WEERASETHAKUL TALKING TO ACTION

Talking to Action

Curated by Bill Kelley Jr.

Talking to Action: Art, Pedagogy, and Activism in the Americas investigated contemporary, community-based social art practices in the United States and throughout Latin America and built a direct dialogue with artists and researchers across the hemisphere to discuss shared concerns. The exhibition focused on the collaborative, dialogically-based form of art making that is most often referred to as “social practice” with roots in public practice, community-based, participatory, relational and sociallyengaged art. Consequently, the artists in Talking to Action came from a range of trans-disciplinary practices, blurring the lines between object making, political and environmental activism, community organizing, and performance. Talking to Action was the result of a collaboration with Otis College of Art and Design, Los Angeles; the Sullivan Galleries of the School of the Art Institute, Chicago; Arizona State University, Tempe; and Pratt Manhattan Gallery, New York.

Talking to Action: Art, Pedagogy, and Activism in the Americas was curated by Bill Kelley, Jr., Curator and Lead Researcher. Karen Moss was Consulting Curator. Talking to Action was organized by Ben Maltz Gallery at Otis College of Art and Design as part of Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA. The exhibition and tour were made possible, in part, with the generous support of the Getty Foundation, PST: LA/LA presenting sponsor Bank of America, the ICI Board of Trustees and ICI’s International Forum.

ITINERARY Ben Maltz Gallery, Otis College of Arts and Design, Los Angeles, CA, September 17–December 10, 2017; Sullivan Galleries, School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL, August 27–December 8, 2018; Arizona State University Art Museum, Tempe, AZ, February 9–July 20, 2019; Pratt Manhattan Gallery, New York, NY, September 27–December 14, 2019

THANK YOU TO THE ARTISTS Liliana Angulo Cortés, BijaRi, Bulbo and Galatea audio/visual, Cog●nate Collective, Grupo Contrafilé, Sandra de la Loza and Eduardo Molinari, Dignicraft, Etcétera, Colectivo FUGA, Clara Ianni and Débora Maria da Silva, Iconoclasistas, Kolectivo de Restauración Territorial, Suzanne Lacy, Taniel Morales, Andrés Padilla Domene and Ivan Puig Domene, POLEN, Ultrared and School of Echoes Los Angeles

Talking to Action: Art, Pedagogy, and Activism in the Americas, installation view, Ben Maltz Gallery, Otis College of Arts and Design, Los Angeles, 2017. Courtesy of Ben Maltz Gallery, Otis College of Arts and Design.

Talking to Action: Art, Pedagogy, and Activism in the Americas, installation view, Sullivan Galleries, School of Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, 2018. Courtesy of SAIC and ICI.

Talking to Action: Art, Pedagogy, and Activism in the Americas, installation view, Sullivan Galleries, School of Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, 2018. Courtesy of SAIC and ICI.

Every year, ICI produces events that examine contemporary art and culture through the work of curators. Free and open to all, they promote public conversations that center on curatorial practice and provide opportunities for continued learning by opening new perspectives on art from around the world. ICI public events include programs led by curators, artists, and other cultural producers from across ICI’s international network of collaborators, as well as professional seminars and conferences.

ICI’s New York Programs highlight curatorial practice locally and reflect on ICI’s international programs. The Curator’s Perspective talks feature leading international curators, and are presented with partner institutions, including CUNY Graduate Center, Hunter College, MoMA, Americas Society, and many more in New York and occasionally across the U.S. In addition, events related to ICI exhibitions take place internationally in collaboration with presenting art spaces; and closeddoor seminars and public conferences bring together multiple international perspectives to generate and share knowledge that advances curatorial discourse.