Convening on Art, Identity, and Movements for Change

The Ford Foundation presented the convening Art, Identity, and Movements for Change livestreamed on the global, commons-based peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Tuesday 23 June.

In Twitter, use #artofchange and #howlround, and follow @FordFoundation and @HowlRoundTV.

This is the first event in The Art of Change series, a yearlong exploration by the Ford Foundation of the interplay between art and social justice. For more information on this effort, and to join the conversation, visit www.artofchange.is.

Increasingly, many of us experience our identities in complex ways that transcend (yet still include) categories of nation, gender, religion, ethnicity, class, age, or race. This complexity creates new challenges as well as new opportunities for movements for social justice in terms of how we organize and advocate. Many artists are ahead of the curve in investigating this complex territory—challenging restrictive identity categories, shaping new narratives around contemporary experience, and affirming identities that have been historically misrepresented.

This convening asks—how does art enable us to understand the complexity of the human experience and find common ground with others, as well as envision and enact new social and political possibilities? Are there opportunities to build more inclusive and collaborative social movements around shared values and needs?

Agenda

Welcome
9:15 a.m.-9:30 a.m. EDT (New York) / 13:15-13:30 GMT / 2:15 p.m.-2:30 p.m. BST (London)
Hilary Pennington, Vice President, Education, Creativity and Free Expression, Ford Foundation

Colorizing Us: Seeing Identity and Equity Now
9:30 a.m.-10:15 a.m. EDT (New York) / 13:30-14:15 GMT / 2:30 p.m.-3:15 p.m. BST (London)
Jeff Chang, Executive Director, Institute for Diversity in the Arts, Stanford University

Art and Identity
10:15 a.m.-11:30 a.m. EDT (New York) / 14:15-15:30 GMT / 3:15 p.m.-4:30 p.m. BST (London)
Participants:

• David Henry Hwang—Playwright; Librettist; Screenwriter; Art of Change Fellow
• Julio Salgado—Visual artist; Co-Founder, DreamersAdrift.com
• Carrie Mae Weems—Visual artist; Art of Change Fellow
• Moderator: Gregory Rodriguez—Publisher and Executive Director, Zócalo Public Square

Presentation: After Identity, What?
1:45 p.m.–2:15 p.m. EDT (New York) / 17:45-18:15 GMT / 6:45 p.m.-7:15 p.m. BST (London)
Hank Willis Thomas, Visual artist and Photographer

Identity and Movements
2:15 p.m.-3:30 p.m. EDT (New York) / 18:15-19:30 GMT / 7:15 p.m.-8:30 p.m. BST (London)

Participants:

• P. Carl—Creative Director, ArtsEmerson, Emerson College
• Gail Christopher—Vice President, Policy, W.K. Kellogg Foundation
• Ai-jen Poo—Director, National Domestic Workers Alliance
• Moderator: Laura Flanders, Founder and Broadcaster, GRITtv

About HowlRound TV

HowlRound TV is a global, commons-based peer produced, open access livestreaming and video archive project stewarded by the nonprofit HowlRound. HowlRound TV is a free and shared resource for live conversations and performances relevant to the world's performing arts and cultural fields. Its mission is to break geographic isolation, promote resource sharing, and to develop our knowledge commons collectively. Participate in a community of peer organizations revolutionizing the flow of information, knowledge, and access in our field by becoming a producer and co-producing with us. Learn more by going to our participate page. For any other queries, email [email protected], or call Vijay Mathew at +1 917.686.3185 Signal/WhatsApp. View the video archive of past events.