Institute College of Art, where she developed a practice rooted in listening, care, and imagination. Her writing has appeared in Next City, Maryland Matters, Baltimore Magazine, The Baltimore Banner, Salon, BmoreArt, and other outlets that center on place-based storytelling. Beyond journalism, Davis is deeply invested in Baltimore’s creative and civic ecosystems. She frequently moderates conversations, mentors emerging writers, and hosts gatherings that bring people together across disciplines. Affectionately known as “Baltimore’s Godmother,” she is recognized for her ability to nurture community and create spaces where stories can be shared, preserved, and reimagined. Her work is guided by her identity as a Black woman, mother, and cultural worker, and by a belief that storytelling is one of the most powerful tools we have to honor memory and shape the future.
www.alanahasenteredthechat.com
Instagram: @alanahasenteredthechat
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CityLit Project in partnership with Maryland Center for History and Culture present Bearing Witness: Literature as a Revolutionary Act. This celebration of the arts showcases a bevy of leading poets and writers on April 11, 2026. We’re talking fiction, nonfiction, poetry galore, and ways to up the ante on your craft.
Download the CityLit Festival: Bearing Witness flyer withe schedule.
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