Activism and Diaspora: American Art Histories 

Presented by the Asian/Pacific/American Institute at NYU. Supported by the Terra Foundation for American Art and The Japan Foundation, New York (JFNY) Grant for Japanese Studies program.

Alexandra Chang (Rutgers University, Newark) and ShiPu Wang (University of California, Merced) co-convene an intensive academic workshop for scholars and curators to examine art activism through a global comparative lens. On Friday, December 6 and Saturday, December 7, the public is invited to join the conversation. Featured speakers include experts in Asian American, Latinx, Indigenous, and African American art, as well as Global Asias perspectives.

Friday, December 6, 2019, 9:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.

at NYU Washington DC, Reading Room
1307 L St NW
Washington, DC 20005

This venue is ADA compliant and has elevator access to all floors. Restrooms are gender-segregated. 

9:00-9:30 a.m.: Welcome and Breakfast

9:30 a.m.: Introductions

Alexandra Chang
Co-Convenor
Associate Professor of Practice, Arts, Culture and Media
Rutgers University-Newark

ShiPu Wang
Co-Convenor
Professor of Art History
Coats Family Endowed Chair in the Arts
University of California, Merced

10:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m.: Diasporic Art Activism – International Framings

Chair: John Tain, Head of Research, Asia Art Archive
Mami Kataoka, Chief Curator, Mori Art Museum
Sook-Kyung Lee, Senior Curator and Director of Hyundai Tate Research Centre: Transnational, Tate Modern
Paul Goodwin, Professor and Director at the Research Centre for Transnational Art, Identity and Nation, University of the Arts London
Russell Storer, Senior Curator, National Gallery Singapore
Discussant: Annie Jael Kwan, Independent Curator and Founding Member of Asia Art Activism

12:30-1:30 p.m.: Lunch 

1:30-3:00 p.m.: American Art Activisms – Exhibition Histories

Chair: Alexandra Chang
Melissa Ho, Curator of Twentieth Century Art, Smithsonian American Art Museum
Denise Murrell, Ford Foundation Postdoctoral Research Scholar, Wallach Art Gallery, Columbia University
Catherine Morris, Sackler Senior Curator for the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art, Brooklyn Museum
Sarah Lookofsky, Associate Director, International Program/Museum of Modern Art Post
Discussant: Asma Naeem, The Eddie C. and C. Sylvia Brown Chief Curator, Baltimore Museum of Art

3:00-3:15 p.m.: Break

3:15-4:45 p.m.: Diasporic Art and Narratives of Activism

Chair: ShiPu Wang
Herb Tam, Curator and​ Director of ​Exhibitions, Museum of Chinese in America
Marcela Guerrero, Assistant Curator, Whitney Museum of American Art
Adriel Luis, Curator of Digital and Emerging Media, Asian Pacific American Center, Smithsonian Institution
Discussant: Tobias Wofford, Assistant Professor, Department of Art History, Virginia Commonwealth University

4:45-6:00 p.m.: Concluding Discussion

Saturday, December 7, 2019, 10:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.

at the Smithsonian American Art Museum Luce Foundation Boardroom
8th and F Streets, NW
Washington, DC 20004

This venue is located on the third floor, and accessible to wheelchair users via elevator. There is a single, wheelchair-accessible restroom adjacent with gender-segregated restrooms on other floors accessible via elevator. 

10:00-10:10 a.m.: Welcome

Amelia Goerlitz
Chair of Academic Programs, Research and Scholars Center
Smithsonian American Art Museum

Alexandra Chang

10:10-10:30 a.m.: Presentation

E. Carmen Ramos, Deputy Chief Curator and Curator of Latino Art, Smithsonian American Art Museum

10:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m.: Group Breakout Session I

12:00-1:30 p.m.: Lunch

1:30-3:00 p.m.: Group Breakout Session II

3:00-3:20 p.m.: Concluding Thoughts

Robin Veder, Executive Editor, American Art, Smithsonian American Art Museum

3:20-4:00 p.m.: Concluding Discussion

4:00-4:30 p.m.: Break

5:00-6:00 p.m.: Chiura Obata: American Modern
Curator’s Tour by ShiPu Wang