Announcing the Arion Artist Talks

sponsored by Agnes Gund

The Arion Artist Talks sponsored by Agnes Gund will pair today’s most dynamic artists with writers in conversation about the vital relationship between making art, writing, and their role in building a just society.

The Grabhorn Institute and Arion Press are thrilled to announce a major contribution from philanthropist and president emerita of the Museum of Modern Art Agnes Gund. This pivotal gift will launch a new series of quarterly talks in 2022 designed to bring artists and writers face to face in public dialogue. The Arion Artist Talks will pair leading visual artists with authors and musicians in conversation about the key ideas animating the world of art today. Each talk will be hosted as a live event free to the public, and viewers can also participate virtually on YouTube.

“The current cultural exchange of tweets and soundbites prioritizes consuming art quickly, without creating the space necessary for hearing the artists. Our series aims to build a forum for deeper engagement with artists and their ideas,” says Blake Riley, Creative Director and Lead Printer of Arion Press.

The series will commence on May 25 with a public conversation between artist Sandow Birk and novelist Robert Mailer Anderson in the Arion Gallery. This inaugural talk, co-sponsored by the Catharine Clark Gallery, will delve into Birk and Anderson’s past collaborations across genres and explore what it means to work as a socially conscious artist in contemporary culture. “Throughout my career as an artist, I have very often looked to literary sources in my projects, many of which end up as books,” notes Birk. “Getting the opportunity to speak about this alchemy between art and books with author Robert Mailer Anderson, a friend and frequent collaborator, will be a pleasure.”

Three additional talks are planned in 2022: Alison Saar will join poet Evie Shockley in conversation on August 4, and painter Vincent Valdez will appear in dialogue with a musician in the fall at a date to be determined. The fourth talk will be announced later in the year.

“A universal language exists among artists. It is the act of testifying— messengers putting it all down on record. This type of testimony matters most in times blurred by the fog of social amnesia,” says Valdez, “I am honored to participate in this series, spearheaded by Arion Press and Agnes Gund, which seeks to partner creative minds in conversations that matter.” 

“I find the work of the poet kindred to the work of the artist in the way they use words like materials, transforming them through association and proximity to take on new form and meaning,” says Saar. “Working with Evie Shockley has been much like the way siblings play with words and images: pulling from personal associations and experiences to create our own secret language.”

Agnes Gund’s generous commitment will further enrich the Grabhorn Institute’s mission of championing collaboration between the literary and visual arts. “The Artist Talks are a crucial part of the Grabhorn Institute’s larger revitalization as a dynamic arts hub,” says Rolph Blythe, Executive Director of the Grabhorn Institute and Arion Press. “This remarkable investment from Agnes Gund will allow us to present meaningful conversations about the creative partnership between art and writing in a fresh, accessible format.”

“The Grabhorn Institute is expanding its mission in 2022 to reflect its deepened commitment to championing diverse artists and broadening community engagement,” says Ted Gioia, Program and Development Director. “We are incredibly grateful for Agnes Gund’s support in helping us write a different story about the role of fine press printing in the 21st century—a story which puts the voice of the artist at the center.”

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Agnes Gund is president emerita of the Museum of Modern Art and chair of its International Council. She is also chair emerita of MoMA PS1. Ms. Gund joined the MoMA Board in 1976 and served as president from 1991 until 2002.

Ms. Gund is founder and chair emerita of Studio in a School, a non-profit organization she established in 1977 in response to budget cuts that virtually eliminated arts classes from New York City public schools.

A philanthropist and collector of modern and contemporary art, Ms. Gund serves on the boards of the Cleveland Museum of Art, the Foundation for Art and Preservation in Embassies, and the Morgan Library & Museum. She is co-founder and chair of the Center for Curatorial Leadership, as well as an honorary trustee of the National YoungArts Foundation, Independent Curators International, and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Cleveland. 

A civic leader and staunch supporter of education, environmental concerns and social justice, Ms. Gund has served on the boards of the Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center, the Andy Warhol Foundation, the Barnes Foundation, Chess in the Schools, the Frick Collection, the Foundation for Contemporary Arts, the New York City Mayor’s Cultural Affairs Advisory Commission, and the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation, among others. In June 2017, she launched the Art for Justice Fund in partnership with the Ford Foundation and Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors to support criminal justice reform in the U.S. 

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For more information on the Grabhorn Institute, Arion Press and Arion Artist Talks, please contact Ted Gioia at tgioia@arionpress.com.