Join Met curator Alisa LaGamma for a conversation with Manthia Diawara, a writer, filmmaker, and leading scholar of the African diaspora, presented in conjunction with the exhibition Sahel: Art and Empires on the Shores of the Sahara. Explore the tensions between West Africa's traditions and modernity as LaGamma and Diawara draw from the exhibition and from one of Diawara's signature texts, In Search of Africa, which was shaped by his formative experiences in Guinea, Mali, and Senegal.

Since the second-half of 2020, four Arab nations (United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco) have formed normalization agreements with Israel. Proponents of the deals believe they are a historic win for diplomacy-first champions. Meanwhile, others are more skeptical, and fear that normalization could cause harm to the Palestinian rights movement while driving further conflict in the greater Middle East.In what scenarios could these agreements foster lasting peace? What are the drivers that shape these scenarios? What motivations did the signers have to normalize? Importantly, where do the Palestinians fall into the equation?

This class explores the rich visual culture that characterized the golden age of the Dutch Republic in the 17th century. During this period, the small and relatively new nation emerged as a global economic powerhouse, thanks to its naval strength and unrivaled prowess in shipping and trade. The artworks of Rembrandt van Rijn, Frans Hals, Johannes Vermeer, and others capture the fascinating and at times contradictory nature of the changes in Dutch society and culture. Each week, the main lecture is followed by a 30-minute discussion session that allows students the opportunity to ask questions and exchange ideas with the instructor and classmates.

Ella Fitzgerald, known as, the "First Lady of Song," could have been another police-blotter story. Homeless, at fifteen, living on the streets of Harlem, through sheer drive and ambition, she broke through, becoming one of the most admired entertainers of the twentieth century. She had a career that spanned five decades: the first African American Grammy Award winner, performer before presidents, kings and queens around the world. We'll take a close look at Ella Fitzgerald, the artist and the person. Sammy Davis Jr., literally, grew up on stage, making his professional debut at age four. He could dance, sing, act, play multiple musical instruments and mimic. There may never be another performer the equal Sammy Davis Jr. But who was Sammy? We'll take a close look at a very complex personality, who may never have discovered; "What Makes Sammy Run?" Lena Horne, was often labeled: "the Black Goddess." She was a lot more. Lena was the first Black performer to ink an extended contract with a major motion picture company Her contract with MGM was for seven years. It stated that she would not play the role of a servant. Most Black actors, in the 40s, played the role of maids and butlers. Lena Horne became one of the major supper club attractions in America. She was an activist, Blacklisted by the House Unamerican Activities Committee for Communist affiliations. She survived losing her son, father and husband, all within one year, making one of the most dramatic come-backs in the history of show business. About instructor Sonny Buxton: Prof. Buxton’s lifelong passion has been music and documentary filmmaking. He has worked as a professional musician, with the likes of Peggy Lee, Billy Eckstine, and Bill Strayhorn. He has produced shows ranging in scope from the Motown Allstars to B. B. King, Ray Charles, Ella Fitzgerald, and Miles Davis. He traveled with Ellington producing an award‐winning audio documentary. A longtime jazz club/restaurateur in Seattle and SF, he has also had a long career in broadcasting working for KGO as a newsman, a talk show host, and an executive producer. He is a Northern California Emmy Awardee. He hosts “Saturday Mid‐Day Jazz” on KCSM. Working as a social psychologist/football player have been parts of his life now being put into Memoirs of a Jazz Junkie: My First Two Hundred Years.

Wes Moore is CEO of the Robin Hood Foundation, the largest anti-poverty force in New York City, funding more than 200 organizations to build equality and lift families out of poverty. In the age of the COVID-19 pandemic, Moore joins The Post's Michele Norris to discuss the opportunity for business to support philanthropy while also answering calls for social justice.

The global pandemic has forced many to reevaluate the future of our economy and the way we work. Will urban dwellers migrate to more affordable suburban regions? Will we ever return to traditional offices full-time? Will entrepreneurs use this change in routine to discover the next big thing? What jobs will offer a path to opportunity? The biggest recession in almost 100 years has changed the economic landscape, and not everyone has the luxury of exploring these big questions. Many workers have been left without a financial safety net or the skills needed to succeed in a virtual economy. The gap between the rich and the poor continues to widen, and leaders in Washington can’t agree on substantive solutions. The path to the new economy is being charted today. The Atlantic will explore what the future might hold for Americans across the socioeconomic spectrum.

James Arthur will present poems from his most recent collection, The Suicide’s Son, and will speak about the process of writing poetry: where poems begin, how they develop, and how to find inspiration. Following the reading, you’ll be invited to ask questions and you’ll learn more about how to join James for a short course on poetry!

Global food systems are under pressure on a scale previously unencountered. A crisis is looming, fueled by population growth, climate change, water scarcity, energy supply and now the pandemic. The world must feed an estimated population of 9 billion by 2050 with diminishing natural resources while also ensuring the health of people and the planet. Luckily, emerging technologies and new research are coming to the rescue. Join us to hear from Dr. Alga Zuccaro and Dr. Mechthild Tegeder, two scientists researching how microbes and genetic tools can boost plant performance. Hear how microbes are being transformed into plant warrior sidekicks and how understanding the plant-nutrient relationship might maximize crop yields. Establishing food security requires a deeper understanding of how plants work, the function and health of ecological and agricultural systems and projected plant responses to climate change and other environmental stresses. Explore these topics together with us.

In the narrative of American culture, organized sports is valued for its ability to build character. This continues to be true as to recreational participation. However, the greater emphasis in sports today is on passive viewing, and a growing trend of legal sports gambling that eliminates rooting interest in favor of the betting line. Nourished principally by television revenues and high-ticket prices, organized sport has evolved into a large business enterprise. Inevitably the original values of character development and amateurism have become subordinated to the goals of a large, profitable, and expensive industry. What does this suggest for the future of sports in our culture? The blurring of active sports participation with passive viewing entertainment has evoked interesting tests of societal values. The design of this course will address the issues of shifting values in sports, some favorable and some negative. Among topics we will discuss are the high levels of compensation for professional athletes, the evolving financial model of intercollegiate sports, long-term medical risks for players associated with repetitive trauma, rights of athletes with disabilities, the increased opportunity for women and trans to participate in competitive sport, and the influence of legalized gambling on the future of the game. To a degree this requires discussion of legal issues; however, the relevant law will be approached at a comprehensible level. The course will incorporate current events into the curriculum as they inevitably arise. About your instructor, Roy Eisenhardt: Roy Eisenhardt was a practicing attorney, President of the Oakland Athletics, and a Board Member of the Women’s Tennis Association. He also served as Executive Director of the California Academy of Sciences, and Interim President of the San Francisco Art Institute. He currently teaches legal courses in sports law at Berkeley Law, U.C. Berkeley, and at the University of San Francisco School of Law.

Back by popular demand! Adam Gopnik returns to 92Y for a trio of lectures on Dickens, Trollope and on walking in New York. In his first two lectures, Gopnik explore the relation between the radical and liberal imaginations, with high Victorian fiction seen as a distant mirror of our own troubling time and the back and forth between the prophetic, poetic imagination (Dickens) and the pragmatic, prose imagination (Trollope) as central objects. On Dickens, he writes: “what Dickens is really saying is: We live in a society of abundance and injustice, and those of us who are lucky enough to partake in the abundance have to use our good fortune to help the unjustly treated. Dickens also says we have to enjoy it.” “For Trollope,” he adds, “the boat goes in only one direction, and that is toward greater equality, greater democracy—equality of fortune and circumstance. Trollope was not a radical. Yet he was unquestioningly a liberal of an ideologically rigorous kind—exactly what we mean by a ‘progressive.’” Gopnik urges students to read as much of Dickens' Bleak House and A Christmas Carol, and as much of Trollope's Phineas Finn and Barchester Towers, as they can manage. For his third lecture, Gopnik answers the question, “is there a peculiarly New York addition to the meanings of walking?” He writes: “in New York, walking, even without companions, can still be an expression of companionship, of expansive connection; a happy opening out to an enlarged civic self rather than a narrowing down to a contemplative inner one; a way of scooting toward the American Over-Soul, in sneakers.” Schedule: Tue, May 4: On Dickens; Tue, May 11: On Trollope; and Tue, May 25: On Walking New York. (Note, while each talk can be purchased separately, subscribing for all three results in a $15 savings).

People from BIPOC communities face a myriad of challenges in the entertainment industry, both in front of the camera and behind the scenes. From on-screen talent and actors to production crews, publicity teams, talent management, writing and film criticism, marginalized groups often remain underrepresented in all aspects of an industry that has major influence on American culture. Despite evidence that shows addressing these racial inequities could reap an additional $10 billion in annual revenue, efforts by the industry to create parity continue to be inadequate. Gather with a panel of experts on race in Hollywood at INFORUM, where they will discuss the harsh realities that most people of color face in entertainment, as well as steps toward industry-wide changes meant to increase representation and provide space for a new and diverse generation of creatives.

Join Smithsonian and other writers for a virtual, creative writing hour at the National Portrait Gallery! Our goal is to create a virtual space where writers can create, connect, and draw inspiration from the Portrait Gallery's online exhibitions on Google Arts and Culture. We will provide writing prompts, and you are also welcome to bring your own writing project-in-progress. We will write for about 30 minutes and end each session with a brief discussion or reading.

This class will place Édouard Manet’s influential paintings, such as Olympia, Le déjeuner sur l’herbe, and A Bar at the Folies-Bergère, within the context of modern Paris, the French Empire, and the city’s increasingly global reputation in the late 19th century. We will examine both the formal and the cultural impact of Manet’s art and analyze prominent Parisian sites associated with the rise of modernity—boulevards, parks, shopping arcades, department stores (like the Bon Marché), sewers, catacombs, and World’s Fair grounds—through the study of Manet’s works and those of his colleagues. Students will come away understanding why Paris is so often called the birthplace of modernist painting. Each week, the main lecture is followed by a 30-minute discussion session that allows students the opportunity to ask questions and exchange ideas with the instructor and classmates.

This class is specifically designed for seniors who love fitness and ballet. Classes will offer the benefits of a classical ballet technique class with gentle modifications to honor well-lived backs, hips, knees, and ankles. Once a month, a San Francisco Ballet Audience Engagement Program Expert will “zoom in” with a short in-class experience encompassing dance history, repertory analysis, and other opportunities to learn about the World of Dance and SF Ballet.

This one-hour, vinyasa-style online yoga class looks at a late 20th century drawing of a panda relaxing under a leafy canopy drinking from a bowl. Taking inspiration from this playful panda, we’ll explore fun and unexpected ways to get on our hands — and our backs. Emily Kamen (MA ’20, she/her) is an art historian, educator, environmentalist, and lover of movement. A life-long dancer, her yoga practice strengthened and developed while she was an undergraduate student at Princeton University. She completed her 200-level teacher training at YogaStream in 2014 and has been teaching students of all ages and abilities since. Having trained under Lara Heimann, physical therapist and founder of LYT yoga, Emily’s practice is grounded in principles of functional mobility and alignment. In addition to yoga studios, her classes are often sited in art museums and organic vegetable farms. Emily is always looking for creative ways to combine and refine her passions for art, environmental consciousness, living beings of all species, and joyful movement.

Join educator Joseph Field for a four-part course highlighting the powerful influence and creative achievements of women in the art world. Explore the Guggenheim’s collection and history which feature and celebrate a number of artists, collectors, and curators who made immense contributions to art of the 20th century, despite gender discrimination. This course will challenge long-established narratives and critically rethink one of the most important centuries in art history. Over four sessions, participants will learn about some of the lesser-known but crucial figures of the period, including Hilla Rebay, Anni Albers, and Lucia Moholy, who greatly influenced, or even had their work stolen by, their male counterparts. This course will utilize close looking, structured interpretation, and shared discovery to explore the session’s themes. Class discussion is highly valued and registrants are encouraged to contribute comments and reflections throughout the live sessions. Optional readings and video content will be offered between sessions. All course sessions will be led virtually through Zoom. A Zoom link and password will be emailed ahead of the course. Weekly topics for the course: May 4: Woman of the 20th Century; May 11: Temple for the Spirit; May 18: Erasure; May 25: Innovation and Influence.

Join Lucky Plush and University of Chicago Arts for this accessible dance class led by instructor Jennifer Edgcomb. BeMoved® is a dance experience designed to inspire anyone from first-time dancers to professionals to embrace dance as a lifelong means to health, joy, and fulfillment. See BeMovedDance.com to learn more.

Financial interests distort the truths of evidence-based medicine, says Dr. Leemon B. McHenry. By revealing previously confidential documents released in litigation, Dr. McHenry exposes the role that pharmaceutical marketing has in the construction of medical literature, conference presentations and continuing medical education. The marketing spin is designed to be indistinguishable from the genuine science, he says, thus seriously misleading our medical professionals and the public. Leemon B. McHenry, Ph.D. specializes in medical ethics and philosophy of science. He is a legal research consultant, and is a professor emeritus at California State University in Northridge. He is the co-author of The Illusion of Evidence-Based Medicine: Exposing the Crisis of Credibility in Clinical Research.

Over five weeks, Seton Hawkins and Victor Goines will walk you through the life and genius of John Coltrane, from some of his earliest musical moments through to his later ecstatic spiritual explorations in music! All classes will be conducted live, and are not archived for future viewing. This week: Miles Davis and Thelonious Monk. Two of Coltrane’s mentors and compatriots—Miles Davis and Thelonious Monk—would prove absolutely pivotal in his musical development and transformation. We’ll explore their musical relationships in tonight’s class.

Historian Amanda Podany explores cuneiform records and archaeological finds to illuminate the lives of three Mesopotamians who lived between 2300 and 1700 BC. She tells fascinating tales of Enheduanna, a high priestess and poet, and the world's first known author; Pagirum, a scribe who learned to write cuneiform texts in school and became a trusted member of his community; and Hammurabi, king of Babylon. Knowledge about their concerns and beliefs was lost for millennia; their lives only became known again when the documents written during their lifetimes were found, translated, and analyzed. This program is presented in conjunction with the exhibition Mesopotamia: Civilization Begins. Amanda Podany is a professor of history at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, where she has taught since 1990. She received her PhD in Ancient Near Eastern History from UCLA in 1988. She has published five books and numerous articles in the field of ancient Near Eastern history, including on chronology, scribal tradition, international relations in the ancient Near East, and ancient legal practices. In 2013, Podany was the recipient of a fellowship from the National Endowment for the Humanities to support her research.

Join others and The New Republic for a roundtable on religion in politics and religious voting in precarious times with Andra Gillespie—professor, political science; Eric Metaxas—author, radio host; Matthew Sitman— associate editor, Commonweal. Moderated by TNR deputy editor Heather Souvaine Horn.

Best-selling author Marisa Silver discusses her new novel about two young girls, their friendship, and the moment that shatters their lives. The Mysteries book coverGrowing up in St. Louis in 1973, seven-year-olds Miggy Brenneman and Ellen are developing their first strong bond outside their families, as their parents navigate feminism, postpartum depression, and economic and marital instability. When tragedy strikes, Miggy is forced to understand her world in a new way, her future radically transformed, as the adults grapple with questions of fate and personal responsibility. The Mysteries is an intimate exploration of childhood, friendship, and the reckoning with seemingly unanswerable questions at all ages. Marisa Silver researched and wrote The Mysteries during her 2018–2019 Fellowship at the Library’s Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center for Scholars and Writers. She discusses her book with award-winning author Jennifer Egan.

A sequel to the critically acclaimed Rat Girl, Kristin Hersh’s beautifully written new memoir takes readers on an emotional journey through the author's life as she reflects on 30 years of music and motherhood. Doony, Ryder, Wyatt, Bodhi. The names of Hersh’s sons are the only ones included in her new book, Seeing Sideways: A Memoir of Music and Motherhood (University of Texas Press). As it unfolds and her sons’ voices rise from its pages, it becomes clear why: these names tell the story of her life. This story begins in 1990, when Hersh is the leader of the indie rock group Throwing Muses, touring steadily, and the mother of a young son, Doony. The chapters that follow reveal a woman and mother whose life and career grow and change with each of her sons: the story of a custody battle for Doony is told alongside that of Hersh’s struggles with her record company and the resulting PTSD; the tale of breaking free from her record label stands in counterpoint to her recounting of her pregnancy with Ryder; a period of writer’s block coincides with the development of Wyatt as an artist and the family’s loss of their home; and finally, soon after Bodhi’s arrival, Hersh and her boys face crises from which only strange angels can save them. Punctuated with her own song lyrics, Seeing Sideways is a memoir about a life strange enough to be fiction, but so raw and moving that it can only be real. Hersh will be joined in conversation by John Doe, founding member of punk band X and author of Under the Big Black Sun: A Personal History of L.A. Punk.

Nearly 70 years after its release, Ralph Ellison’s novel Invisible Man carries renewed urgency in our time of racial reckoning. Written before the civil rights movement, the novel uses the particulars of a young black man’s journey through segregated America to explore race, identity, and democracy. Invisible Man is, by turns, beautiful and painful, funny and wise. It is a challenging book that lends itself to close attention and guided discussion. This series of programs celebrates the literary, cultural, and social legacies of Ellison’s groundbreaking work. Explore this classic American novel with three group discussions, followed by a culminating conversation.

Please join us for a reading and conversation with Geoffrey Nutter and Matthew Rohrer to celebrate their new books of poetry, Giant Moth Perishes and The Sky Contains the Plans. John Ebersole of Kenyon Review says of Geoffrey Nutter's work, “For years now, Nutter has been quietly writing some of the most beautiful poems in America.” Geoffrey Nutter has published five books, including The Rose of January and Cities at Dawn (both from Wave Books), and has taught poetry classes at Princeton, The New School, New York University, Columbia University, and the 92nd Street Y in NYC. Nutter’s poems have been translated into Spanish, French, and Mandarin. He currently teaches Greek and Latin Classics at Queens College, and runs the Wallson Glass Poetry Seminars in New York City. Publishers Weekly, starred review, calls The Sky Contains the Plans, "Serene, odd, and quietly captivating, this is a celebration of the unconscious mind’s delights." Matthew Rohrer is the author of The Sky Contains the Plans, The Others, which was the winner of the 2017 Believer Book Award, Surrounded by Friends, Destroyer and Preserver, A Plate of Chicken, Rise Up and A Green Light, which was shortlisted for the 2005 Griffin Poetry Prize. He is also the author of Satellite, and co-author, with Joshua Beckman, of Nice Hat. Thanks., and the audio CD Adventures While Preaching the Gospel of Beauty. He has appeared on NPR’s All Things Considered and The Next Big Thing. His first book, A Hummock in the Malookas was selected for the National Poetry Series by Mary Oliver in 1994. He lives in Brooklyn, New York, and teaches at NYU.

The Cold War era wasn't just about power and violence, argues Pulitzer Prize-winning author Louis Menand. It was also about the art and ideas that would come to shape American and global culture. Menand tells the history of a time when American government lost its moral prestige, but American culture became beloved. Join Menand and fellow New Yorker staff writer Gideon Lewis-Kraus for a conversation about Menand’s new book The Free World, an exploration of the intellectual and cultural climate of the Cold War era. Registered guests will receive details on how to access the event via email immediately upon registration, and receive email reminders closer to the event date.

Have you been intrigued by fermented foods and the tasty benefits they provide? Join us to learn about Kombucha, a fizzy, fermented, flavorful tea that people have been enjoying for thousands of years. Grant Ruhlman, the founder of Homebucha, will describe the science, history and health research, then take you step by step through the process of making your first batch of kombucha. Join for the class only, or attend with a materials kit and end the workshop with a batch ready to go. For attendees outside of Durham, NC, you may pick up the materials needed locally if you'd like to make a batch at the end of the class.

Gather with Leakey Foundation grantee Nicole Thompson and learn about the benefits of social connections during development in blue monkeys in Kakamega, Kenya.

South Asia is the third largest contributor to global plastic waste. It generates 334 million metric tons of solid waste every year. Nearly 70-80% of this waste ends up in the ocean 12% is plastic. On current trends, if no action is taken, the amount of mismanaged waste (including plastic) across South Asia is projected to double to 661 million tons by 2050, adversely affecting the region’s ocean ecosystems, livelihoods, human health, and sustainable development more broadly. COVID-19 has further exacerbated plastic pollution, with increased demand for single-use plastic and pressure on solid waste management systems. With no single solution to this, South Asia needs a collective response to plastic pollution which is both national and transboundary in nature. The region’s two transboundary river systems—the Indus River System, which connects Afghanistan, India and Pakistan and the Ganga-Brahmaputra-Meghna River System, which connecting Bhutan, Nepal, India and Bangladesh—are among the top five most polluting rivers in the world. The rivers act like express highway for plastic pollution, and carry up to 19 percent of all plastics to the oceans. All eight South Asian countries recognize the magnitude of the problem and are seeking collaborative solutions. In 2020, World Bank in collaboration with the South Asia Cooperative Environment Program (SACEP), all eight South Asian countries and Parley for Ocean launched the world’s first regional initiative, Plastic Free Rivers and Seas for South Asia (PLEASE), to curb marine plastic pollution and ramp up eco-innovations to reinvent plastic use and production. The program is leveraging public-private partnership, investing in innovation on circular economy solutions through competitive block grants, and is supporting development of National Action Plans by member-countries to fight plastic pollution. Our next #OneSouthAsia live conversation will position marine plastic pollution as a critical and urgent development issue that impacts entire ecosystems and the health and livelihoods of two billion people in South Asia. Stakeholders from civil society, governments, private sector, and regional organizations will discuss policies, investments, innovations and transboundary support needed to turn the tide on marine plastics.

In our new live demo series, Bring the Heat, join us for a live stream of glass artists demonstrating their expertise and skillful execution while “in the zone.” During each demo, an artist will present a personal design they’ve worked to perfect, and they will be live on the mic to narrate as they work—a rarity for live artist demonstrations and a first at the Museum. Richard Whiteley has spent his life working with glass, developing a fascination for the material when he began apprenticing in stained glass at the age of 16.

This Third Rail dialogue tackles the complex, urgent and difficult subject of racism and policing. Connie Rice is a distinguished lawyer, activist, and co-founder of the Advancement Project. She is widely recognized for her leadership of diverse coalitions and her non-traditional approaches to litigating major cases involving police misconduct, employment discrimination, and fair public resource allocation. She has worked extensively to improve and transform policing in Los Angeles and is a former member of President Barack Obama’s Taskforce on 21st Century Policing. Moderated by Tricia Rose, Director of CSREA and Chancellor’s Professor of Africana Studies, Brown University.

In this online lecture, curator Sue Brunning brings viewers closer than ever to the Sutton Hoo finds. The objects of the Sutton Hoo ship burial transformed our understanding of the Early Middle Ages forever. Excavated in 1938–1939 in Sutton Hoo, Suffolk, the treasures found in its chamber included Byzantine silverware, sumptuous gold jewelry, a lavish feasting set, and, most famously, an ornate iron helmet. With detailed photographs and graphics decoding the imagery on these objects, Sue Brunning will explore the complex artistry, creativity and thinking that underpinned this remarkable burial.

Gather with breathwork facilitator Chauna Bryant and Roksana Filipowska, Wurtele Study Center Programs and Outreach Manager, for a mindful experience focusing on Kyoko Tonegawa’s Primeval Breath (ca. 1988) in the Margaret and Angus Wurtele Study Center. Through gentle breathing exercises and close looking at objects, this virtual program weaves together art museum pedagogy with cues to cultivate a sense of calm and alertness. Breathwork is an active meditation that quiets the busy mind and creates a deeper connection with the body. No prior experience of breathwork is necessary.

