ConnectiveCollective: 09/23 Student-Only Town Hall

Throughout history, art has been used as a form of civic engagement and a medium for critical discussion. From Pablo Picasso’s anti-war message in “Guernica” to Bansky’s commentary on Brexit in “Vote to Love,” societal issues have time after time been conveyed through art. In America, artistic creations are protected by the freedom of expression and are considered crucial for a functioning democracy and an educated voter body.

Artists like Eric Gottesman and Hank Willis Thomas have come to recognize their role in the political process. In 2016 the duo founded For Freedoms, an artist-led, nonpartisan collective whose mission is to promote civic engagement, civil discourse, and direct action through art.

“All art is political and public policy is based on the culture that art helps create,” says Gottesman, who joined the Purchase faculty as a Professor of Art+Design in 2017.

In 2018, For Freedoms launched the largest creative collaboration in U.S history. The 50 State Initiative involved artists, nonprofits, and academic institutions in a shared conversation about what it means to be American. Over 300 artists, including Purchase College students, designed billboards in every state reflecting these conversations. The initiative’s goal was to include more voices in the political process and increase participation in the 2018 midterm elections.

For Freedom’s involvement with Purchase College has been widespread. Last spring, they were a founding member of The Center for Engagement at Purchase College, an alliance of organizations whose projects inspire community engagement, encourage open dialogue, and impact social change. Gottesman and Thomas have hosted panel discussions and lectures in collaboration with the Neuberger Museum. Several Purchase College students have interned or worked for For Freedoms after graduation.

For the first time this fall, the Neuberger Museum is collaborating with For Freedoms, the Purchase College Center For Engagement, and the Global Scholars Program on an ongoing project called ConnectiveCollective. The project kicks off this Wednesday, September 23, with a Virtual Town Hall addressing themes of healing, justice, and the power of listening. A hallmark of For Freedom’s work, the town halls serve as public forums for inclusive conversations relevant to their participants.

“The town halls are art works. The forum for discussion itself is a medium. And the spaces of museums are inherently civic spaces, which the town halls activate and highlight,” says Gottesman.

This first town hall’s discussion will revolve around the issues critical to Purchase College students. Students involved in student government, the arts, and intercultural communication will moderate the event. Following the series of town halls this fall, senior graphic design students in the Purchase Community Design class will create billboards that relay these discussed issues and questions. These questions will also serve as prompts to Neuberger Museum commissioned artists in the Spring.

• Help shape the conversation and share the issues, ideas, and questions that are important to you right now by filling out this Google Form.
  
  
• Join the conversation virtually at the Student-Only Town Hall on September 23^rd from 5:30-7:30pm.  The Zoom log-in is:

https://purchase.zoom.us/j/92488732916?pwd=VDJWU0RucmppOG10VVpmMW5qRUdYUT09

Meeting ID: 924 8873 2916   |   Passcode: 096933

Gabrielle Bohrman
Neuberger Museum of Art
Fall 2020 Communications Intern
NEU Student Voices Blogger