In honor of The Fritz Ascher Society for Persecuted, Ostracized and Banned Art's virtual exhibition “Identity, Art and Migration,” this panel discussion probes historical and all-too contemporary fault lines of persecution, migration, intolerance, cultural complexity and art. Historians, curators and artists come together to discuss the life and work of artists who were persecuted by the German Nazi regime and came to the US during the first half of the 20th century, while also hearing from living artists who are facing the challenge of relocation to the United States and its transformative effect on individual identity today. How do artists, with their particular set of sensibilities respond in their work and life to migration and exile?
Speakers:

- Yasi Alipour, Iranian artist/writer based in Brooklyn

- Rebecca Erbelding, PhD, author and historian based in Washington DC

- Ori Z Soltes, PhD, Georgetown University in Washington DC

- David Stern, German-born American figurative painter based in Manhattan
Moderators:

- Jeremy Cohan, PhD, sociologist and director of the Honors Program at SVA
- Rachel Stern, Director and CEO of The Fritz Ascher Society, New York

The online exhibition “Identity, Art and Migration” tells a distinctly human story of how circumstance impacts selfhood. Through the lens of seven artist case studies and interdisciplinary scholarship, we investigate US immigration of European refugees during the first half of the 20th century: Anni Albers, Friedel Dzubas, Eva Hesse, Rudi Lesser, Lily Renee, Arthur Szyk and Fritz Ascher. The exhibition underscores the transformative effect of forced migration on individual identity.

Generously sponsored by the Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Germany in New York

Location & Time

April 14, 6:00pm ET

School of Visual Arts

133/141 West 21st Street Room 101C, New York, NY 10011

Please register here.