In this course, pianist and educator Daniel Weiser will explore the tragically short, but incredibly productive life of America's greatest composer. The son of Russian Jewish immigrants, Gershwin grew up in the rough, chaotic streets of New York and soaked up the melting pot around him to help formulate the new, brash sound of America. Combining elements of "Jewish" music with the "Blues" and "Ragtime" brought by recent black migrants from the South, Gershwin would help produce the new "Jazz" that would soon help make New York City a new center for musical culture. Gershwin seamlessly moved between the "classical" and "popular" worlds to help obscure some of the more overt differences between them. Over four classes, Dr. Weiser will play much of Gershwin's concert music, including "Rhapsody in Blue," "An American in Paris," and his "Preludes." He will also perform many of his iconic songs, most written with his brother Ira, as well as his obscure early opera, "Blue Monday."

Over the past year, the ongoing global pandemic has dramatically shifted our relationships to museum spaces and changed our understanding of what an art museum is and can be. In this lecture, Charles Saumarez Smith will consider some of the key issues in the development of ideas about the art museum during the last century, discussing three case studies. First, he will unpack the ways in which the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York developed a new type of museum at the time of its founding in 1929—one that highlighted exhibitions more than permanent collections; that collected works in a variety of media, including design, film, and photography; and that focused on contemporary art and public issues in art, architecture, and design. He will also discuss how museum directors and curators turned away from what they regarded as the MoMA model in the 1990s and the impact this had on the system of display at Tate Modern and Tate Britain. Finally, he will reflect on our current moment and the ways in which museum directors today are likely to approach issues of collection, display, and de-accessioning post-COVID, as evident in controversies surrounding the planned reorganization of the Victoria and Albert Museum and Peter Zumthor’s designs for the new Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Charles Saumarez Smith was director of the National Portrait Gallery (1994–2002), director of the National Gallery (2002–7), and secretary and chief executive of the Royal Academy of Arts (2007–18). He is author of The Art Museum in Modern Times (2021), now available from Thames & Hudson.

In a year where people have found increasing solace in, and drawn creative inspiration from, the natural world, we invite you to participate in and enjoy ‘Drawn to Nature: Birds’. Join Oxford University Museum of Natural History Education Officer, Chris Jarvis, to hear about the natural history of some of the planet’s most stunningly beautiful and fascinating creatures , the birds, before taking a chance to draw your own using the Museum’s specimens as inspiration, with Q+As, in this online, interactive science and art workshop. Make sure to have your art materials to hand!

Launched in 2012, Photography is the newest curatorial department at the Morgan. A defining visual language of the modern age, photography both complements and reframes the deeper histories told by the Morgan’s visual and literary collections. Join Joel Smith, Richard L. Menschel Curator of Photography, and Leila Anne Harris, Edith Gowin Curatorial Fellow, Department of Photography as they explore the ways in which a medium of art, reportage, memory, and communication relates to the historical and aesthetic aims of the Morgan. Please note that the program will take place online. After registering, participants will receive a confirmation email with instructions on how to participate using Zoom. Free with advance registration.

COVID-19 has made the world poorer. If it means more aid is needed, will wealthy nations heed the call for more aid? What is the role of aid versus investment and trade policy? Where should aid be focused in the future? The Stanford King Center on Global Development will host a conversation with two experts on the future of aid as part of the center's ongoing Speaker Series. The event will feature: Rachel Glennerster, chief economist at the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) and Nancy Birdsall, president emeritus and a senior fellow at the Center for Global Development.The conversation will be moderated by Jeremy Weinstein, professor of political science and a King Center faculty affiliate. The Stanford King Center on Global Development Speaker Series features talks by distinguished scholars and policymakers. The goal of the series is to foster discussion about successes and challenges in the field of poverty alleviation and development.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a disproportionate impact on communities of color in the United States. In addition, the uneven and unequal distribution of vaccines is raising the issue of mistrust and vaccine hesitancy in these same communities. Lack of trust in the US healthcare system among communities of color is inextricably linked to the history of systemic racism in this country. With fewer than half of Black American adults indicating that they will definitely or probably get vaccinated against COVID-19, understanding the roots of this hesitancy—which dates back centuries—is critical to battling the disease. Discussions of medical racism often focus on a set of famous tragic cases, while failing to address the longer history of the systematic medical neglect and abuse of African American health. Speakers on this panel will examine the roots in slavery of contemporary African American mistrust of the healthcare system, the lack of trust in medical providers fostered by experiences of everyday racism, and the African American community’s long dependence, born of necessity, on care from within the community. Gather with us to explore how a deeper understanding of our history can help us promote health equity in the present.

Gather with Tsai CITY and the Schwarzman Center to hear world-renowned teacher, and New York Times bestseller Sharon Salzberg. Sharon is a meditation pioneer and industry leader, a world-renowned teacher, and New York Times bestselling author. As one of the first to bring meditation and mindfulness into mainstream American culture over 45 years ago, her relatable, demystifying approach has inspired generations of meditation teachers and wellness influencers. Sharon is co-founder of The Insight Meditation Society in Barre, MA, and the author of eleven books, including the New York Times bestseller, Real Happiness, now in its second edition, her seminal work, Lovingkindness, and her newest book, Real Change: Mindfulness To Heal Ourselves and the World, released in September of 2020 from Flatiron Books.

Award-winning food journalist and former columnist for The New York Times Mark Bittman says, “you can’t have a serious conversation about food without talking about human rights, climate change, and justice.” In his newest book, Animal, Vegetable, Junk: A History of Food, from Sustainable to Suicidal, Bittman tells the story of how food has driven human history, and explores food’s effect on our planet and its impacts on climate change. In conversation with Kirk Johnson, Sant Director of the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, Bittman will discuss how history has been shaped by humanity’s appetite for food, farmland, and the money behind it all—and how a better future is within reach.

Gather with ICP online for a conversation with ICP’s Managing Director of Programs David Campany and Peter van Agtmael on his recent book, Sorry for the War, a continuation of van Agtmael’s fifteen yearlong study of the United States and the post-9/11 wars. Sorry for the War chronicles the dissonance between perceptions of the post-9/11 wars in America, and the violence and upheaval of the wars as experienced by those trapped in the war zones. The photographs in Sorry for the War weave together the war in Iraq during the time of ISIS, the mass exodus of refugees to Europe, militarism, terrorism, nationalism, myth-making and propaganda. This is van Agtmael’s fourth book about the United States and the world after 9/11 and reflects a nation’s struggle to reckon with the chaos unleashed in the fear and anger that followed the World Trade Center attacks. The photographs are disturbing, darkly humorous, contradictory, mysterious and damning, serving as both evidence and interpretation of a country gone adrift, with often disastrous consequences. An extensive text, in English and Arabic, combines journalism and personal reflection into a thorough narrative to accompany the nonlinear, poetic sequencing of the images.

On May 5, 1961, astronaut Alan Shepard became the first American in space, following cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin’s mission three weeks earlier. With the United States trailing the Soviet Union in spaceflight, President John F. Kennedy closely watched the launch of Freedom 7, eager for proof that America could match Soviet achievements. In his flawless performance, Shepard—whose position in the space program owed much to the work of Harvard-trained physicians—became the archetype of the American astronaut. In this talk, marking the 60th anniversary of the first American in space, Matthew Hersch will recount the events of Shepard’s flight and offer a discussion of astronaut selection, then and now. Presented by the Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments and the Harvard Museums of Science & Culture. Matthew H. Hersch, Associate Professor of the History of Science, Harvard University. Advanced registration required. Visit the event registration page to reserve a spot for this free virtual event.

Meet the sea otters at Shedd Aquarium—virtually! In our new Virtual Sea Otter Encounter, come face-to-face with the playful, adorable sea otters that call Shedd home. This experience is all about getting up close—join us behind the scenes (virtually) for a sea otter play session, watch them dive, socialize, vocalize and groom and find out how their sustainable, restaurant-quality food prep happens. Will you play with pups Cooper and Watson? Watch Yaku’s pocket in action? Visit Luna while she snacks on sea urchins? Dive in and explore the world of sea otters firsthand! This 35–40 minute virtual Sea Otter Encounter will take place on Zoom so you can enjoy the experience without leaving home. Whether you call Chicago home or live across the world, we welcome you to join us during this 35–40 minute experience and virtually meet Luna, Kiana, Cooper, Watson and/or Yaku up close and participate virtually in a session with our animal care team. You’ll go behind the scenes to watch how they can store food in "pockets" under their arms, see how these small animals with big appetites can eat 25% of their body weight in food a day and so much more!

Over the last 20 years, the search for planets orbiting other stars has reached fever pitch. We have discovered more than 2,000 extra-solar planets to date, and that number continues to grow. Using expertise in star-dating to measure the ages of thousands of stars and planets in the Milky Way, Museum Curator Ruth Angus describes how these planets are detected and what we now understand about the diverse planetary ecosystems in the Milky Way. Find out how she hopes to reveal the processes behind the formation of these alien worlds and their distribution across the galaxy.

In Jazz 101, our instructors will guide you through the history and development of various jazz styles. Students will develop their ears to hear the many details and intricacies that make this music so endlessly fascinating. Instructor and Swing University curator Seton Hawkins will provide your introduction to jazz; no musical knowledge is required. All classes will be conducted live, and are not archived for future viewing. Each class is $10, or you may purchase an all-access pass for $200 which gives you access to all Swing U classes this term--classes every day! This week: In this class, we’ll explore the earliest solos in Jazz and chart their evolution out of the collective format. Additionally, we’ll learn about the spread of Jazz outside of New Orleans, and the rise of some of the art form’s geniuses like Sidney Bechet, Jelly Roll Morton, and Louis Armstrong.

James Beard Award-winning chef Renee Erickson joins Carla Lalli Music for the cooking class and conversation we’re all craving right now, based on recipes from her new book — Getaway: Food & Drink to Transport You. The Pacific Northwest’s most influential chef, Renee is celebrated for the fresh, beautiful, seasonal food she serves up at her Seattle restaurants The Walrus and the Carpenter, The Whale Wins, Barnacle and others. Getaway features chapters devoted to Renee’s favorite culinary escapes with brilliant recipes to evoke them, stopping in Rome (amari, salumi and salty bites), Paris (apéritifs, vermouth, tartines), Baja (spicy beer, fish tacos, crackling tostadas), Normandy, London and Seattle. Join Renee and learn to make the simple, sophisticated, destination-worthy dishes and cocktails that will turn your summer entertaining into a transportive experience.

The fight for racial equality in the 19th century played out not only in marches and political conventions but also in the print and visual culture created and disseminated throughout the United States by African Americans. Advances in visual technologies—daguerreotypes, lithographs, cartes de visite, and steam printing presses—enabled people to see and participate in social reform movements in new ways. African American activists seized these opportunities and produced images that advanced campaigns for black rights. In this talk based on his book "Visualizing Identity," (University of North Carolina Press, 2020) Aston Gonzalez charts the changing roles of African American visual artists as they helped build the world they envisioned. Understudied artists such as Robert Douglass Jr., Patrick Henry Reason, James Presley Ball, and Augustus Washington produced images to persuade viewers of the necessity for racial equality, black political leadership, and freedom from slavery. Moreover, these activist artists’ networks of transatlantic patronage and travels to Europe, the Caribbean, and Africa reveal their extensive involvement in the most pressing concerns for black people in the Atlantic world. Their work demonstrates how images became central to the ways that people developed ideas about race, citizenship, and politics during the 19th century. Aston Gonzalez is a historian of African American culture and politics during the long 19th century. He is an Associate Professor of History at Salisbury University. Gonzalez earned his Ph.D. in History from the University of Michigan.

From the Beautiful Youth to the Dark Lady, this episode will seek to dispel long-held myths (and perhaps celebrate a few) about one of the most studied and most mysterious bodies of poetry in the world: Shakespeare’s love sonnets. Why were they written? When? And to whom and what for? If ye seek answers to those questions (and more!), seek ye here.

Join a conversation with bestselling author Ijeoma Oluo on her book "So You Want to Talk About Race" which offers a hard-hitting but user-friendly examination of race in America. Oluo guides readers of all races through subjects ranging from intersectionality and affirmative action to “model minorities” in an attempt to make the seemingly impossible possible: we can have honest conversations about race and racism.

Suzanne Simard is a pioneer on the frontier of plant communication and intelligence; she’s been compared to Rachel Carson, hailed as a scientist who conveys complex, technical ideas in a way that is dazzling and profound. Her work has influenced filmmakers and her TED talks have been viewed by more than 10 million people worldwide. Now, in her first book, Finding the Mother Tree: Discovering the Wisdom of the Forest (Knopf), the world’s leading forest ecologist brings us into her world, the intimate world of the trees, in which she brilliantly illuminates the fascinating and vital truths — that trees are not simply the source of timber or pulp, but are a complicated, interdependent circle of life; that forests are social, cooperative creatures connected through underground networks by which trees communicate their vitality and vulnerabilities with communal lives not that different from our own. Simard writes — in inspiring, illuminating, and accessible ways — how trees, living side by side for hundreds of years, have evolved, how they perceive one another, learn and adapt their behaviors, recognize neighbors, and remember the past; how they have agency about the future; elicit warnings and mount defenses, compete and cooperate with one another with sophistication, characteristics ascribed to human intelligence, traits that are the essence of civil societies — and at the center of it all, the Mother Trees: the mysterious, powerful forces that connect and sustain the others that surround them. Finding the Mother Tree is a moving, deeply personal journey of discovery. Simard will be joined in conversation by Aaron Scott, host of OPB's Timber Wars podcast and a producer/reporter for Oregon Field Guide. This event is cosponsored by Oregon Public Broadcasting.

Please join us for a special Prairie Lights Virtual event on Zoom for Amy Klobuchar in conversation with Art Cullen. Klobuchar and Cullen will talk about the newly published ANTITRUST: Taking on Monopoly Power from the Gilded Age to the Digital Age, by Amy Klobuchar. “The effects of monopoly power can be felt everywhere raising all sorts of questions for the American economy. Why do farmers pay so much for seeds and fertilizer? Why is health care so expensive? And why are so few incentives in place for big tech companies to protect your private information? If you haven’t wondered about any of this, you need to. And if you have, you should also start thinking long and hard about the state of the nation’s antitrust laws.”--from Antitrust Senator Amy Klobuchar 's Antitrust is a searing look at the history of American monopolies, from Standard Oil and Bell to today's tech giants and Big Pharma, their effects on innovation, entrepreneurship, and consumer pricing, and the fights to regulate and reign them in. She suggests legislative proposals that would strengthen our current antitrust laws and help pave the way for their enforcement. Pulitzer prizewinning journalist Art Cullen is the editor and co-owner of The Storm Lake Times, Buena Vista County’s Hometown Newspaper. He is the author of Storm Lake: Change, Resilience, and Hope in America's Heartland. He was awarded a 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Writing for his editorials taking on corporate agribusiness for fouling the state's water and despoiling its soil. His commentaries on politics, immigration and the environment have been published by The New York Times, The Washington Post and The Guardian, along with regional newspapers and news sites. Cullen has been profiled by National Public Radio, Katie Couric, and CNN, and has served as a guest political analyst on MSNBC. He understands how necessary Antitrust legislation is to the regenerative agriculture that is his vision and his passion.

The Sir Percival David Collection encompasses the most famous private assemblage of Chinese ceramics, amassed by financier and philanthropist Sir Percival David. This talk by Stacey Pierson, Reader in the History of Chinese Ceramics at SOAS, University of London, explores the biography of Sir Percival David through the lens of this remarkable collection, on permanent display in Room 95 at the British Museum. It will be introduced by Jessica Harrison-Hall, Head of China Section and Curator of the Sir Percival David Collection and Decorative Arts at the British Museum.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) ran for president as a champion for working families and the middle class and pushes corporations and politicians alike on progressive issues. Warren joins Washington Post Live to discuss her memoir, “Persist,” as well as her top legislative priorities following President Biden’s joint session speech. Join "Power Up” author Jacqueline Alemany.

Four million people in nearly 200 countries read the New York Times to get a supposedly objective view of the news and to learn what the Times thinks is important. But they aren’t always getting that kind of view. In his book Suppressed, Robert M. Smith, a Times former White House and investigative correspondent, discloses how some stories make it to print while others are ignored, how the filters work, and how the paper may have suppressed some of the most important stories of the day—the My Lai Massacre and Watergate.

Join us for a special program in honor of Hall of Famer Willie Mays, 90th birthday. Author John Shea, the national baseball writer for the San Francisco Chronicle, will discuss his book, 24: Life Stories and Lessons from the Say Hey Kid. In the book, Mays provides readers of all ages with his personal stories of meeting challenges with integrity and triumph. Thanks to the support from The Ford Motor Company, this program is free of charge but registration is required.

Gather with ROM’s Deepali Dewan and Kajri Jain from the University of Toronto for an in-depth conversation with acclaimed artist Dayanita Singh from her home in New Delhi, India. Renowned for the evocative arrangements of black and white images that push the boundaries of photographic practice, Dayanita Singh is one of the most recognized contemporary artists in the world today. Dayanita will discuss her personal journey as an artist, as well as share insights into her body of work.

We will study the art of the Netherlands during the height of Dutch commercial prosperity, after achieving independence from Spanish Hapsburg rule (Philip II). The new republic was the most prosperous country in Europe, leading in trade, science, and art. Dutch Baroque art during the 17th century excelled in portraiture, genre painting, landscape/seascape/urban scenes, religious/historical themes and still life; it reflected the tradition of detailed realism and narrative directness. It developed a visual culture dependent on sight and seeing, above all on precise observation. It produced numerous artists such as Lastman, ter Brugghen, de Gelder, van Ruysdael, van der Heyden, Jordaens, Victors, Hals, Steen, Flinck, Vermeer, and Rembrandt, the greatest genius of Dutch art, who influenced art all over the Western world. About instructor Ernest Newborn: Ernest Newbrun is Prof. Emeritus at UCSF where he taught oral biology for over 30 years. He earned dental degrees (BDS, DMD), graduate degrees (MS, PhD) and received honorary doctorates (Doc Odont, DDSc). Since his retirement from the UC in 1994, he has been teaching in lifelong learning programs at USF’s Fromm Institute and Sonoma State University Osher Lifelong Learning Institute on a wide range of topics in science (evolution), nutrition (sugars & sweeteners), origin of scripts, and art history (biblical art, secessionism, expressionism, self-portraiture, murals, stolen art, innovators in modern art). Prof. Newbrun was born in Vienna, Austria, grew up in Sydney, Australia and has lived in San Francisco since 1961. He has spent a sabbatical leave in Nijmegen, during which time he visited most of the art museums in the Netherlands.

In arranging his collection into groupings called “ensembles,” Albert Barnes disrupted traditional historical and geographic boundaries to focus on the commonalities between fine art and everyday objects. In the ensembles, paintings, metalwork, furniture, ceramics, and textiles are placed side by side in unexpected and surprising ways. Dr. Barnes designed these groupings as teaching tools—and they are still as enigmatic and enlightening to us now as they were in the early 20th century. Each week, the main lecture is followed by a 30-minute discussion session that allows students the opportunity to ask questions and exchange ideas with the instructor and classmates.

Gather with Leakey Foundation grantee Deming Yang and learn about paleoenvironments and hominin evolution.

On behalf of Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation Director John Ayanian, please gather with us for a virtual conversation between Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN’s Chief Medical Correspondent, and Dr. Preeti Malani, U-M Chief Health Officer and IHPI Member, focusing on the challenges of communicating evidence-based scientific information during a worldwide health crisis.

We cannot deny the ways that the COVID-19 pandemic has reshaped our lives, but we don't have to go it alone! Join art therapist Sarah Pousty, museum educator Dalila Scruggs, and social work intern Lula Zeray as we make space for self-care, conversation, and connection. We’ll rest and reflect in community, explore a work of art in depth through close looking and discussion, then create artworks of our own. This session is hosted in partnership with the Brooklyn Public Library’s Healthy Communities Initiative. This online program is free, but space is limited, and registration is required. A Zoom link will be provided by email upon confirmation.

This series of art-making workshops led by artist and educator Stina Puotinen is designed to connect participants with their own creativity while engaging with the Guggenheim’s collection. Through conversation and observation, this four-part class will cover a range of artists working in photography, including Guggenheim exhibition artists such as Deana Lawson and Robert Mapplethorpe. Participants will consider artistic approaches to everyday photography and examine the impact of an artist’s technical and creative choices in conveying ideas around identity, archive, and personal narrative. In addition, registrants will play and experiment with framing, cropping, composition, and lighting through short in-class exercises, and will be encouraged to take their own photographs between sessions. No expertise is required! Cameras of all kinds are welcome. All course sessions will be led virtually through Zoom, a free video conferencing software. Participants should have access to a computer, smart phone, or tablet with a microphone and internet access. A Zoom link and password will be emailed ahead of the course. All times listed in Eastern Time (ET). Schedule: May 6: Focus on Figure; May 13: Image and Identity; May 20: Staged and Spontaneous; May 27: Animating the Inanimate: Objects and Architecture.

This workshop fuses explorations of works of art with fun and meaningful expressive writing exercises. No writing experience required, just a willing pen and curious mind. Facilitated by Hood Museum Teaching Specialist Vivian Ladd and author Joni B. Cole, founder of the Writer’s Center of White River Junction. Space is limited. Registration is required.

On the eve of a major treaty conference between Iroquois leaders and European colonists in the distant summer of 1722, two white fur traders attacked an Indigenous hunter and left him for dead near Conestoga, Pennsylvania. Though virtually forgotten today, this act of brutality set into motion a remarkable series of criminal investigations and cross-cultural negotiations that challenged the definition of justice in early America. In Covered with Night, leading historian Nicole Eustace reconstructs the crime and its aftermath, bringing us into the overlapping worlds of white colonists and Indigenous peoples in this formative period. As she shows, the murder of the Indigenous man set the entire mid-Atlantic on edge, with many believing war was imminent. Isolated killings often flared into colonial wars in North America, and colonists now anticipated a vengeful Indigenous uprising. Frantic efforts to resolve the case ignited a dramatic, far-reaching debate between Native American forms of justice―centered on community, forgiveness, and reparations―and an ideology of harsh reprisal, unique to the colonies and based on British law, which called for the killers’ swift execution. In charting the far-reaching ramifications of the murder, Covered with Night―a phrase from Iroquois mourning practices―overturns persistent assumptions about “civilized” Europeans and “savage” Native Americans. As Eustace powerfully contends, the colonial obsession with “civility” belied the reality that the Iroquois, far from being the barbarians of the white imagination, acted under a mantle of sophistication and humanity as they tried to make the land- and power-hungry colonials understand their ways. In truth, Eustace reveals, the Iroquois―the Six Nations of the Haudenosaunee, as they are known today―saw the killing as an opportunity to forge stronger bonds with the colonists. They argued for restorative justice and for reconciliation between the two sides, even as they mourned the deceased. An absorbing chronicle built around an extraordinary group of characters―from the slain man’s resilient widow to the Indigenous diplomat known as “Captain Civility” to the scheming governor of Pennsylvania―Covered with Night transforms a single event into an unforgettable portrait of early America. A necessary work of historical reclamation, it ultimately revives a lost vision of crime and punishment that reverberates down into our own time. Nicole Eustace is professor of history at New York University. She is the author of 1812: War and the Passions of Patriotism and Passion Is the Gale: Emotion, Power, and the Coming of the American Revolution. She lives in Mamaroneck, New York.

