Our Story
The (Un)Known Project is led by artists Hannah Drake and Josh Miller as they draw on their life experiences and travel to places including Dakar, Senegal, Natchez, Mississippi and Montgomery, Alabama, and deep connection to Louisville, Kentucky.
During a visit to the National Memorial of Peace and Justice, reading the 169 names of those who were lynched in Kentucky, one word continued to stand out, “Unknown.” Their journeys together and time at the Memorial birthed the idea to create the (Un)Known Project and to start exhuming the names and stories of the enslaved that America had buried and hidden.
(Un)Known Project creates artistic spaces and experiences to support learning, healing, reflection, reconciliation, and action by honoring the names and telling the stories – of both known and unknown – Black men, women and children who were enslaved and hidden figures in the United States.
By using artistic elements to unearth and share the story of enslavement, our goal is to propel a fuller more accurate account of history. Through this project we are hoping that people will walk away with a desire to learn more about the history of enslavement, its connection to present day, and to examine the role their family may have played in that history.
The (Un)Known Project was launched in Louisville, Kentucky in 2020. As people learned about our work, we quickly discovered the need to expand (Un)Known Project’s footprint to connect enslaved people, stories, and locations in and beyond Kentucky. Because enslavement is a part of American history, we are now creating the (Un)Known Project Trail, to honor and dedicate these sites as memorials to the lives and contributions of Black enslaved people.
For our Louisville, Kentucky (Un)Known Project work we collaborated with Frazier History Museum, Roots 101 African American Museum, and the City of Louisville. This included unveiling a public art installation, two commissioned art exhibits, and an immersive experience aboard the Belle of Louisville.
In November 2022, Hannah Drake and Josh Miller were named Soros Equality Fellows by Open Society Foundations to expand (Un)Known Project into a national initiative.
About Hannah Drake and Josh Miller
Hannah Drake and Josh Miller are the co-founders of (Un)Known Project, leveraging their 30-year tenure as artists to center social justice issues including public health, LGBTQ+ rights, and racial justice. Their work has been featured in publications such as the textbook, Trauma Informed Placemaking, research articles, and various media outlets including The New York Times and NPR.
Drake and Miller are both TEDx speakers, and were honored as 2022 Soros Equality Fellows to expand (Un)Known Project into a national initiative. Their organization was recognized as Nonprofit of the Year in 2019 by Derby Diversity Week and 2023 by Chamber of St. Matthews. Together, they continue to drive conversations and actions toward societal change through collaborative and community-centered artistic practices.