Progressive Diasporas
Oct. 22, 25, and 28, 2022curated by Sheetal Prajapati & Anna Harsanyi
Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts, 10th floor, New York
Progressive Diasporas is a curatorial project series exploring the experiences and intersections of immigrant diasporas through a set of collaboratively developed, cumulative experiences and events. The project - formed in part through the exploration of the curators’ own ongoing creative and personal exchange over 7 years - aims to share and support collaboration between artists, non-artists, program participants, and the curators. With a focus on process as practice, Progressive Diasporas draws its shape from the immigrant experiences embedded in our everyday strategies for survival, amassing small networks, shifting forms and identities, seeking out resources, adjusting comfort, and other invisible forms of sustainability. The project hopes to create spaces for intersectionality around the shared experiences and connections one finds through the process of migration, movement and displacement of identities.
The first iteration in the series welcomes artists Umber Majeed and collective Adobo-Fish-Sauce (Ricky Orng and Febo Anthony) to explore the experience of diasporas through the development of ongoing and new work with others. Each artist invited a member of their own community outside of the arts to collaborate with, producing ideas, inspiration and work for this project.
Events & Programs
This series will include an installation presenting the artist’s work alongside a reading resource space hosting events and open hours for visitors and program participants. We welcome participants and attendees to join us for any of these programs and hope you’ll be able to attend more than one event in the series to experience the progression of ideas and work. All programs in the series are free and open to the public but may require RSVP if capacity is limited.
Opening Event
Saturday, October 22, 2pm - 6pm
The project will launch during The Elizabeth Foundation’s Open Studios on October 22, featuring installations and video work by both artists, and a zine-making workshop led by Adobo-Fish-Sauce.
Bring Your Own Diasporas
Tuesday, October 25 6:30-8:30pm
Co-curators Anna Harsanyi & Sheetal Prajapati will host a sharing session inviting participants to bring and share stories and artifacts expressing their experience of intersectionality in diaspora, in a small group dialog. Prompts for discussion for this session will be drawn in part from Adobo-Fish-Sauce.
Closing Performances and Gathering
Friday, October 28 7-9pm
A final culminating event will present the artists’ work over the course of their projects, including a lecture performance by Umber Majeed and a cooking and poetry performance by Adobo-Fish-Sauce.