Many of us may be hesitant to travel at the moment, or even to go to the movies; but we can gather to discuss some great films set on the highways and byways. As the recent theatrical release of Nomadland testifies, the American road movie has enduring appeal and seems almost endlessly adaptable to different cultural circumstances. In this four part series we will take a very quick survey of the genre, from a Hollywood studio classic which established the couple as central protagonist and self-determination as a defining force, to a contemporary entry which confronts us with an urgent new take on some of the central concerns in these movies. While this course is designed as a series, the discussions will be focused on the individual films, and participants are welcome to join for any or all sessions. Spread out between April and early June, the four films to be discussed are: It Happened One Night; Bonnie and Clyde; Thelma & Louise; and Queen & Slim. WHAT TO EXPECT: Participants are asked to watch the film in advance using the guiding questions to help prepare for the discussion evening. At the start of each event, the host will explain the format for the evening, provide some additional context, and lead a brief introductory discussion of the film. Participants will then be broken out into smaller groups to discuss the guiding questions, and each evening will conclude with the entire group reconvening and the host providing some final commentary or questions for additional consideration. Registration is free, but you must register for each film discussion separately. You will find all of the registration links on the main event page.

Acclaimed Broadway actress and chanteuse Melissa Errico, working in collaboration with New Yorker essayist and lyricist Adam Gopnik, presents a series of three concerts weaving together music and conversation. The trio of concerts delves into every aspect of the great French obsession: l’amour fou, or crazy, overpowering, all-consuming love. Through these evenings Errico and Gopnik investigate and illuminate the cycle that France first offered the world—of how love becomes desire, how desire is cloaked in mystery, and how then the mystery of desire reveals the madness of love again. After the many objects of Love, and the liquid unpredictability of Desire, comes the shadows of Mystery. Our third evening begins in 1940s America, where what the French call the “polar”—the dark crime novel or film—is invented only to be imitated and transcended in France. Adam Gopnik discusses the evolution of ‘noir’ sensibility in Paris and New York, from Baudelaire’s infatuation with Poe through the impact of American films, such as Double Indemnity, on tastemakers at Cahiers du Cinéma. Melissa Errico sings simmering, dark noir songs, including “Blues in the Night,” “Laura,” and “I’m a Fool to Want You,” as well as the world premiere of a bilingual song by Gopnik and Peter Foley, written specially for the occasion: “We Live, We Love, We Lie, We Die.” Tedd Firth will continue his inimitable piano mastery, and Gopnik may be persuaded to pick up his guitar again and accompany the chanteuse on her mysterious musical errands.

For Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month, an event that celebrates the life work of DC Chief Creative Officer and Publisher Jim Lee. He will appear in conversation with illustrator Bernard Chang (“Generations Forged”) and writers Sarah Kuhn (“Shadow of the Batgirl”) and Minh Lê (“Green Lantern: Legacy”). Moderated by former National Ambassador for Young People's Literature Gene Luen Yang (“Superman Smashes the Klan”). The Jim Lee and Asian American Superheroes panel is a “Great American Publishers” segment of the “Behind the Book” series. These interviews focus on leading gatekeepers in publishing who bring great works to fruition—from the germ of an idea to the production of a physical book. Lee is one of the heroes of the publishing world who champion talent, create an overall vision for a house, and bring us the kind of publications critics will laud and readers will relish for decades, even centuries to come. “Behind the Book: Great American Publishers” celebrates the crucial role publishers play and takes you inside America’s legendary publishing houses as top professionals discuss their careers with their most successful authors.

Join assistant curator Elisabeth Sherman and curatorial assistant Ambika Trasi for an overview of the exhibition Dawoud Bey: An American Project. For more than four decades, Dawoud Bey has used the camera to create poignant meditations on visibility, power, and race, chronicling communities and histories that have largely been underrepresented or even unseen. The exhibition traces continuities across Bey’s major series, from his earliest street portraits in Harlem through his most recent project imagining an escape from slavery on the Underground Railroad. For this event, Sherman and Trasi will provide an overview of the exhibition and then take questions from the audience.

Min Jin Lee was born in Seoul, South Korea and immigrated to Queens, New York with her family when she was seven years old. She studied history at Yale College and law at Georgetown University. Lee practiced law for two years before turning to writing. She teaches fiction and essay writing at Amherst College and lives in New York City. Lee is a writer whose award-winning fiction explores the intersection of race, ethnicity, immigration, class, religion, gender, and identity of a diasporic people. Pachinko, her second novel, is an epic story which follows a Korean family who migrates to Japan; it is the first novel written for an adult, English-speaking audience about the Korean-Japanese people. Min Jin Lee is a recipient of fiction fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, the Radcliffe Institute of Advanced Study at Harvard, and the New York Foundation for the Arts. Her second novel Pachinko was a finalist for the National Book Award for Fiction, runner-up for the Dayton Literary Peace Prize, winner of the Medici Book Club Prize, and a New York Times 10 Best Books of 2017. A New York Times Bestseller, Pachinko was also a Top 10 Books of the Year for BBC, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, and the New York Public Library. Pachinko was a selection for “Now Read This,” the joint book club of PBS NewsHour and The New York Times. It was on over 75 best books of the year lists, including NPR, PBS, and CNN. Pachinko will be translated into over 30 languages and is an international bestseller. President Barack Obama selected Pachinko for his recommended reading list, calling it, “a powerful story about resilience and compassion.” Min Jin Lee, will read from her work, engage in conversation with Sam Crane, Chair of Asian Studies and the Edward S. Greenbaum 1910 Professor of Political Science, and take audience questions. Free and open to the public. All are invited. Sponsored by the Asian Studies Department.

Join Cornell and the Institute of Politics for this conversation with writer Susan Page. The definitive biography of Nancy Pelosi, the most powerful woman in American political history, written by New York Times bestselling author and USA Today Washington bureau chief Susan Page. Featuring more than 150 exclusive interviews with those who know her best—and a series of in-depth, news-making interviews with Pelosi herself—MADAM SPEAKER is unprecedented in the scope of its exploration of Nancy Pelosi’s remarkable life and of her indelible impact on American politics. Before she was Nancy Pelosi, she was Nancy D’Alesandro. Her father was a big-city mayor and her mother his political organizer; when she encour­aged her young daughter to become a nun, Nancy told her mother that being a priest sounded more appealing. She didn’t begin running for office until she was forty-six years old, her five children mostly out of the nest. With that, she found her calling. Nancy Pelosi has lived on the cutting edge of the revolution in both women’s roles and in the nation’s movement to a fiercer and more polarized politics. She has established herself as a crucial friend or for­midable foe to U.S. presidents, a master legislator, and an indefatigable political warrior. She took on the Democratic establishment to become the first female Speaker of the House, then battled rivals on the left and right to consolidate her power. She has soared in the sharp-edged inside game of politics, though she has struggled in the outside game—demonized by conservatives, second-guessed by progressives, and routinely underestimated by nearly everyone. All of this was preparation for the most historic challenge she would ever face, at a time she had been privately planning her retirement. When Donald Trump was elected to the White House, Nancy Pelosi became the Democratic counterpart best able to stand up to the disruptive president and to get under his skin. The battle between Trump and Pelosi, chronicled in this book with behind-the-scenes details and revelations, stands to be the titanic political struggle of our time. Journalist Susan Page is the award-winning Washington Bureau chief of USA Today, where she writes about politics and the White House. Susan has covered seven White House administrations and eleven presidential elections. She has interviewed the past ten presidents and reported from six continents and dozens of foreign countries. In 2020, she moderated the vice presidential debate between Mike Pence and Kamala Harris. Her first book, The Matriarch: Barbara Bush and the Making of an American Dynasty, was an instant New York Times bestseller. She lives in Washington, D.C.

Xin Wang is an art historian and curator based in New York. Past curatorial projects include Ink Art: Past as Present in Contemporary China, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (2013); Lu Yang: Arcade, New York (2014); THE BANK SHOW: Vive le Capital, BANK, Shanghai (2015); THE BANK SHOW: Hito Steyerl, BANK, Shchin(A)frica: an interface, Institute of Fine Arts, New York (2017); and Life and Dreams: Photography and Media Art in China since the 1990s, The Walther Collection, Neu-Ulm (2018). Her writing has appeared in e-flux journal, Artforum, Kaleidoscope, Mousse, Flash Art, and Art in America. She has lectured at institutions such as the Para/Site International Conference, Yale University, School of Visual Arts, Queens Museum, The Museum of Modern Art, Städelschule, and as the keynote speaker for the “Asia/Technics” conference at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (2019). Currently pursuing a PhD in modern and contemporary art—focusing on Soviet hauntology in Postmodernism—at the Institute of Fine Arts (New York University), Wang also works as the Joan Tisch Teaching Fellow at the Whitney Museum of American Art and manages the discursive archive on Asian Futurisms at afuturism.tumblr.com.

Live From Dizzy’s welcomes club favorites & emerging artists back to the Dizzy's Club stage. Join us from the comfort of your own home as we bring stunning New York views and the live jazz club experience to your living room. Additionally, each live performance will include an artist interview with Dizzy’s Club manager Roland Chassagne. This week: Paquito D'Rivera and Alex Brown. Like his mentor Dizzy Gillespie, virtuoso clarinetist and saxophonist D’Rivera possesses a deep commitment to the cultural exchange between jazz and Latin music. He's also an 11-time GRAMMY® Award winner, NEA Jazz Master, and Carnegie Hall Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, who ranks among the likes of Benny Goodman and Sidney Bechet. This performance will feature the music of Dizzy, Chano, Bebo & Mario — all friends of Paquito who’ve left their contributions on American culture, jazz and much more.

Go LIVE with our Chief Astronomer! Gather with others and the Franklin Institute on the first Thursday of every month at 7:45pm Eastern. Look to the sky. Find your direction. Chief Astronomer Derrick Pitts invites stargazers of all ages to step outside and join him for the first in a series of night sky tours from home. Amateur astronomers, guided by our very own @coolastronomer, will tour the cosmos, stare at the stars, and be amazed by astronomy—no telescopes needed. How do I recognize a planet? How can I spot the International Space Station? How does the sky move? What type of stars can I see? How do I begin looking for constellations? Ask the questions, satisfy your curiosity, and learn from the best! Tune in LIVE on The Franklin Institute's Facebook channel.

How can photography investigate and liberate the visual language of Black identities? In this conversation, Glen Wilson moderates a conversation with April Banks, Duane Paul and Rikkí Wright to discuss their diverse, emancipatory work that focuses on portraiture. These four Los Angeles-based artists offer individual and collective acts of refusal and reimagination to map freedom in public and private spaces. This is the second of four talks complementing the forthcoming exhibition Photo Flux: Unshuttering LA.

It’s hard to overstate the literary and cultural influence of Alice Walker’s Pulitzer-prize winning novel The Color Purple. In the nearly forty years since its publication, this story of Black women coming of age in early twentieth-century Georgia has inspired an Oscar-nominated film, a Tony-award-winning musical, and the work of many contemporary writers, including New York Times critic Salamishah Tillet. Join Tillet and WBEZ reporter Natalie Moore for a conversation about the ongoing significance of this seminal novel as detailed in Tillet’s In Search of The Color Purple.

Laughter is contagious and has a powerful and immediate effect on our mind, body and spirit. Our bodies can’t tell the difference between real or simulated laughter. This class involves deep breathing, stretching, clapping, and laughter exercises. Our laughter exercises in this class can: Increase blood flow and oxygen to all the major organs; Enhance endorphin levels which make us feel uplifted and reduce pain' Stimulate immune, digestive, and cardiac systems; Reduce stress levels; Relax, strengthen, and lengthen the muscles with stretching; Help create a laughing community and be fun!

Michelle Zauner is best known as a singer and guitarist who creates dreamy indie pop under the name Japanese Breakfast. She has won acclaim from major music outlets around the world for releases like Psychopomp (2016) and Soft Sounds from Another Planet (2017), and will release her third LP, Jubilee, on June 4th. In a new memoir, Crying in H Mart, Zauner reflects on her experience being raised by a Korean immigrant in the Pacific Northwest, and particularly her memories related to food. When her mother was diagnosed with terminal cancer and Zauner moved back to Oregon to care for her, she was forced to reckon with her identity and upbringing. Zauner writes about the process of beginning to chase down her mother’s history, culture, and the flavors of Korea to re-gain the feeling of home in the wake of her loss. Bowen Yang is a featured player on Saturday Night Live, where he wrote for one season before moving on-screen. He can also be seen recurring on Comedy Central’s Awkwafina is Nora From Queens, as well as in the TV shows Broad City, High Maintenance, Jon Glaser Loves Gear, and the upcoming series Girls5eva. He is the co-host of the popular comedy podcast “Las Culturistas,” along with fellow comedian Matt Rogers. This past year, Yang was featured in TIME as one of “23 People Who Are Changing What’s Funny Right Now,” as well as one of their TIME 100 NEXT: Artists, and was featured in this year’s Out100 list.

You know the saying: “Life finds a way.” Meet the world’s most poisonous bird, tiny thermophiles, and other living organisms that have adapted—and thrive—through extreme measures and in extreme environments.

San Francisco’s Chinatown, the oldest in North America, is an iconic and influential part of the cultural fabric of San Francisco. Beyond its contemporary popularity as a tourist attraction, the neighborhood exists as a dynamic community of families and individuals cultivating tradition and nurturing social progress. In this program, join filmmaker James Q. Chan as he shares his current documentary project, Chinatown Stories: You are Here, and premieres a new episode. Chinatown Stories: You Are Here centers vibrant and specific stories from within the community—bridging us to one another, one short film at a time. Each film is a specific entry point into a Chinatown neighborhood and the inspiring contributions community members made in shaping their community and beyond. Chan will be joined by Dorothy Quock, researcher and beloved Chinatown community elder, for a live conversation about the series.

Lucky Plush launched Virtual Dance Lab with seed support from our general operating funders and residency partners including the University of Chicago this spring. These classes rely on support from participants. This class is fun for everyone! Things will start basic, work foundational postures, and build incrementally with options and modifications for all levels. There will be breath work, functional movement, and meditation. This is strength and flexibility training for body and mind!

Designed for students who want to refine and enhance their compositional skills and improve their way of seeing, this introduction to photography course covers basic camera handling, composition, light, and subject matter. Open to All Skill Levels: Students ranging from beginner to experienced will be successful in classes.

Join Dr. Kori Street as she shares how USC Shoah Foundation is using new technologies to tell the stories of survivors and to keep Holocaust memory alive.

Since the days of silent film, music has accompanied moving pictures in theaters. Whether by single piano or organ, a band or orchestra playing on “cue” from written arrangements, music synchronized to filmed action and dialogue has been an integral part of the movie experience. With the advent of “talkies” and release of The Jazz Singer in 1927, synchronous dialog and singing with a musical score was combined onto a “soundtrack” and there was no turning back. The pianos and organs of the silent era have been replaced by film scores featuring every conceivable type of music from symphony orchestras to the esoteric, indigenous, and electronic sounds, decades of pop music. By presenting numerous audio and video excerpts and commentary, the series will explore the history, art, and science of film music as seen through the composers’ lens — their fabulous film scores in some of the greatest movies ever shown on the big screen. Five weekly sessions. This program will be recorded and available for later viewing by those who register.

Meditation helps us build a relationship to a place of inner quietude. To contribute to a sense of calm in this uncertain time, we are offering free 30-minute online meditations three times each week led by DC-based meditation teachers. These free sessions are appropriate for all levels of practitioners and include a variety of mindfulness practices. This session provides inspiration from art in the museum collections. All are welcome! No previous experience is required. In celebration of the National Cherry Blossom Festival, the focus artwork for this session will be a Japanese screen depicting spring.

From the Morgan’s three Gutenberg Bibles to the intricately carved cylinder seals of Ancient Mesopotamia, join our Morgan docents as they guide you on an up-close virtual exploration and discussion of one of the many works in the institution’s treasured permanent collection. Please note that the program will take place online. After registering, participants will receive a confirmation email with instructions on how to participate using Zoom.

Discover the murder that shook the Middle Ages in this curators' introduction to Thomas Becket: Murder and the Making of a Saint. To mark last year's 850th anniversary of his brutal murder, the exhibition explores Becket's remarkable life, death and legacy. It presents his journey from a merchant's son to Archbishop of Canterbury, and the attempts to obliterate his cult under the Tudor dynasty. Introduced and chaired by the Director of the British Museum, Hartwig Fischer, the exhibition curators, Lloyd de Beer and Naomi Speakman, discuss the themes, context and highlight objects of this remarkable show.

In honor of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, Ruth Asawa's Desert Plant is the inspiration for this interactive conversation. Join us and share your observations, interpretations, questions, and ideas, and build on your own first impressions to broaden your understanding of this work of art. This session lasts one hour and is completely interactive. Gallery educators will facilitate the conversation to create an environment for shared learning. These conversations will encourage you to engage deeply with art, with others, and with the world around you as you hone skills in visual literacy and perspective-taking. This program is free and open to the public and is designed for anyone interested in talking about art. No art or art history background is required. Ages 18 and over.

Please join us for a moderated panel discussion to commemorate the centenary of the Tulsa Race Massacre, which occurred in 1921 in the Greenwood District of Tulsa, Oklahoma in an area known as “Black Wall Street.” Although the massacre is not found in most American history books, it is widely regarded as one of the most terrifying events of racial violence to occur in the US. Armed, white mobs murdered hundreds of Blacks and set fire to a prosperous Black area, the Greenwood District, both displacing and economically devastating thousands of Black residents. While many of the exact details are unknown, recent excavations to locate mass burial sites and interviews with descendants of Black residents are shedding more light onto these events. This centenary event will feature a lively discussion from a diverse group of panelists who will explore this history, its enduring impacts, and reparations -- which descendants of Greenwood are currently demanding. One of the highlights of the panel will be to discuss an upcoming documentary to be released in May by PBS Tulsa: The Fire and the Forgotten which chronicles present-day public efforts to memorialize the Tulsa Race Massacre and other racial violence around the country, and how Black and white communities view such efforts. The documentary includes interviews with civil rights activists, lawyers and Black community leaders. In addition, Eric Stover, who has investigated numerous acts of genocide and mass murder over many decades, speaks with Tulsa natives and surveys the current excavation and search for mass graves.

Each Friday afternoon, the Frick is concocting the perfect mix of cocktails and art. Gather with others for a weekly happy hour as a Frick curator (remotely) offers insights on a work of art with a complementary cocktail. Bring your own beverage to this virtual event, whether alcoholic or not! Get your weekend started with 30 minutes of fun and enlightening conversation about art along with a refreshing beverage you make yourself!

One of the world’s greatest scholars on Louis Armstrong, Ricky Riccardi, will guide you through the music of Louis Armstrong’s big band years, from 1929 through to 1947. Drawing from Riccardi’s recently released book Heart Full of Rhythm: The Big Band Years of Louis Armstrong, this class will take you on a thrilling journey through this amazing period of Armstrong’s career. This week: Gangsters, arrests, drama, and more feature in this week as Armstrong has his life threatened, returns at long last to New Orleans, and makes some of the most iconic recordings of his career.

Recharge by taking a participatory journey into the Getty Museum collection with a gallery educator and other art enthusiasts from around the world. Discover new ways of connecting with art and each other online through a shared experience of close looking and discussion. Whether you are an avid museum-goer or a first-timer, come as you are for this casual, hour-long session. Theme changes monthly. May theme is work and play. All adult learners are welcome. Advance registration is required to access the Zoom meeting. Limited space available.

Bon Vivant classes are a great way to end the week! Pour yourself a drink, relax, and create! Turn your favorite selfie into a painting. Paint a loved one—real, imaginary, or four-legged! View works from LACMA’s collection for inspiration, then get step-by-step instruction to create a portrait. All skill levels are welcome. With artist Rosanne Kleinerman. Join on your computer or tablet wherever you have internet. A Zoom link and art materials list will be sent to you prior to class. Students are responsible for providing their own art materials based on recommendations provided by the teaching artist.

Alison Bechdel's cult following for her early comic strip Dykes to Watch Out For grew wildly in response to her family memoirs, the best-selling graphic memoir Fun Home, adapted into a Tony Award-winning musical, and Are You My Mother? She has become a cultural household name for the concept of the Bechdel Test, a metric used when considering the representation of women in fiction. Bechdel has been named a MacArthur Fellow and Cartoonist Laureate of Vermont, among many other honors. Her new memoir, The Secret to Superhuman Strength, delivers a deeply layered story of her fascination, from childhood to adulthood, with every fitness craze to come down the pike: from Jack LaLanne in the 60s (“Outlandish jumpsuit! Cantaloupe-sized guns!”) to the existential oddness of present-day spin class. George McCalman is an artist and creative director based in San Francisco. His studio, McCalman.Co, designs brands for a range of cultural clientele. Additionally, he’s a visual columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle, featured in the “Observed” and “First Person” columns. His first book, Illustrated Black History, is due to be published by Amistad/Harper Collins Fall 2021. Ticket includes a hardcover copy of Bechdel’s new memoir The Secret to Superhuman Strength. Books will be mailed the week of the event.

Join WithLoveDC as they continue the USBG’s weekly community yoga class. Typically offered on-site at the USBG Conservatory or outdoor gardens, the Garden is supporting an online yoga class to continue the program for community health and well-being. During this online class, an instructor from WithLoveDC will guide you through a one-hour meditation and yoga practice via this link. Space is still first-come, first-serve, only the first 500 yogis to log in will be able to practice! Grab a mat and a quiet space. Make sure you have a water bottle close by and maybe light a candle and turn off the lights. Perhaps open the window or practice outside on your porch. We hope that by sharing this practice, separate but together, we can see still feel the love and support of this greater community in this time of uncertainty.

It’s time to meet the sharks—virtually!  Experience a live virtual tour with the sharks that call Shedd home from the comfort of your home during this new, limited-time experience. Join the ocean's most dynamic and misunderstood predators — sharks — and other marine predators for brunch on this virtual feeding tour. Start with a close-up view of the Wild Reef exhibit, which brings you to a Philippine coral reef. Then venture behind the scenes to the animal care area to witness mealtime. You’ll learn how our aquarists prepare meals of restaurant-quality seafood. Discover how each shark and ray species in Wild Reef has been trained to respond to an aquarist’s signal for mealtime. During this 40-minute  virtual tour, get up close with sharks  while you observe a feeding session with our animal care team. Our experts will take you into the waters of the Wild Reef habitat. You will discover what it takes to feed and care for these animals and how that work supports these species in the wild. Whether you call Chicago home or live in another part of the world, we welcome you to join us and virtually meet the sharks. From family hangouts to stay-at-home dates to surprise gifts— experience the aquatic animal world from your home.  Each up-close visit will be unique, and we are not able to guarantee any specific animal during a virtual tour. This 40-minute virtual tour will take place on Zoom. All questions can be asked live through the chat function and responded to by our program host. 

Fresh warm flatbread is the perfect vessel for scooping up delicious seasonal dips and perfect food for picnicking during these brisk and sunny days of Spring. Gracie has perfected her pita recipe and is excited to share it with you, alongside some very exciting spring dips! Fava bean hummus is vibrantly green and shouts, "Springtime!" from the roof tops. A simple homemade Greek yogurt cheese, labneh, is given a seasonal flair with the addition of spring onions and herbs. Skordalia, a Greek dip made with potatoes, almonds, and garlic is made creamier and more delightful with the addition of buttery little new potatoes and green garlic. Menu for this week's class: Homemade Pita Bread; Spring Peas and Fava Bean Hummus; Labneh with Spring Herbs; and New Potato and Green Garlic Skordalia.

In this online workshop, Sabrina Tarasoff discusses the history of her haunted house installation in Made in L.A. 2020, conjures the SoCal literature canon with a focus on its epistolary poetics, and invites participants to communicate with the past by writing letters to or from the figures that haunt them.

