It’s been nearly a year since The Embrace — the larger-than-life tribute to Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King — was unveiled on Boston Common. As its first anniversary approaches, The Culture Show host and GBH News Executive Arts Editor Jared Bowen is joined by Tufts professor Kerri Greenidge to talk through the power of public art: how it can connect us to our history and introduce us to the people who have shaped who and where we are today.

From there we look at how central memory, history and identity is to artist Yu-Wen Wu. Wu is a winner of the ICA Foster Prize, and her work wrestles with immigration. She examines what it means to assimilate, to be subsumed by another culture, and to hold on to your roots. It's the first of many conversations to come with Foster Prize winners.

Finally, it’s the return of the silver screen. As we head into Oscar season, take a look at how one beleaguered and beloved movie theater has rebounded with a Hollywood ending. Tim Nasson, the executive director at Waltham's Embassy Theater, shares his thoughts on the return of the establishment, which closed in 2022 and is home of the largest movie theater candy counter in the country.

Flashback to one year ago

  • Look back at the unveiling of the 20-foot high bronze sculpture, inspired by a 1964 photo of the couple embracing after Martin Luther King Jr. learned he had won the Nobel Peace Prize. At the unveiling, Martin Luther King III said. the monument “signified the bond of love” shared by his parents.
  • Watch how the organizers behind putting up the monument responded to the statue’s mixed review.