Press Release June 4th, 2026

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Historic Reimaginings Workshop Accepted for 2026 New England Museum Association Conference

NOVATO, California — Historic Reimaginings: From Artifact to Story Using Responsible AI, a workshop developed by independent researcher and author Aric Wilmunder, has been selected for presentation at the 2026 New England Museum Association (NEMA) Conference in Mystic, Connecticut.

NEMA announced the acceptance following a competitive review process that attracted a record-breaking 134 proposals from museums, historical organizations, educators, and cultural institutions throughout the Northeast. The workshop will be presented as a 90-minute interactive session during the conference, which will be held November 4–6, 2026.

Historic Reimaginings is a research-based framework that combines historical artifacts, primary-source research, storytelling, and responsible use of artificial intelligence to create historically grounded visual interpretations. The approach was developed during research for The Prescott Girls: A Letter From Philadelphia, a middle-grade historical novel inspired by the lives of the Prescott sisters of nineteenth-century Dresden, Maine, and the needlework samplers they created as children.

“What began as an effort to better understand a collection of historic samplers evolved into a broader question,” Wilmunder said. “How can museums help visitors connect more deeply with the people behind the artifacts? Historic Reimaginings explores one possible answer by combining traditional historical research with carefully documented visual interpretation while maintaining transparency about what is known, what is inferred, and what remains uncertain.”

The workshop will examine how museums and cultural organizations can use emerging technologies to increase engagement with collections while addressing concerns about authenticity, ethics, historical accuracy, and public trust. Participants will review examples drawn from collaborations with historians, textile scholars, museum professionals, and descendants connected to the artifacts and stories being interpreted.

The New England Museum Association serves museums and museum professionals throughout the Northeast and is one of the region's leading organizations supporting museum education, collections stewardship, interpretation, and public engagement.

More information about Historic Reimaginings, The Prescott Girls project, educational resources, and related historical research can be found at:

https://www.theprescottgirls.com

Media Contact:

Aric Wilmunder
A Well-Regulated Press
aric@awellregulatedpress.com