SYMPOSIUMS

10:00 AM–11:30 PM | Welcome + Keynote | FPH Main Lecture Hall

Aesthetic Justice: Reflecting on Two Decades of Art & Politics with DS4SI

with Kenneth Bailey, Co-Founder & Director of Methodology and Strategy, Design Studio for Social Intervention

People tend to experience politics and art as two distinct aspects of social life: voting, protesting, or watching the news as part of their political lives, while attending concerts, shows, or museums as part of their aesthetic lives. Design Studio for Social Intervention has long been interested in how our lived experience is, in fact, both a political terrain and aesthetic in nature. We will explore DS4SI’s Twenty Questions for Twenty Years event to experience how art is essential to the fight for a life worth living.

11:30 AM - 4:00 PM | Interactive Installation | FPH Lobby

Tree of Hope: Collaborative Textile Project 

The Tree of Hope is a collaborative and community-based textile project facilitated by the Textile Activism class that fosters a reflective conversation among Hampshire students, faculty, and staff about ways to reach our community's potential and what currently hinders it. Through accessible weaving practices with ribbons, fabric strips, and written tags, the tree sculpture will display the campus’s perspectives and the shared goal of a united future.

12:00 - 1:00pm | Lunch Break 

1:00–2:30 PM | Concurrent Afternoon Sessions 

The Art of Belonging: On Publics and Shared Arts | FPH West Lecture Hall 

What is public art, and what are its functions? Who is public art for, and how does it speak in and through different communities, and to their priorities, histories, legacies, needs, and values? This student panel moderated by Professor rl Goldberg explores how public art shapes a sense of belonging in shared spaces. Students will explore the public art that they have made, that they are creating, and that has been meaningful to them. In so doing we will discuss the role of function of art, and, more crucially, the role of function of art in the publics and communities that we seek to constitute. 

All Eyes on ICE: Zine Construction Workshop | FPH 106 

As we think about political/public art practice and impact today, the In/Justice LC invites you to join in the creation of a collaborative art piece in service of protecting our community. Amherst and the state of Massachusetts are bracing for the impact of ICE presence/surveillance in our cities and on our campuses. Join us in collaborating on a zine to spread the word on what to do and how to respond if you see ICE. 

Tree of Hope: Collaborative Textile Project (facilitated Session) | FPH Lobby 

The Tree of Hope is a collaborative and community-based textile project facilitated by the Textile Activism class that fosters a reflective conversation among Hampshire students, faculty, and staff about ways to reach our community's potential and what currently hinders it. Through accessible weaving practices with ribbons, fabric strips, and written tags, the tree sculpture will display the campus’s perspectives and the shared goal of a united future.

2:45–4:15 PM | Featured Event | FPH Faculty Lounge    

S.O.U.R.C.E. Mural: Now and Then 

Join Hampshire alumni Mikaela Gonzalez and Jenny Gutierrez for a dynamic conversation about the making of the SOURCE mural in 2017, including technical steps, the political climate and campus context of the time, and the many challenges faced during the process. This is a unique chance for these graduates and current students to talk openly about how/why the mural came to be and the legacy it has left behind. 

4:30 PM | Reception 

Join the day's presenters and members of our community for a reception in the FPH Lobby. 

6:00 - 7:30pm | Concurrent Evening Sessions 

Intentional Everything - Circle Practice & Creative Community Building with The Performance Project | FPH Faculty Lounge

Space is limited for this work. Registration is required. 

An experiential workshop where members of the Performance Project will share elements of their circle practice and community building process and explore how these are inextricably intertwined—and inseparable from—their creative and performance practices. 

Documentary Film: Earth's Greatest Enemy | FPH East Lecture Hall 

Earth's Greatest Enemy is a new film by Abby Martin (the host of Empire Files) documenting the environmental destruction wrought by the US military all over the world while also highlighting the resistance against this destruction, offering a powerful reminder that militarism and climate change are not disparate issues. On April 9, Abby Martin will be coming to Amherst College to facilitate a discussion among various activist groups in the Pioneer Valley regarding the film and various ways in which the issues raised in the film can be resisted. The film screening here at Hampshire (taking place alongside numerous other screenings in the Valley, including at each of the other colleges in the Five College Consortium) is intended to be a prequel to the April 9 event at Amherst, as the expectation is that the attendees of that event will have already watched the film. You can watch the trailer for the film here.  This event is co-sponsored by the Liberation Watch-Series and Environments & Change LC. 

Kenny Bailey (he/him) is the co-founder of the Design Studio for Social Intervention. His interests focus on the research and development of design tools for marginalized communities to address complex social issues. With over three decades of experience in community practice, Bailey brings a unique perspective on the ethics of design in relation to community engagement, the arts and cultural action. Projects he has produced at ds4si include Action Lab, Public Kitchen, Social Emergency Response Center (SERC), People’s Redevelopment Authority and inPUBLIC. Bailey was a Visiting Scholar in collaboration with University of Tasmania and also a founding member of Theatrum Mundi NYC with Richard Sennett. His book (co-authored with DS4SI) is entitled “Ideas—Arrangements--Effects: Systems Design and Social Justice” (Minor Compositions, 2020). He received his MFA in Public Action from Bennington College in 2021.

Mika Gonzalez (they/them) is an Autistic ADHD artist currently undergoing an unmasking process and slowly recovering from intense burnout. After Hampshire, they lived in Brooklyn, NY working in community murals, cake decorating, tattooing, and food service. They also sing and play guitar, and their last band was called Queer Chaos.

The Performance Project is a community of many ages and ancestries that engages young people in intensive artistic training, intergenerational mentoring, leadership development, community building, and social justice education. VISION: We envision a world in which all people strive for personal and social liberation, where all individuals and cultures are honored, embrace interconnectedness, and we all are free to achieve our full potential.