Craig Stevens is a doctoral candidate in Anthropology at Northwestern University working at the intersection of archaeology, digital heritage, and museum studies. His work advances a model of material culture diplomacy, using 3D databases, immersive exhibitions, and community-centered research methods to reshape how African and African diasporic heritage is documented, interpreted, and shared.
My research is grounded in a framework I describe as immersive material culture—an approach that integrates 3D technologies, virtual environments, and community collaboration to transform how material culture is studied and experienced. This framework positions immersive technologies not simply as visualization tools, but as interpretive environments that enable affective, embodied, and participatory engagement with cultural heritage. Through this approach, I develop methods that connect archaeological inquiry, digital documentation, and community knowledge to produce richer, more inclusive forms of interpretation.
I’m a Research Associate in Northwestern’s Material History Lab and an Innovator-in-Residence with Northwestern University IT. My fieldwork and collaborations span Liberia, Nigeria, and U.S. museum collections, supported by the National Science Foundation, the Wenner-Gren Foundation, and the Buffett Dissertation Fellowship — with publications in SAPIENS, American Antiquity, American Anthropologist, and Routledge.
01Education5 entries
PhD AnthropologyNorthwestern University · Evanston, IL
Ongoing
MA Museums, Heritage and Material Culture StudiesSchool of Oriental and African Studies · London, UK
2020
MA ArchaeologyUniversity College London · London, UK
2019
BA AnthropologyAmerican University · Washington, DC
2017
AS Social SciencesTidewater Community College · Portsmouth, VA
2015
02Current appointments4 roles
Research Associate · Material History LabEvanston, IL — 2023 – Present
Builds and maintains a 3D artifact database, leads aerial and archaeological survey in southern Nigeria, and drafts funding proposals.
Innovator in Residence · Northwestern University Information TechnologyEvanston, IL — 2022 – Present
Develops XR research and learning resources; designs and leads exhibition-design programs for graduate and undergraduate students.
Lead Researcher · Back-to-Africa Heritage and Archaeology ProjectLiberia — 2018 – Present
Surveys 19th-century settlement sites of Black American and Caribbean migrants in western Liberia and collaborates with the National Museum of Liberia on digitization and curation.
Communications Coordinator · Society of Black ArchaeologistsRemote — 2021 – Present
Leads organizational publicity for Black heritage sites and professionals; develops artist and content-producer partnerships for SBA initiatives.
03Affiliations7 partners
Material History Lab
National Museum of Liberia
Melville J. Herskovits Library of African Studies
04Exhibitions3 recent
Inescapable Truths: James Foley's Indelible LegacyNorthwestern University Main Library
2024
Augmented Curiosities: Virtual Play in African Pasts and FuturesHerskovits Library of African Studies
2023
Artificial IntelligentsiaNorthwestern University Main Library
