We the People: Iron Gall

Taught by Thavolia Glymph and Leonid Tsvetkov

Community Workshop: Open to all – no Duke affiliation required!

Join historian Thavolia Glymph, Peabody Family Distinguished Professor of History at Duke University and instructor of America at 250: Founding and Forging a Democracy, for a guided critical reading of the Declaration. Through discussion and analysis, participants will examine the document’s language, ideas, and historical context.

Following the reading, discover how iron gall ink—used to record all important documents for a 1,400-year period of human history, including the Declaration of Independence—is made during a live demonstration. The main ingredient of this ink is made when a gall wasp lays her eggs in an oak flower, triggering the growth of a gall, rather than an acorn. This workshop will provide context from artist, Leonid Tsvetkov. To conclude the evening, participants will have the opportunity experiment with the ink and to sign their own copy of the Declaration of Independence, recreating the experience of the signers on August 2, 1776.

Meet the Instructors

Thavolia Glymph

Thavolia Glymph is the Peabody Family Distinguished Professor of History and Professor of Law and holds an appointment as Faculty Research Scholar at the Duke Population Research Institute (DUPRI) and …

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Leonid Tsvetkov

Leonid Tsvetkov is an Amsterdam based Russian-American artist best known for his site-specific installations, manufactured spaces, and research into residues, history, and the nature of change. His work investigates the frailty …

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About Duke Arts Create

Duke Arts Create is a series of free, hands-on arts workshops designed to help all Duke students, including graduate and professional students (including Duke Health), as well as Duke faculty and staff develop a variety of creative skills in the visual arts, dance and movement, creative writing and more. Workshops are open to all skill levels and backgrounds. Most workshops are held in the Duke Arts Annex, the Rubenstein Arts Center or the Duke Arts Office 2101 and are typically held weeknights from 6-8 p.m.

Registration for the following week’s Duke Arts Create workshops go live on Friday morning at 9 a.m. – sign up in advance to guarantee your spot. Didn’t get a spot? No problem! We always reserve space for walk-ins and waitlist registers. Email DukeCreate@duke.edu if you have any questions. Sign up for the monthly newsletter here, which includes the full list of classes offered during the following month.

Duke Arts Create is sponsored by the Office of the Vice Provost for the Arts (Duke Arts).

This event is part of We the People: A Duke & Durham Initiative

Learn more about the initiative

We the People commemorates the 250th anniversary of the United States by exploring the nation’s evolving identity through art, scholarship, and civic dialogue. This fall, you can view a rare signed print of the Declaration of Independence at the Durham County Main Library from September 8–20 and the Nasher Museum from September 24, 2026–January 3, 2027. We invite you to visit this foundational document and explore how it was circulated and visually rendered in the nation’s early decades.

Visit nasher.duke.edu for more visitor details about the Declaration of Independence exhibition.

Learn more about the nasher exhibition