00:10:00 (The Declaration of Independence)
bronze | 40” x 48” x 50” | 2026

It takes approximately 600 seconds, or 10 minutes, to read the United States Declaration of Independence. This artwork asks viewers to contemplate that time and, with it, the meaning of the document to our lives today. The installation represents the 600 seconds that it takes to read the Declaration of Independence as 600 of the artist’s “Time Rulers” cut in stone. Williams says, “Representing the time that it takes to read the Declaration of Independence is a way to consider the magnitude of this text’s importance, its influence, and its invisible presence in our everyday interactions and environments.” The hope is to inspire viewers to read the Declaration of Independence for themselves as a way of commemorating its 250th anniversary.

This sculpture, like the other pieces in Williams’ Time Rulers series, is made up of measuring sticks, each of which measures the space traveled in one second walking at one mile per hour – that is 17.6 inches. When grouped, the time rulers hold space that represents the significance and duration of specific cultural memories. Other works in the series include 00:00:15 (The US Pledge of Allegiance) and 00:00:10 (To Remember the Murder of Eric Garner).

The installation is accompanied by a recorded reading of the Declaration of Independence by a diverse group of women from or living in Virginia. This dynamic audio collage of community voices embodying the words of the founding fathers offers another way for viewers to consider the presence of these words in our world today. “I see my artworks as conversation pieces, like portals or bridges, to thoughts, feelings, or histories that are absent, intangible or might only exist invisibly within space,” Williams says.

Declaration of Independence Readers to date:

Zeina Azzam:  Palestinian American Poet, Poet Laureate Emerita of the City of Alexandria

Gretchen Bulova: Museum Director, Elected Official, Mom to 3, History and Hiking Enthusiast

Audrey P. Davis: Director of the African American History Division for the Office of Historic Alexandria, Museum Professional and Believer in Democracy

Cristi Donoso: 2025 - 2028 Poet Laureate, City of Alexandria

Daliana Gandarillas: Luke 17:10 Servant

Mayor Alyia Gaskins

The Honorable Heidi Meinzer: Judge, Alexandria Circuit Court

Dr. Kymberly S. Newberry: Scholar, Professor, Curator, Dreamer...Still Learning

Jillian Organek: High School Student, Creator of Ideas, Engineer-in-Progress, and Artist at Heart

Zahra Rahimi: Student at William & Mary, Founder of Musawwa Institute, Community Advocate, and Women’s Rights Activist

Ms. Brooke Sydnor Curran: Founder, President and CEO of Move2Learn, Forever Hopeful

Marchelle Toliver: Civil Servant, Talented, Vigorous, and Influential to Society

The Honorable Rebecca J. Wade: Judge, Alexandria Circuit Court