Inside a climate-controlled vault at the University of Chicago are hundreds of films and pieces of cinematic history. Each celluloid frame is cared for by the Film Studies Center, who maintains the collection for students, faculty and the public.

Thanks to two grants from the National Film Preservation Foundation, the Center’s vault will soon be home to groundbreaking and restored films by Black and Filipino filmmakers. These include two experimental short films by filmmaker Aarin Burch—Dreams of Passion (1989) and Spin Cycle (1990)—and five home movies depicting early 20th-century Filipino community life.

When I sat down to interview the artist vanessa german in her bright, airy temporary studio at the University of Chicago, she was the one who asked the first question. And the second, and the third. She wanted to know who I was and what motivated me in my work and life. She listened to my answers so intently that I was momentarily unnerved.

When I finally asked her how she became an artist, she said, “I might cry, but I’ll just keep going.”

The exchange with german (who styles her full name in lowercase letters) distilled much about her self-taught approach. Her beaded totemic sculptures, some modeled on African power figures, along with an installation on the National Mall, her community-based activism and her collaborative performances have lately been garnering art world attention and major awards.