Gather with us over Zoom to explore the Kelsey Museum from the comfort of your home. The theme of this week's tour is "Animals in the Ancient World." Animals abound in the art and artifacts of the ancient Near East, Greece, Egypt, and Rome. On this guided tour, learn more about different aspects of animals in antiquity. We'll take a look at animal-themed artifacts in the Kelsey and ask: Was that animal food? A laborer? A pet? A sacrificial victim? We'll also discuss what kinds of animals were symbols of power and strength, and the meanings different animals had in the ancient world.

Photographs can prove to be evocative prompts for compelling pieces of creative nonfiction. What is visible in the photograph, and what is unseen? How does the photograph reflect or contradict memory? Using personal photographs, we will explore many ways to use them as inspiration for flash and short nonfiction, ranging from 140 characters (Tweet length) to 1000-word essays. Asynchronous learning materials for this class will be available online (via the Wet Ink platform). Scheduled class sessions will take place via Zoom. Registered students, please contact the instructor directly for details. Susan Ito is the author of The Mouse Room. She co-edited the literary anthology A Ghost At Heart’s Edge: Stories & Poems of Adoption. Her work has appeared in Growing Up Asian American, Choice, Hip Mama, Literary Mama, Catapult, Hyphen,The Bellevue Literary Review, and elsewhere. She is a MacDowell fellow, and has also been awarded residencies at The Mesa Refuge, Hedgebrook and the Blue Mountain Center. She has performed her solo show, The Ice Cream Gene, around the US. Her theatrical adaption of Untold, stories of reproductive stigma, was produced at Brava Theater. In addition to the Writers Grotto, she teaches at Mills College and Bay Path University. She was one of the co-organizers of Rooted and Written, a writing conference for writers of color.

Alexander Technique is a time-honored method used by actors to improve posture, breath, and movement. Effective movement liberates your acting skills and enriches your life. As you stop responding to the world in a habitual manner, new avenues of physical ease and creativity open up. Let your body’s physical genius emerge!

David Mitchell is the award-winning and bestselling author of The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet, Black Swan Green, Cloud Atlas, Number9Dream, Ghostwritten and The Bone Clocks. Named one of the best books of the year by NPR, The Washington Post, The Guardian, his latest novel Utopia Avenue follows the strangest British band you’ve never heard of. Mitchell’s kaleidoscopic novel tells the story of Utopia Avenue’s turbulent life and times; of stardom’s wobbly ladder; of the families we choose and the ones we don’t; of voices in the head, and the truths and lies they whisper; of music, madness, and idealism. Pico Iyer is a travel writer, essayist, and novelist, whose many books include Video Night in Kathmandu, The Lady and the Monk, The Man Within My Head, and The Art of Stillness, a beautiful and thoughtful investigation of the benefits of quiet contemplation and travel to “nowhere.”

Walter Isaacson—the acclaimed biographer of Steve Jobs, Leonardo da Vinci, Albert Einstein, and Benjamin Franklin—turns his pen to another transformative figure: Jennifer Doudna, the Nobel Prize-winning creator of the gene editing technology CRISPR. Code Breaker explores the medical miracles Doudna’s scientific discoveries have made possible and the moral questions they pose. Isaacson is joined at CHF by WBEZ’s Chief Content Officer Steve Edwards to discuss Doudna’s inspiring career, gene editing, and how new inventions affect the future of humanity.

Of Iranian and Armenian heritage, Marcos Grigorian was born in Kropotkin, southern Russia in 1925, and died in Yerevan in 2007. He trained at the private art school Honarestan-e Kamal al-Molk in Tehran and studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Rome. He is best known for his abstract "Earth Works," multimedia pieces made using clay and straw obtained in Iran and Armenia. He also drew prodigiously, and several early drawings are in the Museum's collection and feature in the exhibition Reflections: contemporary art of the Middle East and North Africa. A towering figure in the arts of modern Iran, he founded the first Tehran Biennial in 1958 and had galleries in Tehran, New York and Minnesota. He was a collector, an influential teacher within the Faculty of Fine Arts at Tehran University, and revived the traditional art of coffee-house painting. As an active sideline, he was also an actor in Iranian films from 1960. Gather with chair Venetia Porter, curator of Reflections, and a distinguished panel of speakers – Layla S Diba, Yvette Tajarian, Elizabeth Rauh, Vali Mahlouji and Siavash Sabba – as they explore the life and work of this remarkable man. The speaker presentations will be complemented by archive film and accounts from friends who knew him.

For this class, chef Camila will return to her mother country of Argentina, and offer us a twist on her mother’s recipe from Camila's childhood. Camila will be cooking alongside her kids, and we'd love to have you do the same! We will make the dough from scratch, using butter or oil, instead of the traditional suet. We will make two options for filling the empanadas: a traditional meat filling and a veggie option, too. Menu for this virtual hands-on class includes: Argentinian Empanada Dough; Meat Empanadas; and Spinach and Cheese Empanadas.

In testimony, films, books and even graphic novels, Dr. Ruth Westheimer, an orphan of the Holocaust, works feverishly to share her story of escape and survival, now more than ever at age 93. Why? What must students of all ages today know about lessons from the past? Time for Dr. Ruth’s answers of a lifetime in this keynote conversation with Stephen Smith, Finci-Viterbi Executive Director of USC Shoah Foundation and UNESCO Chair on Genocide Education.

It’s Time to meet the sea lions—without leaving home! Experience a live virtual visit with the sea lions that call Shedd home from wherever you are in the world with our brand-new Virtual Sea Lion Encounter—Shedd Aquarium’s first-ever encounter with the sea lions! You may know California sea lions best for their loud vocalizations, and their ability to traverse both land and water. During this encounter you will meet one of the four rescued sea lions at Shedd—Biff, Cruz, Laguna, or Tanner—and learn how their rescue and rehabilitation gave them second chance at life. This 30-minute Virtual Sea Lion Encounter will take place on Zoom so you can enjoy the experience from your own home. During this 30-minute experience, you will meet one of the four rescued sea lions at Shedd up close and observe virtually in a session with our animal care team. Our animal care team will take you "behind the scenes" with the sea lions to learn more about the unique way they swim, their reverberating barks and much more! Whether you call Chicago home or live across the world, we welcome you to join us and virtually meet the sea lions. From family hangouts, to stay-at-home dates, to surprise gifts, experience the aquatic animal world from your home. Each up-close visit will be unique, and we are not able to guarantee any specific sea lion during an experience. This 30-minute virtual encounter will take place on Zoom so you can enjoy the experience from your own home. All questions can be asked live through the chat function and will be responded to by our program host.

How can we know who painted a painting? Learn to read the clues with Dr. Chantal-Brotherton Ratcliffe. Recognising that a painting is by one artist rather than another can be like identifying the handwriting of someone we know well. We may know it instantly and with certainty, but it’s hard to describe what exactly is so distinctive about it. On this three-part course, Old Masters expert Dr. Chantal Brotherton-Ratcliffe will open our eyes to the kinds of details that can tell us who a painting is by, giving us an introduction into observing more fully and seeing more analytically. We will learn to notice and decode the clues that paintings offer as to where, when and by whom they were made. The forensic eye is the eye that can notice and interpret these exciting clues, enabling a much richer enjoyment of paintings.

In celebration of American Craft Beer Week, join Brewing Innovation Manager Shelley Smith, and Eryn Bottens, head brewer for the Samuel Adams brewery, for a discussion on how Samuel Adams brings new beers to life. Shelley Smith joined the Boston Beer Company in 2013 and is the brewing innovation manager, where she manages the Samuel Adams taprooms in Boston and Cincinnati. She is an Advanced Cicerone® with over 15 years of experience in the beer industry. Shelley holds a degree in chemical engineering from Iowa State University and an MBA from Washington University in St. Louis.

All are welcome to a poetry discussion and creative writing workshop led by Maggie Queeney. In this session, we explore parataxis, the stark juxtaposition of dissimilar images, ideas, fragments, or other elements of a poem. The group will explore a wide variety of poems and conclude with a guided creative writing workshop, where participants will compose an original poem using parataxis.

In this one-hour workshop, explore a single artwork through a series of guided activities, including close looking, writing, and drawing. Our intention is to offer a welcoming, calm space for individuals to experience and respond to art together. This session is part of the initiative Artful Practices for Well-Being, which offers ideas for connectedness and healing through art. This session is facilitated by artist Jeannette Rodríguez Pineda with MoMA education staff. Jeannette Rodríguez Píneda is a Dominican American mixed-media artist and educator who uses antiquarian, emulsion-based processes as a means of remembering soils called home. They have an intergenerational teaching practice that spans across New York City’s five boroughs, and they are co-author of “The Teaching Artist Companion to Aesthetic Perspectives: Attributes of Excellence in Arts for Change.” Advance registration required.

Get your pen (or laptop keys) moving in this fast-paced introduction to creative writing. Through weekly lectures, readings, and opportunities to share your work in a supportive environment, you will begin to hone your craft, learning tips for how to create compelling characters, snappy dialogue, and satisfying story structures. Whether your dream is to write the Great American Novel or to capture true stories from your own life, this course will help you write the kinds of narratives that will keep your reader fascinated from the first word to the last. After this class, you will be able to: Describe characters (real or imagined) in compelling ways; Choose a narrator and point of view; Employ a variety of techniques to both “show and tell”; Craft effective dialogue; Design a narrative structure/plot; Experiment with different styles.

Please join us to celebrate the release of Turning Pointe: How a New Generation of Dancers Is Saving Ballet from Itself with a reading from author Chloe Angyal and conversation with Brandon Taylor, author of Real Life. Every day, in dance studios all across America, millions of little girls line up at the barre and take ballet class. Their time in the studio shapes their lives, instilling lessons about gender, power, the value of their bodies and minds, and their place in the world both in and outside of dance. In Turning Pointe, journalist Chloe Angyal captures the intense love for ballet that so many dancers feel, while also grappling with its devastating shortcomings: the power imbalance of an art form performed mostly by women, but dominated by male choreographers and ballet masters, the impossible standards of beauty and thinness, and the racism that keeps so many people out of ballet. A new generation of dancers is confronting these issues head on. If ballet is going to survive the 21st century and forge a path into a more socially just future, this reckoning is essential. Chloe Angyal is a journalist from Sydney, Australia. She is a contributing editor at MarieClaire.com and her writing about politics and culture has appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, Atlantic, Guardian, and New York Magazine. She holds a BA from Princeton and a PhD in arts and media from the University of New South Wales. She lives in Coralville, Iowa.

In this online program, our seven distinguished guests have the (virtual) floor for seven minutes each to reflect on a work by the late David Park (1911–1960), best known as the originator of Bay Area Figurative Art. Speakers include: Helen Park Bigelow, daughter of David Park; author of the memoir “David Park, Painter: Nothing Held Back"; Nancy Boas, author of the biography “David Park: A Painter’s Life”; Gretchen Diebenkorn Grant, daughter of artist Richard Diebenkorn; Corey Keller, curator of photography, SFMOMA; exhibition catalogue contributor; Francis Mill, artist; gallerist at Hackett Mill, representing the estate of David Park; Belinda Tate, executive director, Kalamazoo Institute of the Arts; Wayne Thiebaud, artist; and Janet Bishop (moderator), Thomas Weisel Family Chief Curator and Curator of Painting and Sculpture, SFMOMA; lead curator of “David Park: A Retrospective."

In emerging markets and developing economies, large numbers of people work outside the legal and regulatory framework: they account for 70 percent of employment and about a third of GDP. These “informal” workers were more likely to lose their jobs or suffer severe income losses during COVID-19 lockdowns—and they tend to be largely excluded from social safety nets. Against this backdrop, this event will explore the findings of the first comprehensive study of the extent of informality and its implications for a sustainable and inclusive recovery going forward.

Usher in the start of summer by joining Assistant Curator Dr. Christina Michelon to learn about the nineteenth-century phenomenon of creating seaweed specimen albums. A popular pastime in New England and beyond, aspiring naturalists collected these “flowers of the ocean” and carefully arranged them in albums in both artistic and taxonomical ways. This activity occurred alongside advances in printing that facilitated seeing and learning about seaweed without even heading to the shore. Feast your eyes on these incredible aquatic plants that nourish both humans and animals, support ecosystems, and help slow climate change. You’ll even learn about how to preserve seaweed specimens yourself! Christina Michelon, PhD is Assistant Curator of Special Collections at the Boston Athenæum. She specializes in nineteenth-century American visual and material culture and received her PhD in Art History from the University of Minnesota. Prior to joining the Athenaeum, she completed a National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship at the American Antiquarian Society and a Postdoctoral Fellowship at the Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library. Her research has also been supported by the Smithsonian Institution, Henry Luce Foundation and American Council of Learned Societies, the Center for Craft, Creativity, and Design, the Chipstone Foundation, and the Library Company of Philadelphia.

Did you know that blue is the rarest flower color? Please join Brandon George, graduate student in Public Garden Leadership at Cornell University, for an in-depth talk on the color blue. In this live virtual conversation, Brandon will discuss what is technically considered blue, as well as the science behind the color, why it is so rare in the plant world, and some tips for displaying it in a garden. Finally, he will share where true blue can be found at the Cornell Botanic Gardens. The program is sure to spark your curiosity and inspire you to search for blue in nature. The program is free but pre-registration is required. Click here to register. After registering, you will be sent a confirmation with instructions for joining the Zoom webinar. The webinar will be recorded for later viewing, but participants in the live program will have the opportunity to pose questions. This program is offered as part of Go Public Gardens Days (May 7 to May 16, 2021), an initiative of the American Public Gardens Association designed to raise awareness and appreciation for public gardens in communities across North America.

As efforts to distribute COVID-19 vaccines intensify throughout the United States and across the globe, how can we ensure that equity and access are prioritized? This panel seeks to address the challenges and opportunities of equitable public health strategies around COVID-19 vaccine distribution.

If you’ve ever wanted to try your hand at writing historical fiction set in the ancient world, this class is for you. An immersive, hands-on workshop, the class will consider how to develop believable character arcs, craft emotional plot points, establish an appealing narrative voice, and draw authentic settings. The class will address writing tips such as how to “show not tell” and how to create attention-grabbing openings, and the tension between historical fact and story-worthy fiction will be explored. Class participants will listen to lectures on writing and practice the presented techniques. Class discussions will cover the value of reviewing the work of others, and how to make the most of reviews from the instructor and trusted readers to improve one’s work. The final week will include practical advice on getting work published. Live class lectures and discussion every Tuesday on Zoom, which will be recorded and available to watch later. Instructor: Malayna Evans, PhD, author of Jagger Jones and the Mummy’s Ankh and Aria Jones & the Guardian’s Wedja.

Join us for an online drawing program that centers mindfulness and community. Each session begins with short drawing warm-ups, followed by a close look at a work of art for inspiration and open-ended art-making prompts. Drawing Together provides a space to make and share in the company of others, welcoming everyone with an interest in cultivating their creativity. No art background is required. Instructions for joining through Zoom, as well as the prompts and works of art, will be provided in an email to registered participants 1–2 days in advance.

This series of online talks by the Whitney’s Joan Tisch Teaching Fellows highlights works in the Museum's collection and current exhibitions to illuminate critical topics in American art from 1900 to the present. During each thirty-minute session, participants are invited to comment and ask questions through a moderated chat for a fifteen-minute Q&A following the talk. Sessions are available live only, Tuesdays at 6 pm and Thursdays at 12 pm, but topics and speakers do periodically repeat. Check back here for more sessions added regularly. In recognition of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in the United States, this session will explore work by American artists of Asian descent, including Isamu Noguchi, Sarah Sze, Walid Raad, and Salman Toor, alongside artworks that engage with aspects of “Asian-ness” by artists from other backgrounds, such as Chris Burden and Andy Warhol. Looking at these works together, we will consider what it means for an ethnic and cultural identity to be the frame through which we experience and understand representation, artistic expression, and the geopolitical tensions that shaped twentieth-century history.

While the pandemic is not yet over, Covid-19 has produced some notable changes in our relationship to technology, particularly around issues of privacy, personal information, and surveillance. From vaccine passports to temperature-reading drones to video chat opening a new window into people’s personal lives, the pandemic has been a time of socio-technological ferment. We've collected a great panel to discuss some of these changes and to answer important questions, like: How do we escape Zoom? Are we all going to install Ring doorbells and zealously watch for package thieves? And now that our vaccination status is a matter of public concern, is HIPAA kaput?

Stories can be found everywhere—the places we go, the people we meet, the things we see and hear. For this special writing workshop, participants will look at select works from two current exhibitions—Vera Lutter: Museum in the Camera and NOT I: Throwing Voices (1500 BCE–2020 CE)—and respond through creative writing. Lutter's photos, taken with a camera obscura, capture LACMA at a crucial juncture, exploring the history and impact of a beloved institution. Do the photographs make you see in a new way? What does a certain photograph inspire in you? In NOT I, the theme of ventriloquism is explored through image, object, and film. Do these "speakers" inspire stories from your own life or imagination? What does it mean to throw your voice? Registrants will receive an advance selection of images to choose from. Chris Wells is a writer, community leader, performer, and teacher. His weekend writing workshops inspire people to make work that is deep and dynamic. Artistic director of The Secret City, Wells lives in Woodstock, NY, with his husband, the painter Robert Lucy.

When award-winning, trendsetting chef Gregory Gourdet got sober, he took stock of his life and his pantry, concentrating his energy on getting himself healthy by cooking food that was both full of nutrients and full of flavor. Now, the beloved Top Chef star shares these extraordinary dishes with everyone. Gourdet’s Everyone’s Table (Harper Wave) features 200 mouthwatering, decadently flavorful recipes carefully designed to focus on superfoods — ingredients with the highest nutrient density, the best fats, and the most minerals, vitamins, and antioxidants — that will delight home cooks. Gourdet’s dishes are inspired by his deep affection for global ingredients and techniques — from his Haitian upbringing to his French culinary education, from the cuisines of Asia as well as those of North and West Africa. His unique culinary odyssey informs this one-of-a-kind cookbook, which features dynamic vegetable-forward dishes and savory meaty stews, umami-packed sauces and easy ferments, and endless clever ways to make both year-round and seasonal ingredients shine. Everyone’s Table will change forever the way we think about, approach, and enjoy healthy eating. Gourdet will be joined in conversation, Michelle Tam, food blogger and author of Nom Nom Paleo.

Elissa Epel, Ph.D, is a Professor and Vice Chair in the Department of Psychiatry at University of California, San Francisco. Her research aims to elucidate mechanisms of healthy aging, and to use this science to help vulnerable populations. She studies psychological, social, and behavioral processes related to chronic psychological stress that accelerate biological aging, with a focus on overeating and metabolism. With her colleagues, Epel develops and tests interventions that combine behavioral, psychological, and mindfulness training, in order to improve stress resilience and physiological homeostatic capacity and slow aging. Epel is the Director of the Aging, Metabolism, and Emotions Center, and the Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study, & Treatment, (COAST), and Associate Director of the Center for Health and Community. She is also the co-author of The Telomere Effect: The New Science of Living Younger Longer, which integrates the science of cell aging with practical daily tips. Dacher Keltner is a professor of Psychology at UC Berkeley and faculty director of the Greater Good Science Center. His research focuses on the biological and evolutionary origins of compassion, awe, love, beauty, and humility, as well as power, social class, and inequality. He is the author of several books, including Born to Be Good: The Science of a Meaningful Life, The Compassionate Instinct, and The Power Paradox: How We Gain and Lose Influence. He has also consulted for Apple, Pinterest, Google, the Sierra Club, and served as a scientific consultant for Pixar’s Inside Out and for the Center for Constitutional Rights in its work to outlaw solitary confinement. Keltner is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

UCSF has a long history of pioneering biomedical research, outstanding clinical care, innovative programs in medical education, and a bold vision for advancing health locally and worldwide. Hailing from a wide spectrum of disciplines, UCSF clinicians and scientists invite you inside their work to learn what is known about the current COVID-19 pandemic, what lies ahead, and the implications of lessons-learned on future medical treatments. Direct from those who live and breathe it every day, find out WHAT’s NEXT in the science and care of COVID-19.

Gather with us for a session led by Soapbox member Richard Gray exploring the work of artist Malangatana Ngwenya (b. Mozambique, 1936-2011). Malangatana's painting Untitled 1967 in Tate's collection is one of the few works by the artist held in a major public art museum. Taking this as a starting point, the session will reflect on the many ways Malangatana's work has been positioned at different times both within and outside of Mozambique. Together we will discuss: how important is context and intention when we look at art? Soapbox is a peer-led session for people near or beyond the age of 60 to meet up and share views on life and art through topical discussion and debate. Each Soapbox meeting explores a range of art and artists from Tate's collection. Joining Soapbox will challenge your thinking and allow you to say what you feel in a supportive and friendly group.​

In this episode of Battlegrounds, H.R. McMaster and former Panama Vice President Isabel de Saint Malo de Alvarado discuss Panama-U.S. relations, factors affecting Western Hemisphere security and prosperity, and implications for Panamanian and U.S. policy. H.E. Isabel de Saint Malo de Alvarado is the first woman elected Vice-President in Panama and a former Minister of Foreign Affairs. She has over 20 years’ experience in consulting, development, and implementation of public policies in Latin America. The Vice President started her diplomatic career with posts at Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the United Nations Permanent Mission in New York and worked for 15 years with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in Panama. She has been a member of different boards of directors and is a champion in sponsoring issues related to transparency, sustainable development, gender equality, and human rights.

Join Dr. Colin B. Bailey, Director of the Morgan Library & Museum, as he traces the development of J. Pierpont Morgan as a collector of rare books and manuscripts. The talk will examine the evolution of Morgan’s taste and the development of his remarkable collection in conjunction with the construction of the library that he commissioned from the architectural firm, McKim, Mead, and White, while also considering Pierpont Morgan’s most important sources of influence: his father, Junius Spencer Morgan, and eponymous nephew. Please note that the program will take place online. After registering, participants will receive a confirmation e-mail with instructions on how to participate using Zoom.

Moroccan photographer Hassan Hajjaj’s fashion-forward portraits of artists, musicians, models, local community members, and cultural figures are distinctly his own. He fuses colorful pattern-filled and often symbolic backdrops with a passion for fashion to style and capture his subjects with a commanding presence. In doing so, he redefines cultural stereotypes and presents strong representations of Blackness in his images. Inspired by the photography studios of small-town 1960s Morocco and drawing on the playfulness and consumer aesthetic used by the artists of the Pop Art movement, Hajjaj’s work cheekily unites art, fashion, and commerce. His use of popular items such as Coca-Cola cans and Nike shoes when styling, framing of photographs by literal canned goods and soda cans, and work on his fashion and design lines “Andy Wahloo” and UK-based La Larache showcase the underlying theme of the globalization of consumerism in his work. Gather with ICP’s Curator at Large Isolde Brielmaier and Hassan Hajjaj for the last lecture in our winter/spring ICP Talks series focusing on Hajjaj’s industry spanning practice and vibrant portraits, including his most recent project My Rockstars.

As we all experience the second year of living with the invisible and deadly foe that is coronavirus, we explore the pervasive role genomics has played in understanding the virus, tracking its spread and developing novel vaccines. Join us for a series of panel discussions, organised by Wellcome Connecting Science and COG UK (COVID19 Genomics UK Consortium). Based on Covid19 and the role genomics science is playing in combatting the pandemic, hear from the people who are making this happen. Panellists will be from across the COG UK consortium. This event is part of a series of 4 events, running monthly from May-August 2021.

