Conversation Tour | The Artist as Culture Producer: Living and Sustaining a Creative Life

• January 20, 2018 | 6 -8 PM
• 116 Blue Star
• Pre-Purchase Books

Contemporary at Blue Star is pleased to welcome Sharon Louden and Home Bodies exhibiting artist Lenka Clayton in conversation with the public about how artists sustain their practice and their greater societal role followed by a book signing.

About the tour

Through panel discussions, symposia, casual conversations and town-hall forums, we are connecting book contributors, local artists, critics, non-profit participants, thought leaders, and other members of the general public to learn about, lend their voices to, and be inspired by the vast range of influence that visual artists exert on society. We are including as many contributors as possible from the book, helping to further our efforts to cross-pollinate artists among regions. Our ultimate goal is to de-mythologize the tired cliche’ of the Artist Hero by dispensing with the notion that contemporary artists should be treated differently from other members of our communities.

Common topics discussed on the book tour include:

• –How artists extend their practices outside of their studios.
• –The roles artists play as change agents in society.
• –Models of sustaining creative lives in the public realm.
• –Redefining who a contemporary artist is today.
• –Exploring what success means to different artists.
• –How artists contribute to the well-being of others.

About the book

The Artist as Culture Producer: Living and Sustaining a Creative Life is a collection of essays by 40 visual artists. Edited by artist and educator, Sharon Louden, the book describes how artists extend their practices outside of their studios. All of these contributors have impactful, artistic activities as change agents in their communities. Their first-hand stories show the general public how contemporary artists of the 21st century add to creative economies through their out-of-the-box thinking while also generously contributing to the well-being of others. Although there is a misconception that artists are invisible and hidden, the truth is that they furnish measurable and innovative outcomes at the front lines of education, the non-profit sector, and corporate environments. Available now at Contemporary at Blue Star. Purchase online or pick up your copy in person.

The following artists contributed essays to this book:

Alec Soth (Little Brown Mushroom), Alison Wong (Butter Projects), Andrea Zittel, Austin Thomas, Billy Dufala and Steven Dufala (Rair Philly), Brett Wallace (The Conversation Project), Caitlin Masley, Cara Ober (BMoreArt), Carrie Moyer (Dyke Action Machine), Carron Little (Out of Site Chicago), Chloë Bass, Duncan MacKenzie (Bad at Sports), Edgar Arceneaux, Euan Gray, Faina Lerman and Graem Whyte, Jane South, Jayme McLellan, Jean Shin, Julia Kunin, Kat Kiernan (Don’t Take Pictures), Khaled Sabsabi, Lenka Clayton, Mark Tribe, Martina Geccelli (Raumx London), Matthew Deleget (Minus Space), Michael Scoggins, Morehshin Allahyari, Paul Henry Ramirez, Peewee Roldan (Green Papaya Art Projects), Robert Yoder (Season), Sharon Butler (Two Coats of Paint), Shinique Smith, Stephanie Syjuco, Steve Lambert (The Center for Artistic Activism), Tim Doud and Zoë Charlton (‘sindikit), Wendy Red Star, William Powhida.

Additional contributors include:

Hrag Vartanian, Editor-in-Chief  and Co-founder of Hyperallergic (Foreword), and Deana Haggag, Director of The Contemporary in Baltimore, MD, Courtney Fink, Co-founder of Common Field, and Chen Tamir Curator at the Center for Contemporary Art in Tel Aviv, Israel (Conclusion).