Friday, April 4, 4:00–8:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 5, 11:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m.
The New School, Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Auditorium
66 Fifth Avenue
New York City

Free admission with RSVP. More information about reserving tickets coming soon.

2014. What Now? is a two-day symposium organized by Art in General in collaboration with the Vera List Center for Art and Politics. It is the second in a series of biannual conferences, called to investigate contemporary issues arising in the field of art. This year’s conference is dedicated to Collaboration & Collectivity and organized around three sessions spanning Friday and Saturday, with a keynote lecture presented on Friday evening.

Hannah Arendt said “To live together in the world means essentially that a world of things is between those who have it in common, as a table is located between those who sit around it; the world, like every in-between, relates and separates men at the same time.” Arendt’s quote touches on the politics of place-how the way in which we live and work together directly creates the political landscape we inhabit.

Taking this central question of how we work together and how we form a “community,” 2014. What Now? explores collaborations between artists and institutions while examining the modes and methods of collective action, including positions of disengagement. With collaboration becoming a more prominent form of practice for both artists and institutions, the symposium questions some of the reasons behind this phenomenon-from the desires to produce new projects, knowledge, or research to developing new institutional structures. Through a variety of presentations, featuring scholars, academics, artists, curators, and writers, 2014. What Now? aims to generate new think¬ing around these issues, including authorship and authenticity as well as modes of collaboration as strategies for social change.

What Now? 2014 is organized by Art in General in collaboration with the Vera List Center for Art and Politics at The New School.

The Vera List Center for Art and Politics is an idea incubator and a public forum for art, culture, and politics. It was established at The New School in 1992—a time of rousing debates about freedom of speech, identity politics, and society’s investment in the arts. A pioneer in the field, the center serves a critical mission: to foster a vibrant and diverse community of artists, scholars, and policy makers who take creative, intellectual, and political risks to bring about positive change.

We champion the arts as expressions of the political moments from which they emerge, and consider the intersection between art and politics the space where new forms of civic engagement must be developed. We are the only university-based institution committed exclusively to leading public research on this intersection. Through public programs and classes, prizes and fellowships, publications and exhibitions that probe some of the pressing issues of our time, we curate and support new roles for the arts and artists in advancing social justice.www.veralistcenter.org