‘An Incomplete Archive of Activist Art’ Published by the Shelley & Donald Rubin Foundation

An Incomplete Archive of Activist Art

Published by the Shelley & Donald Rubin Foundation

In this enlightening and empowering book, the Shelley & Donald Rubin Foundation underscores its commitment to social justice issues, global equity, and their history in promoting art’s role in the formation of both community and justice.

An Incomplete Archive of Activist Art reflects on the Rubin Foundation’s art and social justice initiatives over the last six years, including thematic essays, roundtable discussions, newly commissioned artworks and documentation of visual art exhibitions organized by the Foundation.

Consisting of two volumes, the publication highlights the emergence of a cultural shift, addressing art’s role in the formation of community and advocation for justice. ‘Discourse’ features essays, thematic roundtables with cultural producers, and newly commissioned text-based projects. ‘Art’ documents exhibitions at The 8th Floor, the Foundation’s gallery and event space, as well as selections from the Rubins’ private collection. This compendium is conceived to be a critical resource for education and those interested in socially engaged art, and includes contributions from leading artists, scholars, critics and activists.

The first volume features essays by André Lepecki and Lucy Lippard; roundtables on accessibility, visibility in the digital age, and the role of art in this current moment; and newly commissioned artwork by Hock E Ay I Vi, Edgar Heap of Birds, Kameelah Janan Rasheed, Dread Scott, and Mierle Laderman Ukeles. The second volume documents exhibitions at The 8th Floor such as In the Power of Your Care, Enacting Stillness, The Intersectional Self, and the exhibition series Revolutionary Cycles, along with newly commissioned poems by Mel Chin and Claudia Rankine.

About the Authors:

Writer and editor Anjuli Nanda Diamond is Curator at the Shelley & Donald Rubin Foundation.

Sara Reisman is a curator, writer, and former Executive and Artistic Director of the Shelley & Donald Rubin Foundation.

An Incomplete Archive of Activist Art is edited by Anjuli Nanda Diamond, with Sara Reisman and George Bolster.

224 pages with 250 color illustrations

Hardcover | 23.5 x 26 cm.

$50

ISBN: 978-3-7774-3756-9

Publication Date: Fall 2021

Contact: Abby Addams