For Freedoms Residency Launch - Interdependence (a convening)

Interedependence (a convening)

Friday-Sunday, October 4-6, 2024

Corcoran - Flagg Building (500 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20006)

National Gallery of Art - East Building (4th St NW, Washington, DC 20565)

For Freedoms, an artist-led organization that centers art as a catalyst for creative civic engagement, discourse, and direct action, will launch its inaugural programming with a multi-day series of programs. The series will take place at both the Corcoran Flagg Building and the National Gallery of Art.

Programming will introduce For Freedoms artists and projects to the community with an emphasis on inquiry; question asking and question making. Thematic threads throughout the three days include topics such as interdependence, mobilization, and civic inquiry. Facilitated conversations and engagement prompts to initiate research and project ideation between National Gallery staff, Corcoran faculty, and For Freedoms artists will be held throughout the weekend.

Additional public facing activations taking place will include an installation of For Freedoms billboards created by artists from across the nation, public talks hosted at the National Gallery of Art featuring speakers John Grinspan, Helina Metaferia, Hank Willis Thomas, Eric Gottesman and Nekisha Durrett, a kite and flag making workshop with Nour Batyne, a film screening by Wasaam Al-Badry and book talk by Jessican Ingram. Corcoran faculty included in the organizing, designing, and facilitating of the events include Suse Anderson, Michele Carlson, Anna Kimmel, Carmen Montoya, Aasawari Kulkarni, Susan Sterner, Nidhi Singh Rathore and Clement Akpang.

In addition to the public programs, the Corcoran Flagg building will be open to the public Friday, October 4 - Sunday, October 6 from 1 - 5 pm. Visitors can view the installations and participate in the creative prompts designed by faculty and artists.

_ _ FULL SCHEDULE_ _

Friday, October 4

National Gallery of Art - East Building

1-2 pm

Public Talk: Wide Awakes - Then & Now with John Grinspan & Helina Metaferia

Corcoran - Flagg Building

4-5 pm

Book Talk: Jess Ingram and National Gallery Staff

5-6 pm

Reception & book signing

6-7pm

Film Screening Discussion: Wesaam Al-Badry and Susan Sterner

Saturday, October 5

Corcoran - Flagg Building

11 am-1 pm

Public Workshop: Flagg, Kite, Billboard Making with Nour Batyne

Creative Engagement Prompts & Activities available throughout the building

National Gallery of Art - East Building

2-3pm

Public Talk: Where do we go from here? With Hank Willis Thomas, Eric Gottesman, & Nekisha Durrett

The Corcoran Flagg building will be open to the public Friday, October 4 - Sunday, October 6 from 1 - 5 pm. Visitors can view the installations and participate in the creative prompts designed by faculty and artists.

This is For Freedoms' first joint residency and long-term collaboration with both a university (GW University/Corcoran School of the Arts & Design) and the National Gallery of Art, the nation's art museum. Founded in 2016 by artists including Hank Willis Thomas, Michelle Woo, Eric Gottesman and Wyatt Gallery, For Freedoms is known for their public installations, billboards and other campaigns with more than 1,000 artists to date. Their mission is to center artistic expression as a spark to reshape conversations about politics and society and expand participation in democracy.

The residency will be anchored by the theme of interdependence. It is the first large-scale public program produced by the reimagined Corcoran School-National Gallery partnership, which initiated 40 educational events since its launch in fall 2023. Housed in the Corcoran and the National Gallery, with events across GW and D.C., the fluid nature of the residency will elevate students and emerging artists through programming, research and education and extend beyond traditional art structures in Washington, D.C.

The new residency will act as an interdisciplinary lab and curriculum for art making and interpretation, including a series of “gallery interventions” at the Corcoran and the National Gallery, open studio hours, faculty-class led engagements and podcasts over the next three years. It will encourage students, museum goers and the public to consider new ways of thinking and creating together.

Host or Publisher The Corcoran School of the Arts & Design at The George Washington University