The iDeas Lab was commissioned to make a short film with Lisa Cooper, Director of the Johns Hopkins Health Center for Health Equity, about her long-standing commitment to eliciting the voices of community health workers (CHWs).
Since the 1970s, CHWs have served as an essential resource to underserved communities, helping individuals overcome challenges to healthcare access and providing advocacy in discussions with those working in healthcare systems and state health departments. In her research, Cooper has worked to improve the working conditions of CHWs and call attention to the outsized contributions they make to their communities.
Cooper’s work helped inspire a photographic installation by artist LaToya Ruby Frazier, ““More Than Conquerors: A Monument for Community Health Workers of Baltimore, Maryland 2021- 2022,” that was on display at the Baltimore Museum of Art through March 23, 2025. This project’s short film was shown at a sold-out panel event launching Frazier’s installation in November 2024.
“This was a great opportunity for the iDeas Lab to showcase the work of leading Hopkins researchers to the broad public audience attending the Baltimore Museum of Art, and to showcase the value of collaboration between artists, researchers and members of the community of Baltimore,” said Lauren Arora Hutchinson, Director of the iDeas Lab. “The elevation of community health workers’ voices and stories in Dr. Cooper’s work and the museum installation align with the kind of projects the Lab strives to create.”