Living in America: An Exhibition in Four Acts

From outrage to action in art, curated by Assembly Room

International Print Center New York announces Living in America: An Exhibition in Four Acts, an exhibition presented online and in-person at IPCNY and curated by Assembly Room, that will unfold over the course of the fall season. Organized into four thematic “acts”—Outrage, Love, Hope, and Care—Living in America explores the transformative power of art in times of crises.

Featuring artists Mildred Beltré, Vanessa German, Mark Thomas Gibson, Elektra KB, Yashua Klos, Narsiso Martinez, Azikiwe Mohammed, Nontsikelelo Mutiti, Africanus Okokon, Karen J. Revis, Swoon, William Villalongo, and Dáreece J. Walker. Living in America presents a wide range of practices and spotlights the relevance and adaptability of print formats during political upheaval and resistance. New work is shown here for the first time by Elektra KB, Yashua Klos, Azikiwe Mohammed, and Africanus Okokon, as well as a site-specific stencil installation by Nontsikelelo Mutiti.

“These artists bear witness, through their work, to transformation—cultural, material, and aesthetic—and actively engage each other and their local communities as collaborators and subjects,” says Assembly Room. “As the public struggles to renew America, artists are paving the way and showing us how to channel our outrage, inspire love, live in hope, and act with care.”

Act I: Outrage presents artists channeling rage, pain, and despair into their work; Act II: Love explores love as a radical approach to building a more inclusive society; Act III: Hope illuminates forgotten histories and imagines new futures; and Act IV: Care considers artistic practices that center care as acts of self-preservation and political action. In IPCNY’s Chelsea exhibition space, Acts I and II open to the public on September 30. After a brief “Intermission,” the gallery will open a new installation comprising Acts III and IV on November 11.

Complementing the in-person gallery presentation, the online exhibition presents an expanded selection of works in each act that will roll out over the course of the fall season. Throughout the fall season, IPCNY will host Online Public Programs with artists in conversation with Assembly Room, free and open to the public on Zoom.

Online public programs:

Tuesday, September 29, 7–8pm
Artists Elektra KB and Karen J. Revis, and independent curator David Platzker, in conversation with Assembly Room

Tuesday, October 20, 7–8pm
Artists Mildred Beltré, Azikiwe Mohammed and Dáreece J. Walker, in conversation with Assembly Room

Tuesday, November 10, 7–8pm
Artists Yashua Klos, Nontsikelelo Mutiti, and Karen J. Revis, in conversation with 
Assembly Room

Tuesday, December 1, 7–8pm
Artist Vanessa German in conversation with Assembly Room

Assembly Room
Assembly Room is a curatorial platform founded in 2018 by curators Natasha Becker, Paola Gallio, and Yulia Topchiy to empower female-identifying curators living and working in New York City, and beyond. Through collaboration and partnership, they advocate for racial and gender equality in the arts, provide opportunities for professional enrichment, and offer compelling art, exhibitions, and public programs.

International Print Center New York
IPCNY is New York’s flagship non-profit arts institution dedicated to the innovative presentation of prints by emerging, established, national, and international artists.

Support
Living in America is supported, in part, by Keris Salmon and Frank Williams, and the IFPDA Foundation. 

IPCNY reopens on September 30. Book your in-person visit at www.ipcny.org/visit. 
Online tours and educational programming: Email Megan at megan [​at​] ipcny.org
Press inquiries: Email Ema Wang at ema [​at​] ipcny.org