5:30-7pm Opening

Exhibit reception, with welcome remarks and Introductions by Dr. Lucy Spelman, board-certified zoo and wildlife veterinarian and founder and executive director of Creature Conserve

7-8pm "Snail Cinema"

Performance by Ada Smailbegović, Assistant Professor of English, Brown University, and artist Matthew Thurber, with Pepper Greenley (AB Engineering and English, ‘23), Murphy Chang (Literary Arts MFA, ‘22), Ricardo Gomez (AB English, ‘22), Nicole Kim (AB English and Ethnic Studies, ‘22) and Jaden Schoenfeld (AB Visual Art and Literary Arts, ‘23)

8:15-9pm "This Crime Has a Name"

From Bird Lovers, Backyard (New Directions Press).

Performance by Thalia Field, Adele Seaver Kellenberg Professor of Literary Arts and Faculty Director of the Brown Arts Institute, Brown University, with Brown University faculty: Timothy Bewes, English; Colin Channer, Literary Arts; Andrew Colarusso, Literary Arts; Karan Mahajan, Literary Arts; David Frank, Philosophy

8:15-9am

Refreshments available outside Martinos Auditorium

9-9:50am "Multispecies Ecotopias: Imagining Futures for Conservation"

Presentation by David Frank, Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow in Philosophy and the Cogut Institute for the Humanities, Brown University, with readings by Brown University students Alyscia Batista, Emily Cha, Mithi Jethwa, Francesca Mustain, Cosh O’Shea, Harry Sultan, Masha Trifonova, and Champ Turner.

10-10:50am "The Art and Science of Hummingbirds in the Florentine Codex, Past and Present"

Iris Montero (joining remotely), Assistant Professor of Hispanic Studies, Brown University, in conversation with Rachel Berwick, Professor, Rhode Island School of Design

11-11:50am "Why Look at Animals?"

Thangam Ravindranathan, Professor of French and Francophone Studies, Brown University, in conversation with Tina Tryforos, photographer, bookmaker, and educator

–Break–

1-1:50pm "Horse Sense"

Presentations by Connie Crawford, Adjunct Lecturer, Theatre Arts and Performance Studies, Brown University; Maddy Butcher (joining remotely), founder and director of the Best Horse Practices Summit; and Kari Weil (joining remotely), University Professor of Letters, College of the Environment, Feminist, Gender and Sexuality Studies, Wesleyan University

2-2:50pm

Kelly Duker, Animal & Avian Care Manager, Foster Parrots, in conversation with Amanda Coleman, Adoption Program Manager & Avian Care Specialist, Foster Parrots. Joined by Sheida Soleimani.

3-3:50pm "Conservation, Rehabilitation, and Education: How Art can help Create Environmental Awareness"

Presentation by Sheida Soleimani, multimedia artist, activist, professor, wildlife animal rehabilitator and Brown Arts Institute Arts Research Fellow

4-4:50pm "The Reindeer and the End of the World: Apocalypse, Climate, and Soviet Dreams"

Presentation by Bathsheba Demuth, Assistant Professor of History and Environment and Society, Brown University.

Climate change and other alterations to the Earth caused by human activity are often described in apocalyptic terms: as Armageddon, or the end of the world. Nowhere is this more true than in the Arctic, where the rates of warming are twice that of temperate regions and have been visible for decades. This talk turns to the history of the Chukchi Peninsula, in far eastern Siberia, a place that has experienced radical changes in the past: first with the founding of the Soviet Union and then with its dissolution. Weaving a story of devoted Bolshviks, Chukchi nomads, and herds of reindeer, it explores what kinds of narratives suit the empirical experience of radical change, what is lost when we emphasize rupture, and what is gained by paying attention to the ruins left by past ways of living as we face a transformed Arctic - and planet.

–Break–

6:30-7pm

Refreshments available outside Martinos Auditorium

7-8pm

Symposium Keynote: Reading by Linda Hogan (joining remotely), Emerita Professor of University of Colorado, current Chickasaw Writer in Residence, award-winning writer of poetry and fiction, and author of essays on Indigenous relationships with animals. Joined in conversation by Olivia Maliszewski ‘22

8:30-9:30pm

Performances and readings by Alison C. Rollins, Brown University Literary Arts Department MFA candidate; poet and essayist Marianne Boruch (joining remotely); Adjua Gargi Nzinga Greaves, Brown University Literary Arts Department candidate; Alberto Ríos (joining remotely), Regents Professor of English at Arizona State University in Tempe and Poet Laureate of Arizona

8:15-9am

Refreshments available outside Martinos Auditorium

9-11am Creature Conserve Workshop: ReExamining Conservation

Led by Dr. Lucy Spelman, board-certified zoo and wildlife veterinarian and founder and executive director of Creature Conserve; Susan Tacent, Creature Conserve Writer-in-Residence; and designer and illustrator, Samantha Dempsey

A generative workshop for artists and writers interested in understanding the science of conservation.

The workshop will begin with a lecture by scientist Dr. Spelman, Re-Examining Conservation, in which she explores how our biology connects us: how all animals have the same basic needs (air, food, water, shelter, each other, and room to move) and how solving a health problem in one species can benefit another. Artist Samantha Dempsey and writer Susan Tacent will lead a craft discussion and provide prompts based on the science presentation. Participants will generate stories and artwork. The workshop will conclude with a brief critique session. Materials will be provided.

Meets on Zoom and in-person

9-11am Conversations with a Curatorial Scholar

Led by Haley Johnson (Mashpee Wampanoag), Creature Conserve Curatorial Scholar*

Stop by Cohen Gallery on Saturday, April 23 for informal conversations with Creature Conserve Curatorial Scholar*, Haley Johnson. Haley will share Indigenous perspective and knowledge throughout the day.

*Creature Conserve is working in conjunction with Tomaquag Museum’s Indigenous Empowerment Network (IEN) in efforts to further amplify the voices of the Indigenous community in Rhode Island. To learn more about IEN, visit https://www.tomaquagmuseum.org/ien