Welcome

From the Quadrangle

MAKING SPACE FOR THE HUMANITIES

Founded in 1981, the Whitney Humanities Center has long been represented by a single image that graced the second-floor lecture room at 53 Wall Street: a carving of a ship above the mantle. But that ship sailed when the Whitney moved out of 53 Wall Street and into HQ at 320 York Street, from the outskirts of campus to the center of humanities conversations and initiatives.

DAVID DIOP’S “AT NIGHT ALL BLOOD IS BLACK” WINS INTERNATIONAL BOOKER PRIZE

It’s hard to miss, but I passed it twice before realizing what I was looking at. Just in front of the gare centrale in the Plateau region of Dakar, in the middle of a rond-point, is a bronze statue of two men atop a white pillar.

“MAKE IT SING!” JON BUTLER REMEMBERS 320 YORK

Here at the Whitney Humanities Center, we are very excited to be part of the new Humanities Quadrangle. But, although recently reimagined and renovated to function as a humanities hub, 320 York Street has a long history of housing humanities departments.

THE STONE HEADS OF 320 YORK

As you enter the new Humanities building at 320 York Street—the Humanities Quadrangle, or HQ—you might notice twelve stone heads looking down at you from the arched entrance. Although the heads’ exaggerated ears suggest a certain looseness with anatomical detail, the specificity of the faces suggests they represent real people.

FROM THE QUADRANGLE

I’m delighted to launch a new space on our website that we’ve named From the Quadrangle. We will be featuring interviews, unknown facts and stories about our history, and glimpses of future ventures. This space is not only about the Whitney Humanities Center—it’s about the larger comings and goings of the humanities at Yale writ large.