A SHORTLIST OF ONLINE CULTURAL CONTENT FOR THE WEEK OF JUNE 15, 2020
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"Butler herself experienced a compromised sense of belonging. She was a disabled, black artist, and a woman writing science fiction—a field that remains largely dominated by men and, as Butler often spoke about, can be outwardly hostile toward women and trans-identified writers. Butler’s compromised citizenship inspired her to create worlds in which those of us on the margins could imagine ourselves surviving. She created worlds in which we might storytell ourselves into thriving existence."
Syrus Marcus Ware writes about the work of Octavia E. Butler in Canadian Art magazine.
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Watch: Live
" One thing that the current moment should teach us is that we are all connected. Drawing on the radical Black feminist philosophy of the Movement for Black Lives, I explain why this moment is a critical one for understanding how to implement a politics of care. Care, here, is not a mere sentiment. Nor does it indicate a posture of deference or coddling. Instead, care is a pragmatic value, requiring the provision of what is necessary for health, welfare, maintenance, and safety with serious attention to doing things correctly in order to avoid unnecessary damage or risk. In this way, the politics of care begins with the conviction that lived-experience matters and the reality of our experiences must be centered in our politics."
Join Deva Woodly, Associate Professor of Politics at The New School as she explores the politics of care on Thursday, June 18,2020 at 12 p.m. EDT. Free, but registration is required. Click here to download the suggested preparatory reading.
Watch: Any Time
"How does an artist express both the joy and pain in harrowing histories? Through her immersive performances and installation works, Abigail DeVille celebrates the bravery and optimism—while also memorializing the suffering—embedded within the African American experience. Calling out official American history as 'garbage,' Deville uses discarded materials herself, like old furniture and tattered flags, to construct complex room-sized installations evoking the overlooked histories of Black Americans in all its messiness and grandeur."
Abigail DeVille spoke about her practice with Art21.
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"Today’s episode is with architect, designer, and scholar, Dr. Mabel O. Wilson. Doing double-duty as a Professor of Architecture and as Associate Director of the Institute for Research in African American Studies, both at Columbia University, Dr. Wilson is not your traditional designer of buildings. Her trans-disciplinary practice extends well beyond the built environment in to the worlds of curation, performance, art, and cultural history."
The Institute of Black Imagination is hosted by artist, writer, and brand consultant Dario Calmese. Each week brings conversations from The Pool of Black Genius: a collection of iconoclasts at the leading edge of cultural thought and innovation.