The Hammer's curatorial department leads free, insightful, short discussions about artists in Made in L.A. 2020 online every Wednesday at 12:30pm Pacific. This talk on Umar Rashid is led by Nicholas Barlow, curatorial assistant. Umar Rashid (also known as Frohawk Two Feathers) is a natural storyteller. He employs writing, illustration, painting, and sculpture to construct fabulations or, put simply, alternative historical narratives that reference a panoply of cultures, collapsing geography and time. At the core of his practice is a reimagining of romantic history painting and eighteenth-century colonial scenes. Rashid steers clear of simplistic dichotomies, challenging the viewer with a complex iconographic language of arcane classifying systems, maps, and cosmological diagrams. His work is informed by recognizable cultural references, whether historical materials such as Egyptian hieroglyphs, ledger art, Persian miniature painting, and illustrated Spanish colonial manuscripts or more contemporary phenomena such as the hip-hop era of the 1980s and 1990s. Alongside these identifiable sources—often regarded as “truth”—are unseen, fantastical stories, with Rashid taking on the role of what one might call a fabulist. His painterly tales complicate the idea of what is true and false, prompting us to consider whether the “truths” that we are taught may in fact be lies. In his triptych, Rashid presents the fictional Battle of Malibu. Painted in a naive style and peppered with modern-day images of Malibu, the composition explores the maritime exploits of the Tongva and Chumash peoples. Elements of cosmology appear throughout the work, referencing the spiritual and syncretic religious apparatus of the time. The work’s simplistic style and seascape setting stand in contrast to Rashid’s presentation at The Huntington, which depicts a mountainous background, rendered in a romantic, history-painting style. These two works also engage in dialogue with the two hemispheres of Los Angeles: a maritime one to the west and a mountainous one to the east, divided by a river. The title of the series, Crossing the Ruby Construct, references the Rubicon, a river in republican Rome that, when crossed by the forces of Gaius Julius Caesar, precipitated the fall of the republic and the rise of the empire.

Based on their new edited volume, The Presidency: Facing Constitutional Crossroads, Miller Center presidential scholars will discuss the deep historical and constitutional context needed to understand the Trump era. Identifying key points at which the constitutional presidency could have evolved in different ways from the nation’s founding to today, these scholars will examine presidential decisions that determined the direction of the country.

Join a conversation about how abstract art by Black artists generates alternative ways of looking at art and the world around us. This session is led by Chayanne Marcano, Joselia Hughes, and Nzinga Simone Simmons, who will discuss their personal connections to selected works by Betye Saar, Romare Bearden, Fred Eversley, and Barbara Chase-Riboud. In Shifting Perspectives, MoMA staff, artists, and art professionals facilitate casual conversations about their experiences finding personal connections with artwork in MoMA’s collection. Each will introduce one artwork, then we’ll gather to discuss questions related to themes and ideas that resonate with the group. No experience with or prior knowledge of art history is required. Grab your favorite drink and log on!

American Ancestors NEHGS and Boston Public Library in partnership with the Japan Society of Boston and GBH Forum Network present this celebrated author and his latest work “Facing the Mountain: A True Story of Japanese American Heroes in World War II.” From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of “The Boys in the Boat” comes a gripping World War II saga of patriotism, highlighting the contributions and sacrifices that Japanese immigrants and their American-born children made for the sake of the nation. Here is the story of one courageous Japanese-American Army unit that overcame brutal odds in Europe while their families were incarcerated back home; and the tale of a young man who refused to surrender his constitutional rights, even if it meant imprisonment. Following a short, illustrated presentation by author Daniel James Brown, Roland Nozomu Kelts will join him for an enlightening conversation.

What are the secrets in bringing Shakespeare to life? As a glimpse into how Shakespeare is being taught to the next generation of classical performers, Shakespeare Hour LIVE! is partnering on this special episode with the Academy for Classical Acting, which has been training Shakespearean actors for 20 years. If you’ve ever wanted to know how professional actors begin building a performance, or the foundations of a world-class education in classical acting, don’t miss this episode.

Join us for a death meditation with Angela Hennessy followed by See Black Womxn guests, Olka Baldeh and Tracy Brown, discussing cultural narratives of survival in sacred, public, and domestic realms. As artists, writers, and activists we will consider how Black Women navigate the work of grieving amidst the ongoing legacy of white supremacy and anti-blackness. See Black Womxn is an esteemed collective of artists, activists, and writers raised on Black feminist theory. Their platform emphasizes self-representation, free from the stereotypical tropes assigned to Black women. This partnership unfolds through a five-part event series centering the lineage and legacy of Black women and the contemporary Black Arts scene, and features the voices of collective cofounders Tahirah Rasheed, Angela Hennessy, Dana King, and Jamani Montague. This event is part of Virtual Wednesdays, a weekly YouTube broadcast bringing you unique viewpoints exploring diversity, resilience, and creative spirit in the arts as we aim to reframe our exhibitions and collections. View upcoming Virtual Wednesdays programs.

Learn more about the COVID-19 vaccines and their effectiveness against the virus variants first found in the UK, South Africa and Brazil. Please join the UW School of Medicine-Gonzaga University Health Partnership for a Next Generation Medicine webinar featuring Vin Gupta, MD, from the University of Washington. Over the past year, Dr. Gupta has become a familiar face as a COVID medical contributor for MSNBC and NBC News, and we are very fortunate to have him as our featured speaker at the upcoming Next Generation Medicine webinar. Dr. Gupta is an affiliate assistant professor of Health Metrics Sciences at the UW and a critical care pulmonologist who has been at the forefront of the COVID-19 pandemic since day one. In this webinar he will share the latest information about the COVID vaccines and their effectiveness against the virus variants first found in the UK, South Africa and Brazil, and what we can do to help bring an end to the pandemic in our own communities. Dr. Gupta will help dispel myths, provide facts and address your concerns in a Q&A session. You won’t want to miss it.

Are you looking to impress with your stove side skills? Nothing like risotto. Many are afraid of tackling this beloved Italian classic. Our in-house Italian is here to tell you that it's not only simple to make risotto, but now you don't even have to stand by the stove constantly stirring. Join Viola to learn the modern ways of the Italian kitchen and achieve risotto mastery! In the class we will also discuss tips on selecting rice at the store and how to give risotto personality, no matter what season it is. This class menu includes: Risotto alla parmigiana—Butter and Parmesan Risotto; and Risotto di Olivia alle barbabietole e zafferano—Olivia's Red Beets and Saffron Risotto.

Have you marveled at how New Yorker cartoon captions are so clever and so...just perfect? Have you ever tried your hand at the weekly cartoon caption contest? Take a quick tutorial from two actors that will spark some creative energy to try again! Ellie Kemper and Daniel Radcliffe, stars of “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy vs. the Reverend,” team up for The New Yorker’s Cartoon Caption Contest.

In America we like to think we live in a land of liberty, where everyone can say whatever they want. Throughout our history, however, we have also been quick to censor people who offend or frighten us. In their brief but bracing book, Free Speech, historian Jonathan Zimmerman and Pulitzer Prize–winning cartoonist Signe Wilkinson tell the story of free speech in America and make the case for why we should care about it today.

The bold, abstract paintings of Irene Rice Pereira … the subtle delicacy of those by Whistler … the Surrealist works of Man Ray … the wire sculptures of Ruth Asawa … all of them American, all of them born of vital movements in modern art. Join professor and modern art historian Joseph Field for this new four-part course examining American artists from the 19th century to the present day. You’ll explore work by Isamu Noguchi, Louise Nevelson, Andrew Wyeth, Helen Frankenthaler, and William Baziotes, along with those by lesser-known artists likely to be a revelation. With Field leading your examination of their work, you’ll gain new insights into these artists and their influences, and into American modern art movements like Abstract Expressionism. And you’ll come away with a deepened understanding of why American artists have been so instrumental to the advancement of the visual arts on a global scale.

With a scent of sweet licorice, fennel is celery’s fun cousin. Join Danielle Cook for this online cooking demonstration as she shares her latest creation using fennel and celery. Then join Adrienne Cook in her garden as she discusses the myriad chores that go into getting the summer garden ready.

Gather with the Hoover Institution Press for a discussion of two recent publications based on the acclaimed Russian collections held at the Hoover Library & Archives, moderated by Russian historian Robert Service. Russia in War and Revolution: The Memoirs of Fyodor Sergeyevich Olferieff features the previously unpublished memoirs of a Russian military officer who participated in key transformative historical events, including World War I and the Russian Revolution. Gary Hamburg, volume editor and author of the book’s introduction and companion essay; and the subject’s granddaughter Tanya Alexandra Cameron, who translated his memoirs, will participate in the discussion. Next, author Anatol Shmelev will discuss his book the Wake of Empire: Anti-Bolshevik Russia in International Affairs, 1917–1920, which examines Russia’s place in international affairs in the years after the fall of the Russian Empire, when the anti-Bolshevik “Whites” fought to maintain a “Great, United Russia.”

Join us for our final Virtual Science Café this programming year! We’ll take a look at the collections and exhibits we all miss visiting in person, the surprising resilience of shells through shifting climates and mass extinction events (and what we can learn from them), and the unusual mating behavior of wire-tailed manakin birds. Set the stage at home for this virtual event with food and drink from Busboys and Poets, our local DC-area restaurant collaborator. Upon registration you'll receive an order link, and whether you're local or non-local you can shake up a themed drink to enjoy using a recipe provided by Busboys and Poets. “Mapping Mammals: Museum Collections as Snapshots of the Past and Present” by Ingrid Rochon--Every museum specimen tells a story, and Ingrid Rochon's job as a museum technician in the Division of Mammals is to keep track of the who, what, when, and where for every one of its 600,000 specimens stored behind the scenes. By pulling together field notes, historic maps, and handwritten tags, specimen locality data helps scientists understand the distribution of life on earth and how ecosystems have changed over time. And the gaps on the map? By understanding the extent of our collections, scientists can pinpoint the places we have yet to explore. “What Makes an Avian Wingman?” by Peri Bolton--Despite the competitive mating—and dating—world, male wire-tailed manakin birds help each other out to produce mating dance displays that enhance their chances of reproduction. Why does this occur, and what genes and brain regions are involved in producing this unusual behavior? In her talk, researcher Peri Bolton will explore the neural gene expression associated with cooperative mating display behavior in the wire-tailed manakin, and why they’re truly the best wingmen. “Life Through Shifting Climates and Mass Extinctions in Ancient and Modern Seas” by Stewart Edie--While the past life of dinosaurs captures the curiosity of many, for paleobiologist Stewart Edie it’s how the seemingly unassuming clams—or bivalves—were living and thriving over the past half-billion years. In his talk, he’ll share recent work on how the shells of these spectacularly diverse and ancient animals are unlocking important insight into how biodiversity responds to climate change and mass extinction.

Gather with us for a conversation with Easton LaChappelle, an innovator who was featured in our 2015 exhibition, Designers, Makers, Users: 3D Printing the Future. Easton made his first robotic hand out of LEGOs, fishing wire and electrical tubing when he was 14. With his gradual improvement, the hand turned into an arm and advanced to a 3D-printed brain-powered invention that he could operate with his mind. After an encounter with a 7-year-old girl at a science fair whose prosthetic arm cost $80,000 (and would need to be replaced when she outgrew it), LaChappelle was inspired to turn his prototype into a practical and affordable device. At 18, Easton founded his own company, Unlimited Tomorrow, to commercialize this technology and bring it to the masses. Unlimited Tomorrow’s philosophy is to keep the user first and to give extreme technology at an affordable price. By using new technologies such as 3d printing, 3d scanning and AI, it allows Unlimited Tomorrow to create a product that’s better, faster and more affordable than anything in the market. We'll be talking to Easton about his early achievements, his career path since high school, the company he has founded, and what drives him to do the work that he does.How might we curate and design exhibitions that multisensory, interactive, and immersive experiences for visitors of all backgrounds and abilities?

Join us online as we tap into our powers of observation and investigate a work of art together through close looking and discussion. This virtual space offers the unique chance to look at artworks that are not currently on view in the galleries or are too small for in-person group visits. All adult learners are welcome. Free; advance registration is required to access the online meeting room. Registration opens May 10, 2021, 9 am (ET). Registration closes May 13, 2021, 3 pm (ET) or when registration is full.

Renaissance historian Ada Palmer explores the relationship between war, strife, and artistic production reflecting on objects in Lust, Love, and Loss in Renaissance Europe as well as other examples of art, music, and literature. Palmer examines how the artistic splendor of the Renaissance—and the willingness of patrons to invest their fortunes in it—was a reaction to crisis and violence, rather than a sign of peace. Free, but advance registration is required. Ada Palmer is a historian focusing on radical thought in Europe especially in the Renaissance. Her current research focuses on history of censorship and patterns in the motives of censors during information revolutions, from printing press to digital. An Associate Professor in the University of Chicago's History Department with affiliations in Classics, Gender Studies, and the Institute on the Formation of Knowledge, she works broadly on the history of science, religion, heresy, freethought, atheism, censorship, books, printing, and long-term European history, especially the Renaissance and Enlightenment.

At the top of three occupational citadels—the judiciary, arts, and sports—sit men whose pride is protected by their power. In Citadels of Pride, renowned law and ethics expert Martha C. Nussbaum argues that when this pride becomes exploitative, it perpetuates systemic sexual abuse, narcissism, and toxic masculinity. At CHF, Nussbaum and fellow law professor Jonathan S. Masur discuss the gaps in our legal system that enable such violence and imagine a future where survivors of abuse are empowered to share their stories, demand change, and build reform.

Ticket includes a signed first edition copy of Abrams’ new novel While Justice Sleeps. Stacey Abrams was instrumental in driving an enormous number of voter registrations in Georgia, including some 800,000 new voters between the 2018 and 2020 elections. Those voters, in turn, were central to turning Georgia blue in the 2020 presidential election and Senate race. A tax attorney by training, she served eleven years in the Georgia House of Representatives, seven as Minority Leader, and became the 2018 Democratic nominee for governor of Georgia, where she won more votes than any other Democrat in the state’s history. One of Abrams’ many other talents: fiction writing. Her newest legal thriller is While Justice Sleeps. “Stacey Abrams is a true novelist, and While Justice Sleeps is a first-class legal thriller, favorably compared to many of the best, starting with The Pelican Brief, which it brings to mind. It’s fast-paced and full of surprises—a terrific read.”— Scott Turow Rebecca Traister is the author of Good and Mad: The Revolutionary Power of Women’s Anger. Traister is writer at large for New York Magazine and a contributing editor at Elle. A National Magazine Award finalist, she has written about women in politics, media, and entertainment from a feminist perspective for The New Republic and Salon and has also contributed to The Nation, The New York Observer, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Vogue, Glamour, and Marie Claire. Her other books include All The Single Ladies and Big Girls Don’t Cry.

Throughout history, the arts, music, and humanities have served as a medium for healing. Creative expression can foster self-discovery of inner resources, cultivate resilience during life challenges, and transcend socio-cultural barriers through a shared language. This interdisciplinary course aims to explore the role of creative expression in addressing multiple dimensions of mind-body health across the lifespan. Leading UCSF clinicians, researchers, and expressive art therapists from geriatrics, neuroscience, oncology, otolaryngology, pediatrics, physical therapy, and psychiatry will present the science behind creative expression, discuss case examples, and lead experiential demonstrations.

Explore technologies designed to harness renewable energy sources and lower the carbon footprint of energy use through building and transportation design. The first week of May, the vessel Energy Observer will be docked next to our Platinum LEED-Certified campus on Pier 15. This high-tech French sailboat is the first self-sufficient, hydrogen-powered, zero-emission vessel. From solar and wind power to efficient hybrid propulsion and closed-loop heating and cooling systems, the Exploratorium building and the vessel both put an array of innovations to use for a cleaner, greener future. Virtually step onboard the ship and inside the Exploratorium to find out more about the science behind the net-zero energy goals of each.

Explore the tropical rainforests of the world with a session dedicated to these iconic and important ecosystems, which are home to nearly half of the world’s terrestrial biodiversity and play a critical role in global weather. Learn how scientists are studying rainforest health—and get a bonus behind-the-scenes look into the Academy's own rainforest dome.

This seminar will explore how photographers from the Civil War era constructed landscapes of slavery. What symbols and facts did they draw upon, and what narratives and interpretations were they in dialogue with and which did they promote? Gather with Makeda Best, photography curator and author of Elevate the Masses: Alexander Gardner, Photography, and Democracy in Nineteenth-Century America (2020), as she explores how Alexander Gardner and others presented the infamous Franklin and Armfield slave pen, located in present-day Alexandria, Virginia.

Gather with us for lively and inspiring conversations with some of today’s most notable artists. "at home: Artists in Conversation" brings together curators and artists to discuss various artistic practices and insights into their work. Grace Wales Bonner launched her label in 2014, after graduating from Central Saint Martins. Established as a menswear brand, Wales Bonner's soulful tailoring soon expanded to womenswear. In 2015, she was awarded Emerging Menswear Designer at the British Fashion Awards. In 2016, following her first solo runway presentation, Ezekiel, she received the LVMH Young Designer Prize. In 2019, Wales Bonner was invited by Maria Grazia Chiuri to collaborate with Dior to reinterpret their New Look silhouette for the Resort 2020 collection; shortly afterwards, she won the BFC/Vogue Designer Fashion Fund. Informed by broad research encompassing critical theory, musical composition, literature, and history, Wales Bonner embraces a multiplicity of perspectives, proposing a distinct notion of luxury via a hybrid of European and Afro-Atlantic approaches. In January 2019, she presented her first institutional exhibition, A Time for New Dreams, at London's Serpentine Galleries.

As the pandemic forced iconic venues to close across the UK, a small band of artists united to break their silence and celebrate creativity. In Silent Spaces, an online video series created during lockdown, musician Soumik Datta joined forces with a community of artists to film performances in six of the country's cultural institutions. Each episode follows them into a new venue where they showcase music and dance created in response to themes such as resilience, vulnerability and the future of our climate. In the episode "Messengers," this diverse group of performers reclaimed the silent galleries of the British Museum. They created music that reinforces the significance of our shared cultural venues and our need to protect them. With the Museum preparing to reopen in May, join the curators of the Era of Reclamation series – Bonnie Greer, former Deputy Chair of the British Museum's Board of Trustees, and Hartwig Fischer, Director of the British Museum – for a discussion about the making of 'Messengers'. They'll be in conversation with Silent Spaces creator Soumik Datta, filmmaker Souvid Datta, producer Melanie Cura Duball and dancer Monique Jonas to explore the inspirations behind the project.

Napata (modern Jebel Barkal), located on the Middle Nile in what is now northern Sudan, was an urban center for nearly 2,000 years, at least 1500 BCE to 250 CE. While earlier generations of research at the site focused on the monumental pyramids, temples, and palaces that are its most visible remains, a new project at the site aims to reconceptualize these scattered monuments as parts of an ancient city. Magnetometry and test excavation in 2019 and 2020 have identified a previously unrecognized area of settlement (a "lost city") and begin to allow us to evaluate the local environment and economy.

From celebrated national leader and bestselling author Stacey Abrams comes While Justice Sleeps (Doubleday), a gripping, complexly plotted thriller set within the halls of the U.S. Supreme Court. Avery Keene, a brilliant young law clerk for the legendary Justice Howard Wynn, is doing her best to hold her life together. When the shocking news breaks that Justice Wynn has slipped into a coma, Avery’s life turns upside down. As political wrangling ensues in Washington to potentially replace the ailing judge, Avery begins to unravel a carefully constructed, chess-like sequence of clues left behind by Wynn. While Justice Sleeps is a cunningly crafted, sophisticated novel, layered with myriad twists and a vibrant cast of characters. Drawing on her astute inside knowledge of the court and political landscape, Stacey Abrams shows herself to be not only a force for good in politics and voter fairness, but also a major new talent in suspense fiction. Abrams will be joined in conversation by Katie Couric, award-winning journalist, New York Times bestselling author, and a co-founder of Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C). Please note: This is a ticketed event. Purchasing a signed preorder copy of While Justice Sleeps ($28) entitles you to attend our virtual event with Abrams and Couric. After you’ve purchased the book, we will automatically register you for the Zoom event – and will send you a confirmation email two days prior to the event containing a Zoom link to the event and instructions on how to access it. A signed copy of While Justice Sleeps is available for the first 600 ticket buyers.

In larders, pantries, and root cellars around the world, you are likely to find a member of the allium family: garlic, onions, shallots, leeks, ramps, scallions, and chives. Due to their ubiquity, we often take alliums for granted. In this class, we turn the spotlight on these aromatic and flavorsome ingredients, giving them their well-deserved time to shine! In this live, interactive class over Zoom, you will learn the how and why of preparation methods and the best uses of each allium. We will discuss everything from the wonders of the workhorse yellow onion, how to properly clean a leek, to what to do when the fleeting ramp season is over. Please join us as we peel back the layers of this culinary favorite and salute the chic ombre of leeks, the pungency of garlic, and the robustness of the yellow onion! This class menu includes: Triple Roasted Allium & Tomato Soup with White Beans and Charred Lemon; Green Salad with Fennel, Hazelnuts and Green Goddess Dressing; and Leek, Apple & Cheddar Bread Pudding.

A central question of democracy is how to balance a government’s need to conduct national security operations in secret with the public’s right to know what their government is doing. The answer—debated to this day—is both a complex policy judgment and an equally complex judgment about the meaning of the First Amendment rights to freedom of speech and the press. Legal scholar Geoffrey Stone (coauthor of National Security, Leaks, and Freedom of the Press) convenes a panel with former director of the CIA John Brennan and Washington Post national security reporter Ellen Nakashima (two of the book’s contributors) to discuss secrecy, disclosure, security, and the First Amendment. This program is the first panel in our new series Deep Dive: Speech, curated by Geoffrey Stone. This 3-part series curated and hosted by legal scholar Geoffrey Stone (Edward H. Levi Distinguished Service Professor of Law, University of Chicago) will consider a variety of perspectives on free speech in the 21st century. We'll explore some of the forces driving wide-ranging debates around First Amendment rights in our moment, including freedom of the press and national security, the role of social media platforms and internet companies, and hate speech.

May is National Bike Month! Gather with MODA for a Tireside Chat about bicycle design with Craig Calfee of Calfee Design. Calfee bicycle frames were born in 1987 when Craig recognized that carbon fiber was going to be the material of choice for racing bikes. In 1991, he got a huge boost when Tour de France winner Greg LeMond ordered 18 bikes for his team. Calfee has been a leader in bicycle design ever since. Craig explores other materials for building bikes as well, such as hemp and bamboo. He’s used the durable, inexpensive, and sustainable material to build racing, off-road, double-decker, and tandem bamboo bikes, as well as a DIY bamboo bicycle kit. He’s also helped to create a bamboo bike industry in Africa, where bikes are built with locally-grown bamboo and provide transportation and an income stream.

Mars is hot right now, despite its sub-freezing temperatures. With multiple countries sending spacecraft to the Red Planet this year, we’ll take a look at missions past and future, their breakthroughs and challenges, and what we hope to find when we get there.

Join Professor John Maynard and Peter FitzSimons for a pre-recorded live discussion from Apri, 2020, about the legend of Captian Cook. This is part of the Maritime Museum's virtual ocean talk series.

Painter Jordan Casteel reflects on works in the current Met exhibition Gerhard Richter: Painting After All, considering figuration and the role of photography in her own practice. Recorded in May, 2020. this event also provides access to a virtual tour of the Met's exhibit.

Marking Time: Indigenous Art from the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) looks at the persistence of images, signs or text painted or drawn on a range of surfaces in Indigenous Australia, from ancient times until now. The impulse to draw and make images and symbols is deeply embedded in Indigenous cultures throughout the world and is fundamental to the human experience. One of the first and most prolific forms of mark making, both figurative and non-figurative, has appeared across Australia on rock surfaces since the pre-historic era. Other forms of visual culture are ephemeral and comprise meaningful markings and designs made on the ground, the body and objects, for use in ceremonial contexts. The removal of such ritual markings from the body and the ground after ceremony, along with the loss of other more durable designs and images through natural processes, such as erosion, is compounded by other forms of loss through the socially fragmenting effects of colonisation. In response, Indigenous artists have found new ways of prolonging this visual language of images and signs, by reimagining it in new and more durable art forms, such as acrylic paintings, neons, sculptures and limited-edition prints. This exhibition reveals many nuances of mark making as an artistic practice in the Indigenous Australian context, with multiple aesthetic consequences and modes of practice. Join the museum director for a 5 part video tour through this important exhibition.

