The Shelley & Donald Rubin Foundation Announces
Fall 2024 Programming at The 8th Floor
Installation view of Scrawlspace at The 8th Floor, September 2024. Photograph by Adam Reich.
New York, NY – October 3, 2024 – The Shelley & Donald Rubin Foundation is pleased to announce its fall 2024 programs at The 8th Floor. Artists Sonya Clark and Shinique Smith will discuss their works currently on view in Scrawlspace with curator Lucia Olubunmi R. Momoh on October 16, and internationally renowned artist and writer Kameelah Janan Rasheed will conduct a writing workshop on November 12.
The popular Sight/Geist series for local emerging film and performance artists is back on October 24 with a screening of films by Vi Tuong Bui, Logan Lynette Burroughs, Lananh Chu, Mónica Félix, Daniel Pravit Fethke, and Maya Jeffereis; and on November 21, a solo performance by Asia Stewart.
The Foundation is also excited to host Tabitha Jackson and Ken Grossinger on November 14 for a conversation and book launch of Grossinger’s Art Works: How Organizers and Artists are Creating a Better World Together.
All events are free and open to the public, taking place at The 8th Floor, 17 W 17th St, NYC. RSVPs are encouraged via the individual links below.
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
Wednesday, October 16, 6-8pm Sonya Clark and Shinique Smith in Conversation with Lucia Olubunmi R. Momoh Details & RSVP Here
Lucia Olubunmi R. Momoh, co-curator of the current exhibition Scrawlspace, will host a conversation with artists Sonya Clark and Shinique Smith revolving around music, alternative forms of writing, and how both artists’ practices reference and embody decolonizing scripts.
Thursday, October 24, 6-8pm Colonial Currents: Six Short Films Details & RSVP Here
The fourth season of Sight/Geist continues with a group screening of films by Vi Tuong Bui, Logan Lynette Burroughs, Lananh Chu, Mónica Félix, Daniel Pravit Fethke, and Maya Jeffereis. These six mediative and conversational works highlight colonial histories, bodily survival, and desires for familial connection. The screening will be followed by a discussion between the artists and Charles de Agustin, Programs and Engagement Manager at the Foundation.
Tuesday, November 12, 6-8pm When Fred Moten asks “Is there an underground railroad in the sentence?”: Writing Workshop led by Kameelah Janan Rasheed Details & RSVP Here
Led by Scrawlspace artist Kameelah Janan Rasheed, this experimental writing workshop will foreground constraint, play, and collaboration as methods to generate more feral and intuitive writing. The workshop is limited to 25 participants who should be eager for deep engagement with a range of proposals and methods, and will likely return home with new collaborative texts, maybe even a zine.
Thursday, November 14, 6-8pm Tabitha Jackson in Conversation with Ken Grossinger, Author of Art Works: How Organizers and Artists are Creating a Better World Together Details & RSVP Here
Join us for a book launch and signing of Art Works: How Organizers and Artists are Creating a Better World Together with a conversation between the author, Ken Grossinger, and Tabitha Jackson, former Director of Sundance Film Festival. Drawing from historical and present-day examples—including Black Lives Matter, Standing Rock, the Hip Hop Caucus, the Legacy Museum, and the Art for Justice Fund—this discussion will offer a rich tapestry of tactics that speak directly to the challenges and needs of today’s activists.
Thursday, November 21, 6-8pm Performance by Asia Stewart: any experience with men and alcohol Details & RSVP Here
Asia Stewart’s participatory performance about service and power will center on an adaptation of Allen Jones’ controversial Table sculpture. Stewart will mirror the same position on the floor with a panel of glass balanced on her back, while four audience members join as guests at the table, verbally complete an unpredictable managerial questionnaire from the artist among other tasks. Part of the ongoing Sight/Geist series, the piece will be followed by a discussion between Stewart and George Bolster, Curator at the Foundation.
Thursdays-Saturdays 11am-6pm or by appointment through December 7 Scrawlspace Details Here
Curated by Emily Alesandrini and Lucia Olubunmi R. Momoh, Scrawlspace brings together work by artists of the African diaspora who conceptually mine and aesthetically manipulate text, writing, and language. Artists include Sadie Barnette, Lukaza Branfman-Verissimo, Sonya Clark, Tony Cokes, Renee Gladman, Kameelah Janan Rasheed, Steffani Jemison, Glenn Ligon, Adam Pendleton, Jamilah Sabur, Gary Simmons, and Shinique Smith.
About the Shelley & Donald Rubin Foundation
The Foundation believes in art as a cornerstone of cohesive, sustainable communities and greater participation in civic life. In its mission to make art available to the broader public, in particular to underserved communities, the Foundation provides direct support to, and facilitates partnerships between, cultural organizations and advocates of social justice across the public and private sectors. Through grantmaking, the Foundation supported cross-disciplinary work connecting art with social justice via experimental collaborations, as well as extending cultural resources to organizations and areas of New York City in need. sdrubin.org
About The 8th Floor
The 8th Floor is an independent exhibition and event space established in 2010 by Shelley and Donald Rubin to promote artistic and cultural initiatives. Inspired by The Shelley & Donald Rubin Foundation, the gallery is committed to broadening the access and availability of art to New York audiences. Seeking further cultural exchange, The 8th Floor explores the potential of art as an instrument for social change in the 21st century, through an annual program of innovative contemporary art exhibitions and an events program comprised of performances, salon-style discussions, and those organized by external partners. the8thfloor.org
For media inquiries, please contact: Max Kruger-Dull, max@bluemedium.com 212.675.1800
Image description: An installation view of an art exhibition. Large pillars are in the center of the space, painted black with tiny photographic works scattered around the pillars. A pink mixed media neon work hangs on the left in the background, and a large blue textile work on the right.
