New Exhibition At Franklin Street Works Opens Feb. 9

From Franklin Street Works: Franklin Street Works, a non-profit contemporary art space in Stamford, Conn., presents “Collective Action Archive: Redux,” an exhibition exploring the intersections between art and activism, featuring materials from dozens of U.S. artist/activist collectives.

The exhibition expands on the 2013 show, “Collective Action Archive,” which was curated collaboratively by Franklin Street Works with Purchase College, SUNY and then was accessioned into the college’s library archive. The updated group exhibition features materials from the Library’s archive along with new items from collectives who were not included in or had not yet formed at the time of the 2013 show. In the spirit of a living archive, new contributions will be added throughout the exhibition’s run.

It is view at Franklin Street Works February 9 through September 8, 2019 and launches with with a free, public reception on Saturday, February 9, 5-8pm.

Curated by Franklin Street Works creative director Terri C Smith, “Collective Action Archive: Redux” is rooted in two past exhibitions curated by the Stamford art space. The first, “Working Alternatives: Breaking Bread, Art Broadcasting and Collective Action,” included a 2012 call to more than 90 artist/activist collectives. For the show, the materials were presented in archive boxes with only a portion on display. The second, the 2013 “Collective Action Archive,” at Purchase College Passage Gallery, opened the archive boxes to create a vibrant exhibition. Co-curated by Smith and her FSW colleague Sandrine Milet in collaboration with students and faculty from the Media Studies Department at Purchase College, it featured materials gathered from artist/activist collectives. When the exhibition closed, its contents were accessioned into the Purchase College Library archive, becoming a resource for students and scholars. That archive along with new, borrowed materials will form the 2019 exhibition “Collective Action Archive: Redux.”

Photos, videos, artworks, pamphlets and texts by more than 3-dozen artist/activist collectives from across the United States will be on view, including contributions from longtime collectives such as ABC No Rio, the Guerrilla Girls, Paper Tiger TV, subRosa, and Temporary Services. Programming for “Collective Action Archive: Redux” will include: talks by exhibiting collectives, informal presentations by regional activist organizations, and discussion groups about the often contradictory relationship between social activism and the arts.

Exhibiting artist/activist collectives include: ABC No Rio, Artists Against Apartheid, Big Tent, Codify Art, Conflict Kitchen, Critical Making, fierce pussy, Floating Lab Collective, Futurefarmers, Ghana Think Tank, Guerrilla Girls, Guffey Hollow, Howling Mob Society, Illegal Art, Just Seeds, Kitchen Sink, Knifeandfork, Lucky Pierre, M12 Collective, Meme Rider Media Team, National Bitter Melon Council, Okay Mountain Collective, Paper Tiger TV, Philly Stake, Preemptive Media, Publication Studio, RAGGA, Regional Relationships, Second Front, Students of the African Diaspora, subRosa, Temporary Services, The Pinky Show, W.A.G.E., and Work Progress Collective.

Upcoming Programming:

Unless otherwise noted, events are at Franklin Street Works

Saturday, February 9, 5:00 - 8:00 pm

Opening Reception for “Collective Action Archive: REDUX” READ MORE

Monday, February 11, 4:30 – 5:30 pm with Q & A until 6pm, UConn-Stamford, room 108
T.J. Dedeaux-Norris (fka Tameka Jenean Norris) Artist Talk UConn-Stamford Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies program and Franklin Street Works present a talk by artist T.J. Dedeaux-Norris (fka Tameka Jenean Norris). READ MORE

Wednesday, February 27, 6:00 - 7:30 pm

Launch Party for “Resource Guide for Women, Girls & Fairfield County Communities
Franklin Street Works will host a launch party for a resource booklet collaboratively authored with Fairfield County’s Community Foundation’s Fund for Women & Girls and UConn-Stamford Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program. READ MORE

Saturday, March 9, 4:00 - 6:00 pm

Knifeandfork: Brian House and Sue Huang in Conversation
Brian House and Sue Huang of the internationally exhibiting media arts collaborative Knifeandfork will discuss their practice. Sponsored by Stamford Community Arts Partnership Program (CAPP) grant. READ MORE

Saturday, March 30, 4:00 - 6:00 pm

FSW Creative Director, Terri C Smith, in Conversation with Shaun Slifer from Justseeds
Shaun Slifer, a member of the international printmaking collective, Justseeds, and Smith will discuss the collective’s work. A printing demonstration by Slifer at Norwalk’s Center for Contemporary Printmaking is also in the works for March 31st! Sponsored by Stamford CAPP grant.READ MORE

Saturday, April 6, 4:00 - 6:00 pm

Working Artists and the Greater Economy (W.A.G.E.) workshop
W.A.G.E.'s core organizer Lise Soskolne will talk about organizing the labor of artists, focusing on WAGENCY: a new platform launched by W.A.G.E. in September 2018 that facilitates the transaction and fair remuneration of artists' labor in the nonprofit sector. Stay tuned for more information on this event. Sponsored by CAPP grant.