In her latest short story collection The (Other) You Joyce Carol Oates ponders who her characters might have become if they’d chosen different paths. Through the imaginations of her contemplative protagonists, Oates—author of contemporary classic novels like We Were the Mulvaneys and Blonde—deftly detangles the complex circumstances that dictate who we turn out to be. Join Oates and Rebecca Makkai, author of Pulitzer Prize finalist The Great Believers, for a discussion of destiny, alternative realities, and our other selves from March, 2021.

African Americans make up 13.4 percent of the U.S. population but they represent approximately 23 percent of COVID-19 deaths. Black Americans are three times more likely to die from infection than whites. They are also disproportionately represented among those living in poverty; those engaged in “essential” services placing them at higher risk of contagion; and those afflicted by preexisting conditions such as Diabetes and Hypertension. This panel examines variations of experience among African Americans and interrogates the relationship between racial inequality and public health. Speakers include Ta-Nehisi Coates, Frederick Wherry, Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, Patrick Sharkey, and Kathryn Edin.

Your first date with French! Through a mix of French and English, this short primer course gives you the essential tools to excel as you begin your French journey. This course is specifically designed for students with no prior French exposure. You will study how French and English grammar and verbs work, how they can be so similar and so different at the same time. Through comparative grammar, conjugation and vocabulary, you will discover all the tips and tricks of the French language. Take the class live on Zoom with FIAF’s experienced teachers and start speaking French from Day 1. After completing this course, you will be ready to continue on to Beginner French A1 Level 1.

Like indoor recess for adults, Second City’s brand new online Acting Escape Series is the perfect way to break up the routine of physical isolation/working from home - all without leaving your living room. No prior experience is necessary for this fun, relaxed introduction to some of the skills of acting. Over the course of four weeks, you’ll meet new people and learn acting techniques in supportive, laugh-filled 90-minute sessions. Join alone or sign up with friends!

In a special program co-presented with the Climate Reality Project Bay Area Chapter, join us for an up-close and personal talk with Jim Warne of the Oglala Lakota (Sioux) Nation about the history of Native Americans and the work of building relationships with native communities to produce effective climate progress. The multitalented Warne is a motivational speaker, president of Warrior Society Development, WSD Productions; the community engagement & diversity director for the USD Center for Disabilities Oyata' Circle; and creator of the award-winning documentary "7th Generation" and the NFL Social Justice Series' "Oyate' un Ito'wapi–Pictures of My People," which was featured on Fox.

In this inspiring talk, Christian Greco, director of the Egyptian Museum of Turin, shows how he breathes new life into old discoveries and modernized the nearly 200-year-old museum dedicated to Egyptian art and culture. Previously recorded at the Getty Villa.

Distinguished art historian Michael Fried, professor emeritus of humanities at Johns Hopkins University, takes off from each of the three great paintings that were on loan to the Getty Museum from the Galleria Borghese in Rome to provide an overview of Caravaggio's remarkable, world-transforming achievement.

Gather with Leakey Foundation grantee Kate McGrath and learn what the teeth of our ancestors can tell us about their life histories.

While polarization may seem like the hallmark of American politics, a global pandemic in the midst of the 2020 presidential election and a reckoning over race has only deepened the political divide. So, what’s next regarding this political division? How can we achieve a sense of unity and what does it mean if we don’t? Join political analyst Amy Walter, political scientist Valerie C. Johnson, presidential expert Barbara A. Perry, and political columnist Mona Charen for a panel discussion about political polarization and the roadmap to reunification.

When we talk about patriotism in America, we tend to mean one form: the version captured in shared celebrations like the national anthem and the Pledge of Allegiance. But as Ben Railton argues, that celebratory patriotism is just one of four distinct forms: celebratory, the communal expression of an idealized America; mythic, the creation of national myths that exclude certain communities; active, acts of service and sacrifice for the nation; and critical, arguments for how the nation has fallen short of its ideals that seek to move us toward that more perfect union. In Of Thee I Sing, Railton defines those four forms of American patriotism, using the four verses of “America the Beautiful” as examples of each type, and traces them across our histories. Doing so allows us to reframe seemingly familiar histories such as the Revolution, the Civil War, and the Greatest Generation, as well as texts such as the national anthem and the Pledge of Allegiance. And it helps us rediscover forgotten histories and figures, from Revolutionary War Loyalists and the World War I Espionage and Sedition Acts to active patriots like Civil War nurse Susie King Taylor and the suffragist Silent Sentinels to critical patriotic authors like William Apess and James Baldwin. Tracing the contested history of American patriotism also helps us better understand many of our 21st century debates: from Donald Trump’s divisive deployment of celebratory and mythic forms of patriotism to the backlash to the critical patriotisms expressed by Colin Kaepernick and the 1619 Project. Only by engaging with the multiple forms of American patriotism, past and present, can we begin to move forward toward a more perfect union that we all can celebrate. Author Ben Railton is Professor of English Studies and Coordinator of American Studies at Fitchburg State University in Massachusetts. He is the author of five previous books, most recently We the People: The 500-Year Battle over Who is American (also in the American Ways series). His public scholarly efforts also include the daily AmericanStudies blog, the monthly Considering History column for the Saturday Evening Post, and contributions to many other online conversations including HuffPost and We’re History.

Join us for an Online Lunch Conversation in French (for Beginners)! On Tuesdays, every month. Enjoy the lunch break to have your first conversations in French! Each month, we encourage you to talk on different subjects to practice your spoken skills. A screen shouldn’t keep us from chatting and sharing a lunch together! The Lunch Conversation is lead by our French teacher, Coline.

Gather with ROM botanist Deborah Metsger in conversation with archaeologist J. Mark Kenoyer as they explore the rich and diverse history of textiles in the early settlements of Pakistan and western India, from the earliest evidence of cotton (7,000 BCE) to the importance of fiber arts in the emergence of early urban centers. Jonathan Mark Kenoyer is the George F. Dales Jr. and Barbara A. Dales Professor of Anthropology, at the Department of Anthropology, University of Wisconsin, Madison. He obtained his PhD in 1983 at the University of California Berkeley and has been teaching archaeology and ancient technology at the University of Wisconsin, Madison since 1985. He has served as Field Director and Co-Director of the Harappa Archaeological Research Project since 1986. He has worked on excavations and ethnoarchaeological studies in both Pakistan and India, and more recently in Oman. He has a special interest in ancient technologies and crafts, including textiles and textile production, socioeconomic and political organization as well as religion. These interests have led him to study a broad range of cultural periods in South Asia as well as other regions of the world, including China, Japan, Korea, Oman, and West Asia in general. His work has been featured in the National Geographic Magazine and Scientific American.

In an online seminar-style setting, this course examines today's current trends in photography by studying the past 50 years of the medium's history. Whether you are a photographer, a collector, or an enthusiast who would like to learn more about the medium, this discussion clarifies the development of contemporary themes in photography. Selected theoretical texts, along with virtual exhibition walk-throughs, round out lively visual presentations. Open to All Skill Levels: Students ranging from beginner to experienced will be successful in classes.

One of the most important, influential, and popular artists of the post-war era, Jeff Koons has built a special relationship with France over his career. In 2008, he was invited to exhibit his works at the Château de Versailles, becoming the first contemporary artist, and the only American one, to be presented in the palace. After the 2015 terror attacks in Paris, Koons offered a sculpture of tulips to the city as a memorial to the victims. In a special conversation with art historian Joachim Pissarro, Koons will look back at his longstanding connection to France, focusing on his extraordinary exhibition in Versailles and providing insight into his creative process.

Are you interested in taking an improv class, but you're not quite sure if it's right for you? Give it a test drive! Our weekly drop-in improv class for beginners is open to everyone, whether you have ever improvised or not. It's a great opportunity to practice, have some fun, and meet new people! We’ve figured out how to bring real, live fun straight from The Second City to you! Our totally digital, totally FUN improv drop-in classes are for anyone looking for 90 minutes of fun and creativity---with other people. All you need is an internet connection and a camera, and we’ll have you “yes, and”-ing in no time. This crash course is taught by our Second City Training Center comedy pros in Chicago, LA, and Toronto. Sign up by yourself, or encourage your friends to join your session for a virtual get-together!

The year 2020 was the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment, and commemorations were planned around the country. But 2020 was also the year of the pandemic and bitterly partisan politics. Our panel will discuss how the centennial adapted, where efforts succeeded, where they fell short, and reflect on how successful they were in raising public awareness of women’s fight for equality. Moderated by Rebecca Roberts, author of Suffragists in Washington DC, panelists include Robert P. J. Cooney, Jr., author of Winning the Vote: The Triumph of the American Woman Suffrage Movement; Fredie Kay, Executive Director, Suffrage100MA; Anna Laymon, former Executive Director, Women’s SuffrageCentennial Commission; and Krysta Jones, Co-chair, 2020 Women’s Vote Centennial Initiative.

All are welcome to a poetry discussion and creative writing workshop led by Maggie Queeney. In this session, we explore the catalog poem, which borrows form from the list, “the most archaic and pervasive of genres,” according to Jonathan Z. Smith. The group will explore a wide variety of poems and conclude with a guided creative writing workshop, where participants will compose an original catalog poem.

Two new mothers, a murder, and a question about crime: in her new thrilling debut novel A Good Mother, law professor Lara Bazelon examines the intricacies of motherhood, the legal system, and moral obligation. As a writer, attorney and mother herself, Lara Bazelon writes about crime, love, work and family with a voice that wonders what is right and fair for all. When a soldier is found dead at a U.S. Army base, there is no doubt that his wife, Luz, is to blame. But was it an act of self-defense? An attempt to save her infant daughter? Or the cold-blooded murder of an innocent man? Public defender and new mother Abby strives to keep Luz out of prison, sympathizing with the struggles of parenthood. When new evidence emerges and the trial turns toward an outcome no one expects, Abby and Luz must answer the riveting question: What does it mean to be a good mother? Gather with us as Lara Bazelon illustrates the answers to motherhood through a discussion of A Good Mother. She'll be joined in conversation by Piper Kerman, author of the hit bestseller Orange Is the New Black. Kerman's book served as the source material for the eponymous hit Netflix series.

With compelling, universal fluency, Jhumpa Lahiri portrays the practical and emotional adversities of her diverse characters in elegant and direct prose. Whether describing hardships of a lonely Indian wife adapting to life in the United States or illuminating the secret pain of a young couple as they discuss their betrayals during a series of electrical blackouts, Lahiri’s bittersweet stories are deeply compassionate, while avoiding sentimentality. Also an accomplished translator, Lahiri’s forthcoming novel, Whereabouts, is her first full-length self-translation. The book follows a woman wavering between stasis and movement, between the need to belong and the refusal to form lasting ties, as she wanders parks, bridges, piazzas, streets, stores, coffee bars, and the sidewalks around her house. Lahiri will also publish her first collection of poems in Italian, Il quaderno di Nerina, in 2021. Lahiri received the Pulitzer Prize in 2000 for Interpreter of Maladies, her debut story collection that explores issues of love and identity among immigrants and cultural transplants. She is the director of Princeton University’s Program in Creative Writing. Monica Seger is a professor and scholar, whose research and teaching addresses twentieth and twenty-first century Italian literature, film and media; the environmental humanities; and gender studies. She serves as the Program Director for Italian Studies at William & Mary University, and is affiliate faculty in the programs of Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies; Film and Media Studies; and Environmental Science and Policy. Seger is the author of Landscapes in Between: Environmental Change in Modern Italian Literature and Film, and is currently working on a new monograph considering narrative expressions of toxic embodiment in contemporary Italy.

Rediscovered in recent years, this BBC documentary is as extraordinary as its provocative subject matter — the dramatic story of the building of the Sydney Opera House, culminating in Utzon’s departure from the project. Containing a new prologue called ‘The Dream of Perfection’, it tells the fascinating story of the lost film and brings the story up-to- date, featuring interviews with Sir David Attenborough, architect Richard le Plaistrier, plus many others. Courtesy of the Sydney Opera House--from our house to yours--stream this film anytime from the comfort of your home.

In our new live demo series, Bring the Heat, join us for a live stream of glass artists demonstrating their expertise and skillful execution while “in the zone.” During each demo, an artist will present a personal design they’ve worked to perfect, and they will be live on the mic to narrate as they work—a rarity for live artist demonstrations and a first at the Museum. Since 1996, Eric Goldschmidt has devoted himself to practicing and developing the techniques of hot glass manipulation with a focus on flameworking, while studying and assisting with many of the world’s most talented glass artists.

Listen as curators, educators, community leaders, artists, and others offer new ways to look at and understand artworks, special exhibitions, and museum-specific issues. Join the live conversation every 1st and 3rd Wednesday at 12:00 p.m. (EDT). This week: What value does historical art have for contemporary artists and audiences? In his realist paintings, Mario Moore shows how traditional artistic practices can be powerful vehicles for exploring timeless themes and the provocative issues of today. Join Moore in conversation with CMA curator Cory Korkow as they discuss Moore’s work, the relevance of historical paintings, and the exhibition Variations: The Reuse of Models in Paintings by Orazio and Artemisia Gentileschi.

May 31, 2021 marks the 100th anniversary of the Tulsa Race Massacre, when a violent white mob nearly destroyed the formerly thriving and prosperous African American community in the Greenwood district of Tulsa (also known as Black Wall Street). Over 300 African Americans were killed, and thousands were displaced. Hundreds of homes and businesses burned to the ground. In the decades since this occurred, the massacre was covered up, local officials obstructed the redevelopment of Greenwood, and the local chapter of the KKK became one of the largest in the U.S. Join us for a conversation with leading policy makers, academics, and researchers on the historical legacy of the Massacre, the effects on current-day policy and organizing debates related to racial justice, and the movement for reparations.

Join Magnolia Bakery’s Chief Baking Officer, Bobbie Lloyd, as she shares her recipe for Grasshopper Icebox Pie Bars — an American classic from her cookbook, The Magnolia Bakery Handbook: A Complete Guide for the Home Baker, and a favorite from her childhood. During this class, she’ll show you her tips and tricks for making this beloved, perfect-for-summer dessert that requires minimal (if any) baking and only a few simple ingredients. Bobbie will demonstrate how to make the cool, minty and refreshing treat, while also talking through easy recipe modifications. She'll share how to use the same cookie crust base and cream cheese plus whipped cream filling to create other icebox bar variations on your own, like a classic Peanut Butter Icebox Bar. Let Bobbie be your guide to the ultimate summer dessert, as she shares one of her favorite Icebox Pie Bar recipes — with love, from her kitchen to yours.

Why is Earth’s sibling planet, Venus, not our twin? The surface of Earth is the most hospitable place in the solar system. But the surface of Venus is hot enough to melt lead. How can two planets of similar size, orbiting the same star, and of the same age, comparable amount of radiation, and composition end up vastly different? Might there have been a time in the past when Venus was more Earth-like? Could Earth one day turn into a second Venus? Volcanism sets the stage for these foundational investigations in planetary science. Planetary geologists glean insights about the volcanic character of a planet—and how volcanism has shaped its surface and climate— with remotely sensed data, laboratory and numerical modeling, and studies of similar field sites on Earth. Gather with Paul Byrne, associate professor of planetary science at North Carolina State University, to explore how volcanoes can make or break a planet's climate, how they may have contributed to turning Venus from an Earth-like world to the forbidding environment it is today, and whether the same fate might one day befall the planet we call home.

This is a live, interactive, hands-on cooking class held online via Zoom. Pie crusts can be intimidating. The threat of mushy, under-cooked undersides and the fear of rolling out concentric dough has kept many people from trying their hand at this pastry classic. Enter the galette. Galettes have all the flavor of pies but are far more low key. No blind baking and no tedious crust crimping. They are the pastry equivalent of the dinner guest who always knows what to say and gets along with everyone. Not only will you learn the timeless technique of making galettes, you'll also be inspired by Marie's inventiveness with spring produce. Conquer your fear of stinging nettles and perhaps use tarragon for the first time! Join us as we learn how to make beautiful and flaky crusts while saluting the season with fillings that feature the produce of spring. This class menu includes: Leek and Nettle Galette with Lemon Chevre; and Balsamic Roasted Strawberry Galette with Pine Nuts & Tarragon Crème Fraîche.

Explore the vast field of geology and just a few of the ways the ground beneath our feet affects our lives—and vice versa. Hear from researchers studying how human activities impact the Earth’s structure and consider how geologic features are linked to the culture of local communities.

What does it take to be happy? America’s founding document states that the pursuit of happiness is an unalienable right. But this question has preoccupied philosophers, fascinated scientists, inspired artists, launched an enormous self-help industry—and continues to elude many of us. The Atlantic will host a live event that explores the human hold on happiness—and aims to find ways to build a more meaningful life. The event will consider happiness and relationships; the role of spirituality; how social media and other technology are affecting our happiness; and the ways in which a year of social isolation has reframed our understanding of a lasting sense of joy.

The joys of asparagus are many, whether you serve them hot or cold, raw or cooked. During this week's online cooking demonstration, join the Cook Sisters for the best in cooking and gardening. Danielle will share a new recipe for asparagus. Then Adrienne will share tips on growing and harvesting asparagus.

What is Surrealism? And what did it become in the hands of women artists? The Surrealist gallery is one of the most visited in the Museum. Surrealism connects our daily lives to the world of fantasy, dreams, and desire. While figures like Salvador Dalí, René Magritte, and Max Ernst are often the names that come to mind, a host of intriguing women were associated with the Surrealist movement that emerged between the World Wars, including Claude Cahun, Frida Kahlo, Dora Maar, Meret Oppenheim, and Remedios Varo. These artists both championed Surrealist ideas and pushed against them to create work in which they could explore their unconscious mind and worldly identity. Join actor and writer Abbi Jacobson, star of Broad City and host of our A Piece of Work podcast, and Anne Umland, MoMA’s Blanchette Hooker Rockefeller Senior Curator of Painting and Sculpture, as they explore Surrealism’s creative attraction for women artists and its revolutionary potential then and now. Live event from November, 2020.

By day the painter Francis Bacon explored the secrets of a dark century; by night he swashbuckled through London’s Soho, a Wildean figure who “adored” life and never concealed his homosexuality. In their monumental new biography of the artist, Francis Bacon: Revelations, Mark Stevens ’73 and Annalyn Swan ’73—who won the Pulitzer Prize for de Kooning: An American Master—bring to life this complex man and offer fresh insights into his unforgettable art. Joined by Art Museum Director James Steward.

Brush up your French in this interactive refresher course offered for the Beginner A1 level and get a head start on the next level, Advanced Beginner A2. Ideal for students who want to strengthen and review their language skills before moving on to the next level, we’ll explore online media, video and contemporary music to reinforce conversation abilities, comprehension, grammar and vocabulary. Setting aside the traditional textbook format, we’ll engage with real-world situations and dialogue for a unique, fun transition into the next stage of your French journey.

Bringing to life stories of struggle and the ideas of lawmakers, committed rebels and ambitious monarchs and generals, Linda Colley reshapes our understanding of the modern world through the evolution and spread of written constitutions. “An incandescent, paradigm-shifting new book” (Jill Lepore in The New Yorker), Colley's book, The Gun, the Ship, and the Pen: Warfare, Constitutions and the Making of the Modern World (Liveright, released March 30, 2021) traces the global history of written constitutions from the 1750s to the 20th century, modifying accepted narratives and uncovering the close and frequent connections between the making of constitutions and the making of war. Through meticulous research, Colley shows how constitutions crossed continents, at times aiding the rise of empires and monarchies as well as the emergence of new nations and republics. In this virtual presentation on May 20, broadcast live from the Museum, Colley will offer a global perspective on American state and federal constitutions as the Museum prepares for the opening of its summer exhibition, Flags and Founding Documents, 1776-Today, which will include a display of historic early state constitutions. Museum President & CEO Dr. R. Scott Stephenson will join the discussion to explore how the rise and spread of written constitutions evolved in tandem with warfare before facilitating a live Q&A with the virtual audience.

Gather with ICP online for a conversation between ICP’s Managing Director of Programs David Campany, and recent Guggenheim Fellowship recipient Stephen Marc on the release of his newest publication, American/True Colors. From parades, rodeos, festivals and historic sites, in 250 images, Stephen Marc captures “America as it is: multi-colored, multi-cultural, multi-racial, gender rich, and more diverse and urban than ever before in the nation's history.” From 2007 to 2020, spanning the presidencies of Barack Obama and Donald Trump, noted photographer Stephen Marc traveled throughout America in search of its people. He went to parades and protests, memorials and celebrations, rallies and rodeos, amusement parks and festivities, historic sites and city streets to see America as it is: multi-colored, multi-cultural, multi-racial, gender rich, and more diverse and urban than ever before in the nation's history. Behind each of the book's 250 compelling images is a patriotic reminder of America's robustness and promise and ongoing struggles with race and socio-economic issues as it seeks to become, as Abraham Lincoln declared in 1862, "a more perfect union." Stephen Marc's American/True Colors complements other significant photographic surveys of modern America: from Walker Evans, Dorothea Lange, Gordon Parks, Robert Frank, and Henri Cartier-Bresson to Garry Winogrand, Lee Friedlander, Mary Ellen Mark, Eli Reed, Bruce Davidson, Zoe Strauss, Leonard Freed, Vivian Maier, and others. But no photographer has so fully looked at America, from coast to coast, as has Stephen Marc with his unique African-American perspective. American/True Colors is further enriched by a long interview with the artist by Rebecca A. Senf, Norton Family Curator of Photography at the Center for Creative Photography, and by a Jack Kerouac-like introductory essay by writer/critic Bill Kouwenhoven, who concludes: "Stephen Marc's vision leaves me breathless, and his eyes, as represented by his kaleidoscopic images, are vibrant testimony to the love he feels for our contradictory and self-contradicting land, one that too often seems at war with itself over the very shape of these United States."

In honor of Malcolm X’s 96th birthday, author Marlon Peterson joins writer, educator, and daughter of Malcolm X Ilyasah Shabazz to discuss his memoir Bird Uncaged and the influence of the Civil Rights Movement icon on his life and writing. Bird Uncaged chronicles Peterson’s experience coming of age in Crown Heights in the 1980s and surviving incarceration. This contemporary abolitionist memoir uncovers the many cages—from daily violence and the trauma of poverty as well as policing, enforced masculinity, and the brutality of incarceration—created and maintained by American society, and calls for a radical new vision of justice that shifts from punishment to healing. Together, Peterson and Shabazz relate Malcolm X’s activism to demands for transformative justice and prison abolition today, and discuss how his rich legacy can inform current political organizing. Presented in partnership with the Shabazz Center, a memorial and cultural space that facilitates thought exchange around racial equity, justice, and cultural production. This program is free, but please RSVP; a Zoom link will be emailed upon confirmation.

Recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage site, Burgundy’s Climats, or terroirs, are world renowned. Lesser known is that these prestigious wines are also incredibly versatile, beautifully complementing delicate and bold flavors alike. Vanessa Price, co-author of Big Macs & Burgundy, will examine the bolder side of the spectrum during this illuminating evening of surprising and indulgent pairings. Nicole Muscari, wine advisor from Vivant, will present the evening’s selection of six wines, provided in 100 ml tubes, focusing on hidden treasures from south Burgundy. This region, where the Saône river winds through the Côte Chalonnaise and the Maconnais, a lesser-known subregion, welcomes you with unexpected high-quality wines. Home to enticing Pinot Noir and citrusy Chardonnay, southern Burgundy has its own distinct vibe. The evening will be moderated by Yannick Benjamin, co-founder of Wheeling Forward and Head Sommelier of The University Club.

