Photobook Talk: Paula Bronstein — Witnessing Life
Photographer Paula Bronstein presents her photobook Witnessing Life and talks about it herself, in a small room run by a documentary-focused organization with a clear point of view.
Talks
Talks — change
Behind the Scenes: Collections Care and Tour of Staten Island Making History
Collections manager Audrey Malachowsky explains how art and history objects are cared for and prepared for display, then Jean Marques leads a tour of the museum's newest exhibition.
LA BOLA NEGRA
Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi's film, honored for its directing. One screening comes with an introduction by Peter Staley, co-presented by Live Out Loud and Callen-Lorde.
Death's Bouquet: The Language of Flowers in Cemeteries and Mourning with Cemetery Scholar Allison C. Meier
Cemetery scholar Allison C. Meier decodes the hidden messages of love, mortality, and remembrance in mourning flowers, with memorial hairwork installed in the space alongside.
Exhibition Walkthrough of "by Alison Knowles" at the Grey Art Museum
A guided walk through the Alison Knowles exhibition, a chance to take in the work at a slower, more informed pace. Space is limited, so registration is required.
Prison (excerpt) + Who Are You Dorothy Dean? Book Launch and Q&A
An excerpt from Prison pairs with the launch of the book Who Are You Dorothy Dean?, then a Q&A. A film clip, a new book, and a room to ask questions about both.
Tongo Eisen-Martin + Margaret Randall
A two-poet reading that puts Tongo Eisen-Martin and Margaret Randall on one bill, so you hear both read their own work aloud in a room built for listening.
An Evening with Anne Fadiman: Looking back on The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down after three decades
Anne Fadiman sits down with Perri Klass to trace how her book on Lia Lee, a Hmong child with epilepsy, came together and why its lessons on cross-cultural care still hold.
Book Launch at Columbus Circle : We Shall Outlast Them by Hanna Notte in conversation with Keith Gessen
Hanna Notte's book tells how a war became a long battle of wills, with a state refocusing its entire machinery on outlasting its rivals. Keith Gessen joins her in conversation.
The George Lucas Talk Show with Special Guests!
Connor Ratliff plays a retired George Lucas hosting a mock talk show, with Griffin Newman as sidekick Watto and producer Patrick Cotnoir. Works for Star Wars fans and non-fans alike.
Exhibition Tour: Whitney Biennial 2026
A guided walk through the Whitney Biennial, the museum's survey of new American art. A tour is a good way to get oriented and hear how the show's pieces fit together.
Art Dialogues: Bellini's "St. Francis in the Desert"
One painting, one long look. A museum educator leads a conversation with fellow attendees in the galleries, with Bellini's St. Francis in the Desert as the focus and everyone encouraged to join in.
ISAW Gallery Tour: Cursed! The Power of Magic in the Ancient World
A guided walk through the institute's current exhibition on magic and curses in the ancient world, led in the gallery itself. An hour with the objects and someone who can explain them.
The Downtown Festival: The Basics of Philosophy + Q&A
A big-screen look at the basics of philosophy, paired with a Q&A, as part of the Downtown Festival. A good pick if you like an evening out that gives you something to think about.
Studio Salon: Primary: After and With Alma Thomas
A conversation and reading built around Primary: After and With Alma Thomas, a book on the painter. It's part of the museum's own Studio Salon series, held on The Stoop.
The Downtown Festival: Dwarf Neon Mayfield + Q&A
Dwarf Neon Mayfield screens in a cinema as part of The Downtown Festival, paired with a Q&A, so you can stay and hear the conversation about the film.
Gagaku Demonstration: The Columbia Gagaku Instrumental Ensemble of New York
Kodai Speich, Lish Lindsey and Nina Fukuoka play hichiriki, ryūteki and shō, unpacking Gagaku, the "elegant music" tradition that shapes the sound of Allegra, with live repertory.
Postwar France: Empire, Consumer Culture, & the Politics of Everyday Life
A hybrid session on empire, consumer culture, and everyday life in postwar France, tied to a poster exhibition. The artwork pairs a cartoon bride with a refrigerator and a top hat.
The Downtown Fest: The Mayflower + Q&A
The Mayflower screens as part of The Downtown Fest, paired with a Q&A. A chance to see it on a big screen at an independent art house theater and stay for the conversation.
Book Launch: Traumatized by Catherine Liu in conversation with Claire Stapleton
Catherine Liu, author of Virtue Hoarders, traces how shell shock became PTSD and how trauma turned into a tool of social control. Claire Stapleton joins her in conversation.