New proposals to increase heart donations after brain death raise complex ethical dilemmas. Join the MS in Bioethics Program at Columbia and Columbia's Center for Clinical Medical Ethics for a discussion of these controversies and how to move forward.

Town & Country magazine and 92Y are proud to present THE WAY FORWARD - THEATER’S EVOLUTION IN MOMENTS OF CHANGE. Curated by The Public Theater, THE WAY FORWARD is a FREE three-part digital series exploring the Past, Present, and Future of theater during moments of social inflection. The series is moderated by Stellene Volandes, Editor in Chief of Town & Country and Editorial Director of Elle Decor. As we return to gathering and enjoying the magic of live performance, THE WAY FORWARD looks to our history to learn about our future. The future belongs to artists. Where Do We Go Now? presents a free forum for the most innovative and incisive artists of this moment to speak about what has shifted in their practice during the 2020 pandemic and what remains the same. With restrictions lifting and the return to live performance, what do the artists — the drivers, doers, and dreamers of the form — want it to become? Join us to discuss theater’s next act.

It’s only a game, or is it? Gather with GBH at our next Stories from the Stage virtual event, Timeout, featuring striking stories about good sportsmanship, exploring the highs and the lows of competition. Gather with our tellers as they share with you their own experiences of the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.

Walter Isaacson, bestselling author of “Leonardo da Vinci,” “Einstein” and “Steve Jobs,” discusses his new book, “The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing and the Future of the Human Race,” with award-winning journalist Katherine Eban. Nobel winner Doudna and her colleagues have ignited a revolution with the gene-editing tool known as CRISPR, which offers great promise, while raising enormous moral questions. This is part of National Book Festival Presents, a year-round series that features high-caliber authors, their books and corresponding Library treasures.

Sail the inland seas and the Southern Ocean with the legendary Dawn Riley, Executive Director of Oakcliff Sailing. Dawn will share stories from her adventurous 40-year sailing career. Her many accomplishments include being the first woman to manage an America’s Cup sailing team as CEO and Captain of America True; racing on four America’s Cup and two Whitbread (now The Ocean Race) teams; and serving as a former President of the Women's Sports Foundation. Dawn has also served on the board of US Sailing, and is an advisor to several public service organizations. Learn how Dawn’s journeys have led her to the helm of the nonprofit organization Oakcliff Sailing, which is building American leadership through sailing. Athletes receive training on inshore, offshore and high-performance sailing. Oakcliff is the training partner for the New York Yacht Club’s America’s Cup team, American Magic, The Ocean Race’s 11th Hour Racing, and is working with US Sailing training the next Olympic champions.

The news out of China was not good: there were signs that a new disease might be big—scary big, like a brushfire coming at you uphill. Authorities, medical and political, saw no reason to worry and little need for tests. Michael Lewis’s new riveting nonfiction thriller, The Premonition: A Pandemic Story, pits a rogue band of visionaries, working under the radar, against the weight and disinterest of officialdom. It is a race against time, and the deadline is now…or yesterday. Michael Lewis is the best-selling author of Liar’s Poker, Moneyball, The Blind Side, The Big Short, and The Undoing Project.

This is a course for any and everyone! Imagination is your creative engine. It reminds us of children playing and Einstein claiming imagination is superior to knowledge. Play is a state of mind. The two together can lead to deep transformations in your performance and individuation process. During this four-week course, the class will focus on cultivating the imagination through play. The exercises and tasks teach artists to enter into creative states where play becomes effortless. These exercises are great for COVID artists at home, who need to keep their creative tools sharp. We are going to utilize play states and the imagination in a variety of ways, allowing artists to find new and unique applications of the work in their own art.

In this six-week virtual course, we will dive into the art of storytelling and personal narratives. Whether you have a solo show dying to be birthed or you want to hone your storytelling skills for professional reasons, this class will help you: harness your creativity, trust your instincts, quiet your inner critic, find your unique voice through acting, improv and writing exercises.

Since its founding in 2010, Chicago-based Manual Cinema has cultivated a distinct approach to performance that merges handmade shadow puppetry, cinematic techniques, and innovative sound and music to create immersive stories for stage and screen. In this live program, go into the studio and behind the scenes as the collective shares select films and performances and invites you to dive into their process—and invites questions and conversation from viewers along the way. Manual Cinema is an Emmy Award-winning performance collective, design studio, and film/video production company founded in 2010 by Drew Dir, Sarah Fornace, Ben Kauffman, Julia Miller, and Kyle Vegter. Using vintage overhead projectors, multiple screens, puppets, actors, live-feed cameras, multi-channel sound design, and a live music ensemble, Manual Cinema transforms the experience of attending the cinema and imbues it with energy, ingenuity, and theatricality. The company was awarded an Emmy Award in 2017 for “The Forger,” a video created for The New York Times, and named Chicago Artists of the Year in 2018 by the Chicago Tribune. Their shadow puppet animations will be featured in the upcoming film remake of Candyman, directed by Nia DaCosta and produced by Jordan Peele’s Monkeypaw Productions.

Signs of spring: flowers, pollinators, and bird songs. If you’ve noticed more avian chatter, movement, and transportation of nesting material, it’s because it’s bird breeding season. Join us to learn about how scientists monitor the health of California songbird populations and get a peek into the Academy’s stunning collection of eggs and nests.

Gather with curator Christopher Maxwell and Cheyney McKnight, founder and director of Not Your Momma's History, as they reflect on the exhibition In Sparkling Company: Glass and the Costs of Social Life in Britain during the 1700s and consider the experiences of 18th-century enslaved ladies’ maids and their role at the dressing table.

Change is the only constant in the roaring 2020s America and Mayor Steven Reed, the first Black mayor of Montgomery, Alabama, is representative of our current times. He was elected on a change agenda by his fellow residents and his vision for a New American South merits a deeper exploration given our new national alignment on equity and competent leadership.

The Navajo Nation, which sprawls across close to eighteen million acres, has been hit hard by the pandemic. Watch as the New Yorker follows the work of local journalists covering the crisis. Spend twenty minutes to learn how one newspaper is covering the crisis in the most under-connected part of the United States.

This course will examine the contested meaning of the Scopes Trial in American culture context with Darwinism, through the trial transcripts, Clarence Darrow's and William Jennings Bryan's aims in order to consider how to interpret its meaning. (Note there will be a one hour lunch break).

Albert C. Barnes is generally famous for his large collection of modern art, with hundreds of works by artists such as Renoir, Picasso, Matisse, and Cézanne. However, it is less known that his foundation was also invested in the study and promotion of music, particularly African American spirituals. Indeed, Dr. Barnes saw these forms—modern art and African American music—as inextricably linked. In the 1920s and 1930s, he would regularly play Paul Robeson records on his Victrola or invite a local choir to sing in his art galleries and his lectures would encourage students to see/hear formal similarities between specific paintings and songs. This talk analyzes how the spirituals made meaning at the Barnes Foundation and the social, cultural, and political implications of these pairings. Alison Boyd is Assistant Professor of Modern and Contemporary Art at Utrecht University in the Netherlands. She studies the intersection of multiple modernities in American and European art with a focus on the arts of the African diaspora and the politics of museum display. She is working on a book project, Modernism for America: African and African American Art and Primitivism at the Barnes Foundation, 1917–1951, which investigates the racial underpinnings of modern art’s reception in the United States. She completed her PhD in art history and as a Mellon Fellow in Gender and Sexuality Studies at Northwestern University.

As the nation reckons with long-standing issues of race and inequality, some of America’s most powerful philanthropic organizations are shifting their missions to focus on social justice. Elizabeth Alexander, president of The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, joins Washington Post Live to discuss a new multi-million dollar investment as part of the strategic transformation of the arts and humanities foundation. Alexander will also share her overall vision for harnessing philanthropy for social justice in conversation with Washington Post opinions writer Jonathan Capehart.

Venture beyond the studio with DC artist Marcella Kriebel. Register now for this engaging Zoom workshop and learn the basics of watercolor and illustration techniques, then try your hand at making your own masterpiece. Kriebel is known for her culinary watercolor paintings and murals throughout DC, which include collaborations with Call Your Mother Deli, POW! WOW! DC, and José Andrés’s food relief non-profit, World Central Kitchen. Please note that space is limited for this program. Tickets include the cost of materials needed for the activity, instructions, and postage. Participants must register by 7 p.m. ET on May 2. Materials kit includes: Watercolor set with brushes; Watercolor tips and techniques worksheet; Watercolor paper; Pencil.

The Mediterranean soft golden beaches and sunny climate attract travels from around the globe. A total of 21 countries span the Mediterranean coastlines; among those countries France, Italy, Spain and Israel, all celebrate the variety of fresh fish and seafood the Mediterranean offers. Celebrate the start of summer with these seasonal dishes from the French Mediterranean coastline. This class menu includes: Salade d’Aubergines—Roasted Eggplant Salad with Tomatoes, Capers & Herbs; Bouillabaisse—Seafood Stew with Saffron; and Clafoutis—Cherry Clafoutis.

Featuring Folger Shakespeare Library Director Dr. Michael Witmore, Insight Partners Co-Founder Jerry Murdock, and Utah Shakespeare Festival Artistic Director Brian Vaughn, in conversation with Movers and Shakespeares Vice President and longtime Aspen Institute Moderator Ken Adelman. The panel will discuss the Folger Shakespeare Library collection and scholarship work, as well as Murdock’s interpretation and production of Hamlet, which was directed by Vaughn. How do the politics of Shakespeare’s time inform this interpretation of Hamlet? Why did Ophelia’s role need to be reexamined?

There has never been a night like BIG NIGHT (At the Museum). Troubled times often bring out the best in us all, and these times have called for the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum to remove some of its most treasured instruments from their cases, and place them in the hands of modern masters for an unprecedented night of music. In this on-demand opportunity, you can enjoy the live broadcast from the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville where some of country's greatest current stars were able to play on the Museum's historic instruments, for one night only.

Granted, it is hard to beat a bowl of strawberries and cream. But these little red flavor bombs are much more versatile than just that. Come to 18 Reasons as we take strawberries for a savory turn! First, we will lightly pickle slices of berries, and use them to brighten an appetizer of seared scallops, pea shoots, and puffed wild rice. Then we will use a host of strawberries to make a perfect bed for some balsamic glazed quail skewers by dicing the strawberries into a delicate, fruity risotto. And – not covered in the class - you can, of course, finish off your meal with those classic berries and cream for dessert…The menu for this class includes: Pickled Strawberry, Puffed Wild Rice, Pea Shoot, and Seared Scallop Salad and Strawberry Risotto with Balsamic Glazed Quail.

In this week's edition of Lunch Break Science, join Leakey Foundation grantee Ainash Childebayeva to learn about interactions between our genes and the environment. Childebayeva is a PhD candidate in Biological Anthropology and Toxicology at the University of Michigan. Her research is on the epigenomic signatures of adaptation to high-altitude hypoxia in the Peruvian Andes. Her research interests include human evolutionary genetics, human epigenetics, gene x environment interactions, and aDNA.

Dr. Ralph Moss details the origin of cancer immunotherapy and how it disappeared for almost 100 years. Recently, it has been rediscovered and has become one of the most widely used cancer treatments. Inducing fever with compounds of killed viruses, immunotherapy triggers the human immune system to identify and destroy cancer cells. Immunotherapy generally provides a higher quality of life during treatment, while being less harmful than most conventional cancer treatments available today. Ralph Moss, Ph.D., has been writing about alternative and complementary cancer treatments since the 1970s. At the National Institutes of Health, he co-founded what became the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. He has produced 4 films, 12 books, a podcast, and 38 diagnosis-based "Moss Reports" for cancer.

Join Hall of Fame Senior Curator Tom Shieber to explore the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum's latest book, “Picturing America’s Pastime: Historic Photography from the Baseball Hall of Fame Archives.” Shieber will explore how the book celebrates baseball through a unique selection of photographs from the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum’s unmatched archive of baseball photos. Drawing on the Hall of Fame’s archive of more than 300,000 unique images, the Museum’s curatorial team highlights baseball history in this curated collection of rarely seen photos. The photographs reveal the rich relationship between the camera and the game. Thanks to the support from The Ford Motor Company, this program is free of charge but registration is required.

Get your plan for late spring and summer reading together! Join author Stephanie Rabinowitz for an exciting exploration of relatively unsung American literary gems that you should be reading. From Willa Cather’s Death Comes for the Archbishop to John Williams’s Stoner, Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye, Henry James’s What Maisie Knew, and Wallace Stegner’s Angle of Repose, Rabinowitz will focus on the rare and masterful ability of these authors to create narrators with wholly original points of view. The revolutionary techniques of these writers allowed them to achieve the impossible: offering the reader that nearly out-of-body experience of empathizing with fictional characters.

In this program, professor Yurika Wakamatsu will examine Lotus in Autumn (1872), an exceptionally large and immersive ink painting by Okuhara Seiko (1837–1913). The work takes the viewer on a journey from an intricate web of tangled lines and inky blotches to a lotus pond bathed in moonlight. Rising from the depths of muddy pools, lotuses have long been cherished for their unsullied pink blossoms crowning slender green stems at the height of summer. But in Seiko’s painting, leaves unfurl into broad, broken parasols, and seed pods hang from dry, bent stalks. Why did Seiko choose to depict withered lotuses? And why did she render these decaying plants vibrant? Wakamatsu’s exploration reveals how Lotus in Autumn twists conventional pictorial and literary tropes to invite the viewer to appreciate the unconventional. Professor Wakamatsu’s presentation will be followed by a response from professor Victoria Weston, a specialist in neo-traditional Japanese painting, and a moderated conversation with professor Melissa McCormick.

On November 22, 1963, Abraham Zapruder left his office hoping for a glimpse of President John F. Kennedy’s motorcade as it passed by Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas. He ended up taking the most famous “home movie” in American history. Zapruder’s footage depicting the JFK assassination is now iconic, forever embedded in American culture and identity. In this installment of “Conversations at the Newberry,” Abraham Zapruder’s granddaughter Alexander Zapruder will be joined by Jacqueline Stewart, a professor at the University of Chicago and the host of the Turner Classic Movies program “Silent Sunday Nights.” Together, the two will explore the connections between home movies, family history, and difficult memories, as well as the emergence of citizen journalism in the United States.

Jonathan Taplin’s extraordinary journey has put him at the crest of every major cultural wave in the past half century: he was tour manager for Bob Dylan and the Band in the ’60s, producer of major films in the ’70s, an executive at Merrill Lynch in the ’80s, creator of the Internet’s first video-on-demand service in the ’90s, and a cultural critic and author writing about technology in the new millennium. His is a lifetime marked not only by good timing but by impeccable instincts — from the folk scene to Woodstock, Hollywood’s rebellious film movement, and beyond. Taplin is not just a witness but a lifelong producer, the right-hand man to some of the greatest talents of both pop culture and the underground. With cameos by Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Martin Scorsese, and countless other icons, The Magic Years (Heyday) is both a rock memoir and a work of cultural criticism from a key player who watched a nation turn from idealism to nihilism. Taplin offers a clear-eyed roadmap of how we got here and makes a convincing case for art’s power to deliver us from “passionless detachment” and rekindle our humanism. Taplin will be joined in conversation by Robbie Robertson, guitarist and principal songwriter in The Band.

Jia Lynn Yang, the New York Times national editor surveys the 40 years between 1924 and 1965 and the battle to "codify the idea that a person could become wholly American, no matter where she had been born." America wasn't always a nation of immigrants. Though the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act opened doors to people from all over the world, just 40 years earlier, the 1924 Immigration Act had banned people from nearly all of Asia from coming here, and choked levels of immigration from everywhere else, particularly southern and eastern Europe. In the intervening 40 years, a long and concerted attempt to abolish the law was made by a fascinating cast of lawmakers, activists, and presidents. Jia Lynn Yang charts this struggle in One Mighty and Irresistible Tide, and demonstrates how the 1965 law was one of the most transformative in the country's history. But it also had impacts no one imagined, including laying the groundwork for much of the viciousness that reigns over immigration arguments today. Jia Lynn Yang speaks about the paradoxes and the promises of the American idea of itself as a nation of immigrants.

For centuries, science has been trying to prove that men's and women's brains are different. In her myth-smashing book, The Gendered Brain, Professor Gina Rippon dismantles this idea. Unpacking the dubious historical science, like 18th century experiments that saw empty skulls measured with bird seed, Rippon shows how early research fueled the persistent myth that female biology is inferior. She presents cutting edge neuroscience to detail how our brains are highly plastic, individualised, adaptable and full of potential. What if our behaviour is linked not to gender, but to life itself, to all we do and experience? Hosted by award-winning science journalist Natasha Mitchell. Recorded live from the Sydney Opera House in 2020.

For two decades, Victoire de Castellane has breathed life into fantastical jewels as creative director of Dior Joaillerie. Her extraordinary baubles artfully and extravagantly reference pop culture, the legacy of Dior, the natural world, and much more. To celebrate her 20th anniversary in this position, Rizzoli has published the luxurious volume Dior Joaillerie: The Dictionary of Victoire de Castellane. In conversation with Olivier Gabet, director of the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, de Castellane will share her approach to jewelry and describe where she finds inspiration, from her first collections, to the acclaimed Bal de Roses pieces, to the Gem Dior collection launched in 2019 in Venice.

Jack Reed has served Rhode Island in the U.S. Senate since 1996. Senator Reed is a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy and resigned from active duty in 1979 as a Captain before continuing to serve in the U.S. Army Reserves until 1991, leaving with the rank of Major. Upon graduation from Harvard Law School, Sen. Reed became an attorney in private practice where he specialized in banking and securities law. He serves as the Chairman of the Armed Services Committee and as a member of the Committees on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs; Appropriations; and Intelligence. Kevin Hassett is a Distinguished Visiting Fellow at the Hoover Institution. Hassett recently served as the Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers since 2017. In addition to his White House service, Hassett served as a senior economist at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. He has also been a consultant to the U.S. Treasury Department, and an advisor to various presidential campaigns.

Join fellow art enthusiasts online in a participatory conversation focused on a single masterpiece. Frick educators lead these thoughtful and sustained dialogues in real time. Space is limited and active participation is strongly encouraged. Sessions are live and not recorded; videos of other past programs are available on the Frick's YouTube channel. Instructions for joining through Zoom will be provided in an email to registered participants 1–2 days in advance. A reminder email with a link to a high-resolution image of the work of art will be sent a few hours before the program begins.

Daniel Barbarisi’s Chasing the Thrill (Knopf) is a full-throttle, first-person account of the treasure hunt created by eccentric millionaire art dealer — and, some would say, robber baron — Forrest Fenn that became the stuff of contemporary legend. When Fenn was given a fatal cancer diagnosis, he came up with a bold plan: He would hide a chest full of jewels and gold in the wilderness, and publish a poem that would serve as a map leading to the treasure's secret location. But he didn't die, and after hiding the treasure in 2010, Fenn instead presided over a decade-long gold rush that saw many thousands of treasure hunters scrambling across the Rocky Mountains in pursuit of his fortune. Barbarisi first learned of Fenn's hunt in 2017, when a friend became consumed with decoding the poem and convinced Barbarisi, a reporter, to document his search. What began as an attempt to capture the inner workings of Fenn's hunt quickly turned into a personal quest that led Barbarisi down a reckless and potentially dangerous path, one that found him embroiled in searcher conspiracies and matching wits with Fenn himself. Over the course of four chaotic years, several searchers would die, endless controversies would erupt, and one hunter would ultimately find the chest. But the mystery didn't end there. Full of intrigue, danger, and breakneck action, Chasing the Thrill is a riveting tale of desire, obsession, and unbridled adventure. Barbarisi will be joined in conversation by Jason Gay, The Wall Street Journal’s sports columnist.

Atlantic staff writer Ed Yong has spoken with more than 100 experts since the early stages of the pandemic. “I’ve learned that almost everything that went wrong with America’s response to the pandemic was predictable and preventable,” Yong writes. “The COVID‐19 debacle has also touched—and implicated—nearly every other facet of American society: its shortsighted leadership, its disregard for expertise, its racial inequities, its social-media culture, and its fealty to a dangerous strain of individualism.” In August, Yong sat down with The Atlantic’s editor in chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, for a conversation about how the U.S. botched its response to the pandemic, and how we can prevent future health crises. This is an important conversation with a writer who has contributed greatly to our collective understanding of COVID-19 and its repercussions.

Should secondhand be our first choice? Join Paola Antonelli, Senior Curator, and Anna Burckhardt, Curatorial Assistant, Department of Architecture and Design at Museum of Modern Art, for a conversation about sustainability, life cycles, and the clothing we wear. The discussion, structured as an “ask me anything” session focusing on some of the important themes explored in the Broken Nature podcast and exhibition, gives attendees the opportunity to ask questions and have them answered live. This event is hosted in conjunction with Fashion as Design, one of MoMA’s 10 free online courses on Coursera. It is free, open to all, and takes place over Zoom. Registration is required.

Innovation and entrepreneurism appear inextricably woven into the American DNA. Throughout American history, the great inventors and innovators gazed into the future and saw the products and services that would transform the world. As of 2018, the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office had granted its 10 millionth patent. In Brainstorms and Mindfarts, author Jim Downey presents a collection of the brightest and most innovative American inventions along with the frivolous and utterly useless ones lost to history.

Gather with us for a virtual discussion, live-streamed direct from Berlin, Germany, with Heino Falcke, the German astrophysicist, about his research into the nature of black holes. His new book A Light in the Darkness is the story of how the first photographic evidence of black holes was achieved by Falcke in April 2019, and what its significance for humanity might be. Falcke wrestles with the ways in which black holes force us to confront the boundary where human life ends and the celestial begins. He also ponders why black holes are so difficult for most of us to understand, comparing that to our inability to envisage our own inevitable death. Black holes develop when a massive star dies, and its matter is condensed. That extreme amount of mass contained in a small space generates a gigantic amount of gravitational force, allowing the black hole to suck up everything that comes near, including light. These astronomical wonders are the subject of intense scientific and philosophical theorizing—the journey to a black hole might even be a journey to the end of time itself. Which is why Falcke regards black holes as exquisite representations of fear, death—and, surprisingly, the divine. Empirical and profound, Falcke examines both the physical nature and the spiritual meaning of black holes, which he calls “the epitome of merciless destruction.”

Gather with lighting designer Jane Cox, senior lecturer and director of the program in theater at the Lewis Center for the Arts, and playwright Branden K. Jacobs-Jenkins, visiting lecturer at the Lewis Center for the Arts and the Princeton Atelier, MacArthur Fellow, and Obie Award Winner, as they bring reflections from their seminar “Darkness and Light: Writing, Lighting, Blackness, and Whiteness” to a consideration of works from the Museum’s collections. Introduced by Veronica White, curator of academic programs.

As the Bay Area prepares for climate change and the impacts of sea level rise, the development planned for Treasure Island—incorporating innovative strategies for urban agriculture, sustainability, sea level rise, and environmental stewardship—is one forward-looking project. Gather with us in exploring the participation of artists in developing climate adaptation solutions. We'll present the objectives of the Treasure Island Art Program, give a view of the landscape architecture plan for Treasure Island, and introduce a series of conversations about the role artists who work with long-term ecologies could play in considering landscapes in transition and climate adaptation. These discussions help lay the groundwork for future potential commissions for environmental art projects through the Treasure Island Art.

Do you remember our Cafe’Conversation event ? A screen shouldn’t keep us from chatting and sharing a coffee together! Every month, we invite you to talk on a different theme. Everybody will be able to debate and speak about it.

Investments in achieving gender equity have significant and well-established impacts on a range of vital social and economic indicators. Where scholars and practitioners meaningfully disagree is the question of how best to increase women’s power and influence: Which strategic levers of change are most effective? Does the optimal way forward lie in addressing social and cultural barriers to women’s opportunity? Increasing financial and economic influence? Political representation, grassroots organizing, and public policy changes? Or elsewhere? Our expert panelists will grapple with this question, each offering her own perspective informed by deep expertise and unique experience. The discussion will be moderated by the distinguished American historian and Arthur Kingsley Porter University Professor at Harvard University Drew Gilpin Faust, who was founding dean of the Radcliffe Institute and the first woman to serve as president of Harvard. Following the panel discussion, Melinda Gates will engage in a wide-ranging keynote conversation with the investor and philanthropist David Rubenstein.

Crowned the ‘Egg Master of Sydney’ and ‘creator of avocado toast’, Bill Granger is renowned as the restauranteur who brought laid-back Australian cafe culture to the world, and is beloved by family cooks and culinary sophisticates alike. The empire that is ‘bills’ began with the original Darlinghurst street-corner cafe 26 years ago and is credited as the first place anywhere to put the now-iconic breakfast of avocado toast on the menu. Since then, from Sydney to Tokyo, London to Seoul, people around the world have queued for a taste of his absurdly fluffy ricotta hotcakes and creamy scrambled eggs, and fallen in love with this sunny, relaxed, and very Australian way of eating. Ahead of his new book release, Australian Food, Bill Granger talks with food writer Adam Liaw to celebrate the global phenomenon of Australian cafe culture, the evolution of a national cuisine and the uniqueness of Australian food. Recorded live in July, 2020 from the Sydney Opera House.

Gather with Leakey Foundation grantees Andrea Baden and Stacey Tecot on this special Earth Day episode of Lunch Break Science and learn about lemur behavior and ecology.

Students in this course are assigned classic readings to discuss and respond to, in both their own writing and picture-making. Readings include works by Robert Adams, Susan Sontag, Teju Cole, David Campany, Janet Malcolm, and others. We dive into the conceptual, and then apply what we learn to compositional and atmospheric elements in the work of contemporary photographers through class discussion. This course is open to all skill levels.

Where can we start with Art? From cave paintings to the work being created right now, this speed-date with a complex discipline will whet your appetite for the art that is all around us. We'll discuss artists traditional and radical roles around the world, connecting style, structure, and meaning in new ways. Week 1: Thinking globally, looking locally; Week 2: Why is it called The Canon?; Week 3: How we discuss race, class, and gender — and how we don't; Week 4: Modernism; Week 5: Contemporary Art; Week 6: A few of our favorite things: Highlights of your art history.

Take a fresh look at New York City through the eyes of some of America’s greatest artists who were endlessly inspired by the city. Their exuberant depictions of the people and places collectively tell the visual story of New York’s rise to a global powerhouse, while also sharing intimate details of daily life. In this highly interactive, image-rich class, we will dive into works of art so you see the city in fresh ways. We will look at urban realists who described the explosion of the new urban scene; women whose salons and museums established New York as a center for modern art; Harlem Renaissance artists who gave voice to the African American experience; social realists who unveiled the challenges and joys of the Depression; and mid-century modernists who altered how we see daily life.

Broadway and Off-Broadway have numbered among New York City’s many heartbeats for years. From the time of its origins, the death of theatre has been foretold, yet the theatre always survives—through recessions, world wars, 9/11—and it will surely survive the present pandemic as well. In the meantime, in this online course, view (on your own) specially selected recorded theatrical performances that feature the best and most-accomplished theatre artists working today. During each Zoom class session, combinations of lectures and lively discussions illuminate and deepen what you have just seen. On several occasions, there will be guest participants, all working professionals culled from every aspect of the theatre world. (Note: Tuition does not include the cost of attending online performances (not all performances charge an attendance fee).

If you want to write fiction but need to develop basic skills, take this course to examine the fundamentals of fiction, including story structure, character, plot, dialogue, description, point of view, style, and voice. Writing assignments help you to mine your life experiences for fiction pieces. Your work and the publications of established authors are read and analyzed in class. In addition, you are encouraged to develop your powers of observation and to hone your fiction-writing skills by writing sketches and viewing the process as a daily activity.

This course emphasizes the development of observational drawing skills and hand-eye coordination. The learning sequence progresses from simple forms and skill levels toward more complex constructions and compositions. Basic drawing elements such as line, proportion, perspective, composition, texture, and the study of light and shade are investigated through various perceptual and conceptual approaches. Open to beginning students as well as those who want to refresh their skills before moving on to more advanced studio courses.

An Adventures in Ideas Webinar featuring Geoffrey Sayre-McCord. This webinar is a virtual event and runs from 9:30 am to 2:30 pm ET Saturday, June 5. Topics include: Why Be a Just Person? The Challenge; What Does It Take to Be a Just Person?; On the Value of Being a Just Person. Tuition is $40, which includes “admission” to the webinar in real time (with live Q&A) plus access to the recorded version for up to 2 weeks.

When you were a kid, you were probably obsessed with the hero of a book. You loved that book because it was hilarious, or thrilling, or made you feel as though you weren’t a weirdo living on the wrong planet. Maybe it taught you things you didn’t realize were possible. Maybe it even helped you survive. In this class, we will focus on learning the essentials of writing for children: memorable characters, unique voice, strong plot, deep emotion, and a big idea. This is a fast-paced class in which we will wrap our heads around some general childrens writing rules, learn from mentor texts, write from prompts as needed, then workshop a draft of an 500-1,500 word picture book, early reader, or one chapter of a middle-grade novel. The final class will explain how to find the best agent for you and detailed instruction on how to write a query letter that will sell your story as an absolutely irresistible read! All manuscripts and query letters will receive detailed feedback (even if you do not submit work during class, you have a credit for promised comments until the end of time, barring any environmental disasters, acts of supreme beings, meteor strikes, bed bugs, you get the idea). This workshop is best for beginners/intermediate writers, or artists who want to add text to their illustrations. Handouts will be given each week so you don’t need to go crazy with note-taking. Short make-up sessions will be offered when possible if you are unable to attend each class. Workshops will NOT be recorded. Talking story is my happy place and this workshop will be fast-paced and full of passion! I give each student customized instruction, market advice, and endless nagging…er…encouragement! In the words of a current student: “I’m having a blast!”

In this workshop you will explore ways of creating stories through interactive improv games. Working with Christian Roman (Story Artist for film and television), and Rebecca Stockley (Professional Improviser), the ensemble will be introduced to two perspectives on developing stories: Film and Improvisation. Engaging in a variety of activities, the group will work together to tell new stories collaboratively, enhance story building skills, and take-home activities for co-creating stories.

In the 1850s, trade between France and Japan resumed for the first time in nearly 250 years. The resulting impact of Japanese art and design on French visual culture—impressionist painting in particular—was extraordinary. Investigate how Monet, Degas, Whistler, Van Gogh, and others incorporated a Japanese aesthetic into their practices. Each week, the main lecture is followed by a 30-minute discussion session that allows students the opportunity to ask questions and exchange ideas with the instructor and classmates.

F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway are two of the greatest giants of 20th-century American literature: their novels continue to captivate readers worldwide today. Less known is how their personal literary connection and friendship reveal key elements of their work and help us understand the themes of some of their most compelling writing. In this brand new course, Bard College Professor of Comparative Literature Joseph Luzzi will take us inside one of the most consequential friendships – and rivalries – in all of American literature, as we explore the drama, emotions, and events connecting the legendary authors of works like F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby and Tender is the Night and Ernest Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises and A Moveable Feast. We will also draw on the correspondence between the two authors and the words of other cultural figures as we reconstruct one of the most celebrated and complex relations in all of modern American literature. Meets every Monday in June.

This course focuses on well-known 19th-century photographers, looking closely at their innovations and delving into early debates about the purpose and potential of this new medium. Was photography supposed to produce documents or art? Was it a passive record or highly subjective view of the world? Was it a technology to produce evidence or a radical new form of entertainment and political propaganda? Did photographic portraits capture the inner essence of its sitters or reveal the limitations of outward appearances? And finally, was photography a democratic invention, or did it reinforce class privilege and power? Discover how these fundamental questions about photography anticipated the complexities of our own image-saturated world. Each week, the main lecture is followed by a 30-minute discussion session that allows students the opportunity to ask questions and exchange ideas with the instructor and classmates.

Taking and sharing photographs has become second nature to many. Yet, despite the ever-present nature of photos in today’s culture, contemporary artists who use the medium continue to find new ground to explore. Recognizing our society’s near-constant engagement with images, this course will invite you to investigate the meaning of pictures and consider photography’s role in visual culture. Through close-looking and discussion this four-part class led by educator Sharon Vatsky aims to address the gap between just looking at and truly understanding photographs by introducing a diverse range of ideas and approaches that inform their making. Artists featured will include Dawoud Bey, Gregory Crewdson, Catherine Opie, and Carrie Mae Weems, among many others. All course sessions will be led virtually through Zoom, a free video conferencing software. Participants should have access to a computer, smart phone, or tablet with a microphone and internet access. A Zoom link and password will be emailed ahead of the course. Syllabus for the four sessions: June 8: People; June 15: Places; June 22: Things; June 29: People in Places.

Discuss major new work by today’s top American writers, including emerging novelists, award-winners, and established favorites, all of whom are central to today's cultural conversation We will investigate a variety of inventive narrative strategies, explore the psychology of numerous fascinating characters, and examine important topics within a context of changing times, changing lives, and a changing world. Summer 2021 Readings: Anne Tyler, Redhead on the Side of the Road; Ayad Akhtar, Homeland Elegies; Garth Greenwell, Cleanness; Emma Donoghue, The Pull of the Stars; Kiley Reid, Such a Fun Age; Amity Gaige, Sea Wife; Colum McCann, Apeirogon; Yaa Gyasi, Transcendent Kingdom. Students should read Redhead by the Side of the Road for the first class.

Gather with The Studio Resident Artist William Gudenrath and brush up on your glassworking skills! Gudenrath will demonstrate techniques in the hot shop, then show you how you can practice those skills at home. Watch and join the online commentary for the opportunity to have your questions answered live! William (Bill) Gudenrath is recognized internationally as one of the foremost authorities on glassmaking techniques of the ancient world through the 18th century.

Rediscover the timeless archetypes of the Cowboy and the Equestrian through the lens of the African diaspora and contemporary art. From the Wild West to the streets of Philadelphia, this iconic figure can be found throughout history and modern visual culture. Looking at the work of artists Phil Sumpter, Kehinde Wiley, and Mohamed Bourouissa, this class explores lost legends and reimagined myths of the Black Rider. Each week, the main lecture is followed by a 30-minute discussion session that allows students the opportunity to ask questions and exchange ideas with the instructor and classmates.

Gather with us as architect Sekou Cooke talks about his new book, Hip Hop Architecture. As architecture grapples with its own racist legacy, Hip-Hop Architecture outlines a powerful new manifesto-the voice of the underrepresented, marginalized, and voiceless within the discipline. Exploring the production of spaces, buildings, and urban environments that embody the creative energies in hip-hop, it is a newly expanding design philosophy which sees architecture as a distinct part of hip-hop's cultural expression, and which uses hip-hop as a lens through which to provoke new architectural ideas. Examining the present and the future of Hip-Hop Architecture, the book also explores its historical antecedents and its theory, placing it in a wider context both within architecture and within Black and African American movements. Throughout, the work is illustrated with inspirational case studies of architectural projects and creative practices, and interspersed with interludes and interviews with key architects, designers, and academics in the field. This is a vital and provocative work that will appeal to architects, designers, students, theorists, and anyone interested in a fresh view of architecture, design, race, and culture.

Global pizza authority Anthony Falco, who developed the legendary pizza at Brooklyn Michelin-starred hotspot Roberta’s and is now the world’s go-to pizza consultant, joins us to teach you the how to make the homemade pizza of your dreams. Falco demonstrates the complete process involved in making the Sicilian pie clamored for at NYC’s acclaimed Upside and featured in his new book Pizza Czar. From the buttery hand-mixed dough that yields a light and airy but substantial crust to the recipe for his favorite homemade sauce to how to choose the best mozzarella to the techniques that make the difference between great pizza and outrageous pizza, Anthony brings passion and experience to this hands-on tutorial, sharing expert secrets so you can achieve pizza nirvana at home.

Gather with us for our free online speaker series Facing Change. Every other month, the Barnes brings together artists, scholars, and community activists virtually for a multicultural and intergenerational conversation about race in America. Today’s conversation focuses on cultural appropriation—the use of objects or elements of a culture or identity by members of a different culture or identity. This practice can be controversial when members of a dominant culture appropriate from disadvantaged groups. The panel features writer Quentin Williams, artist Colette Fu, and musician Alex Shaw, with producer Loraine Ballard Morrill as moderator. During the program, you’ll be encouraged to use the chat function to submit your own questions.

Charles Dickens’s challenging novel Little Dorrit explores poverty and privilege, fact and fiction, history and memory, the human capacity for fiction, and the experience of confinement. In this seminar, we will read and discuss the novel in manageable weekly installments (with no spoilers), following its characters and themes through the streets of London and the cities of Europe. Sessions will be supplemented with slides and audio clips. Instructor Steven J. Venturino, PhD, is the author of The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Literary Theory and Criticism. He has led seminars at the Newberry and taught at Loyola University Chicago.

This course will examine Boccaccio’s late-medieval masterpiece, a series of 100 tales told within the frame story of a group of 10 young people who take refuge in a country home, after fleeing plague-ridden Florence. The relevance in this unique historical moment is clear, and the stories provide an overview of the author’s sentiments on morality, human resilience, and society.

Learn how to make spring’s ultimate sweet treat, a jammy and luscious strawberry-rhubarb pie, with James Beard Award finalist and author of Art of the Pie and Pie Camp Kate McDermott. A pie-maker so revered she is known as The Pie Lady, Kate shares her secrets and techniques, demystifying the making of this pie’s beautiful lattice top crust, and showing you how to prepare the sweet-tart filling that can be made successfully with either fresh or frozen fruit. Kate is not only a master baker, but a warm and supportive instructor, and this interactive class includes plenty of time for questions. Join Kate and learn how to make this gorgeous spring pie! The class will take place on Thursday, June 17 from 6:30-8 pm ET. This program will be recorded and available for later viewing by those who register.

Join T's book club, which focuses on classic works of American literature, for a conversation on Ralph Ellison's 1952 novel led by the writer Adam Bradley. In the fifth title selected for T Magazine's book club, Ralph Ellison's “Invisible Man,” an unnamed narrator, a Black American who grew up in the South and is now residing in an underground hideout in 1940s New York City, tells the story of his life. Time and again, he has been forced to live according to cruel and impossible terms as determined by white society and, as a result, has seen his hopes dashed and his humanity dismissed — “I am,” he proclaims, “invisible because people refuse to see me” — even as he moves toward a greater understanding of self. On June 17, watch a virtual discussion about the book, featuring the writer, scholar and T writer at large Adam Bradley in conversation with T deputy digital editor Kate Guadagnino, that will address questions from readers. And, in the weeks leading up to the event, look for articles on “Invisible Man” at tmagazine.com. We hope you'll read along and join us!

From the late-19th to the mid-20th century, a thriving Yiddish theater culture flourished on Manhattan’s Lower East Side, entertaining over 1.5 million first- and second-generation Eastern-European Jewish immigrants. By 1918, there were 20 Yiddish language theaters in New York, some hosting as many as 2,500 people each evening. Yiddish theater was the great cultural passion of the immigrant Jewish community in the U.S., helping bridge the shtetl and America with plays that mirrored their hopes, dreams, and sorrows. Second Avenue became the “Yiddish Broadway,” where audiences of newly minted New Yorkers celebrated and learned about their adopted culture through cutting-edge dramas, musical comedies, and political theater. Director Harold Clurman noted that “even more than the synagogue or the lodge, Yiddish theater became the meeting place and the forum of the Jewish community in America between 1888 and the early 1920s.” We will explore the rich legacy of Yiddish stage stars and get acquainted with such towering figures as Boris and Bessie Thomashevsky, Abraham Goldfaden, Zero Mostel, and Jacob Adler, among many others. At the conclusion of this course, we will meet in the East Village to see some of the edifice ghosts of Yiddish theater’s glory days. No prior experience necessary.

This discussion/lecture course will focus on the whole history of Chicago, from its origins to the present, emphasizing the major events, politics, and peoples that make up one of the most culturally diverse cities in the world.

Ralph Ellison writes with a vital, incisive, discerning motile voice, and his protagonist, the young unnamed narrator, IS such qualities – in his person, his thoughts, his interactions, his utterances.

Artist and Studio instructor Janet Dalecki will teach you the basics of making murrini by kiln fusing sheet glass. Cutting and reassembling the murrini will open the doors of pattern-making possibilities! Fused pieces will be slumped into three dimensional molds to complete the process. Watch and gather with the online commentary for the opportunity to have your questions answered live!

What makes a building a monument? Some of the buildings that hold the most meaning for us, including Independence Hall, were not built to be monuments. What monumentalized them? And some of the most ambitious programs to build monuments, like Philadelphia’s City Hall, notably failed to capture contemporary attention. What went wrong? History offers important lessons for us today, as we strive to create monuments that reflect our values and aspirations. David Brownlee, Ph.D., Frances Shapiro-Weitzenhoffer Professor Emeritus, Penn History of Art, is a historian of modern architecture whose interests embrace a wide range of subjects in Europe and America, from the late 18th century to the present. Dr. Brownlee has won numerous fellowships, and his work has earned three major publication prizes from the Society of Architectural Historians. He is also a recipient of Penn's Lindback Award for Distinguished Teaching. His film Philadelphia: Our Nation's First World Heritage City, produced and directed by Sam Katz, was made in 2016 to explain Philadelphia's new designation, for which he had worked. And in 2019 he worked with the Pennsylvania Chapter of the American Institute of Architects to create a short film about the PSFS Building, winner of the "Fifty Year Timeless Award" from the AIA.

Join Emmy Award-winning filmmaker Ric Burns for a special glimpse into his upcoming three-part PBS documentary Dante, chronicling the life of 14th century Florentine poet Dante Alighieri and the legacy of his epic poem the Divine Comedy. Burns discusses the perspective he and his colleagues, including the film’s co- writer, Italian scholar, Riccardo Bruscagli, bring to an examination of one of the greatest literary masterpieces in history, the complex story of its creation, and the inner world of its creator. He talks about the research, the interviews they conducted, and the surprising things they learned along the way. Timed with the 700th anniversary of Dante’s death, the film adds a new dimension to Burns’ body of work, which includes acclaimed documentaries on modern American figures Oliver Sacks, Eugene O’Neill, Ansel Adams, and more. Burns talks about the unique challenges of building a documentary on a giant of the late medieval period. And he reflects on the mystery, power and continued resonance of an extraordinary masterwork, 700 years after the death of its creator.

A member of one of Bordeaux’s legendary winemaking families, Pierre Lurton shares his extensive knowledge of the region as well as a selection of cuvées from Château Marjosse. Lurton has owned and cultivated Château Marjosse since 1991, and he’ll lead a tasting of selections from his Anthology Wine Collection. Started in 2017 with then newly hired winemaker Jean-Marc Domme, the Anthology wines are micro-vinifications of small-batch cuvées made from grapes on the property’s most notable parcels. Each cuvée in the collection embodies its owner’s poetic spirit and is named for one of the birds that inhabits the property. Susan Kostrzewa, Editor-in-Chief of Wine Enthusiast, will moderate.

Join food historian Francine Segan and accomplished race car driver and sportscar historian Frank Celeza for a thrilling ride through Italy’s “Motor Valley.” Birthplace of Enzo Ferrari and home to the world’s highest concentration of sportscar brands including Dallara, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati, Pagani and Ducati, Italy’s Emilia-Romagna is as well known for its fast cars as it is for its slow-cooked food. Discover the area’s wealth of attractions, including 11 car museums; four-day Motor Valley Fest; and many of world’s most famed Italian foods such as — Parmigiano-Reggiano, Prosciutto di Parma, Aceto Balsamico, tortellini, Lambrusco wine and more. Participants will obtain a greater understanding of Italian culture and food traditions as well as the country’s important role in the world of car manufacturing and racing.

This course, based on Mick LaSalle’s new book of the same name, isn’t a history of the film business in California, but rather about the California ideal as depicted in movies, and about California ideas that, through movies, have made their way into the culture. The California ideal is one of material splendor, glamour, youth, and youthfulness, and it can create, within viewers, a sense of longing so intense that it can feel spiritual. Yet there is a dark side—spiritual emptiness and isolation, heinous crime, natural disaster, and nihilistic cruelty as depicted in film noir. Over ten weeks, this course will explore California notions of fame (A Star Is Born), utopia (Monterey Pop), crime (Psycho), natural disaster (San Andreas), the glorious past (San Francisco), and romance (Cherish). It will show how The Wizard of Oz is the ultimate film about the film business, and how and why California has been the dominant cultural trendsetter for the past 100 years. Students will come away with a rich understanding of the meaning of California, both in movies and in American life. Students will be expected to watch a full-length film outside of class time each week. All films can be rented or streamed instantly through online platforms.

Explore the contemporary Irish short story through the fiction of some of Ireland’s best writers, including Colm Toibin, Edna O’Brien, Clare Boylan, Sean O’Faolain, William Trevor, and Claire Keegain. Dive into the fictional portraits and emotional strains of close families, the confinement of provincial life, and the scandal of broken social norms through the short prose of celebrated Irish writers. Instructor Joseph Heininger is a professor of English at Dominican University, where he teaches courses in modern Irish literature and modern British literature. His interests include modern poetry, the novel, and the intersections of literature and religion.

Great artists have always been sensitive observers; their paintings often serve as eloquent commentaries on their times. Through consideration of pivotal cultural movements in Western history, this course will explore three primary modes of relationship between history and art: specifically, periods in which leading artists can be seen celebrating their times, opposing contemporary developments, and attempting to influence the course of history. For art celebrating historical developments, we will look at Italian Renaissance painters like Masaccio and Botticelli, who gave visible form to the new Humanistic outlook, and the Rococo painting of the Enlightenment era that glorified aspects of what has been called the Age of Aristocracy. Artistic movements characterized by resistance to historical change will be illustrated through Counter-Reformation Baroque art by Caravaggio, Artemisia Gentileschi, Rubens, and others, and through the implicit protest of Romantic artists against inhumane mechanization in the Industrial Revolution. Finally, we will highlight instances when artists themselves sought to influence the course of history, such as with Protestant woodcuts of the Reformation period inciting indignation against the Catholic establishment, and grand-scale historical paintings like David’s The Tennis Court Oath (French Revolution) and Delacroix’s Liberty Leading the People (France’s July Revolution of 1830), both created to foster a sense of citizen identity and nationalistic pride.

Read novels by three women who are in the mystery writers’ hall of fame and a current author who has been praised as “one of the greatest crime novelists writing today.” We will discuss a classic Hercule Poirot case set in Egypt; a Lord Peter Wimsey mystery considered one of the highest among her masterpieces, featuring free love and a dubious omelet; a tale of the dark side of a utopian American suburb by one of the greatest “noir” mystery writers; and a new cosmopolitan American writer who specializes in Dublin Murders. Readings will be Agatha Christie, Death on the Nile; Dorothy L. Sayers, Strong Poison; Patricia Highsmith, Deep Water; and Tana French, In the Woods. Students should read Death on the Nile for the first class.