Triple Canopy Symposium 2025

Triple Canopy is pleased to announce the schedule and lineup for the magazine’s third annual Symposium. The event will take place October 10–11, 2025, at Roulette in Brooklyn, and is presented in partnership with Critical Minded.

Triple Canopy’s annual symposium is a manifestation of the magazine’s concerns and collaborations, in person and in real time. The two-day gathering brings together artists, writers, performers, and researchers to address the role of culture in responding (or contributing) to the critical issues of our time. The Symposium is free with RSVP and will be livestreamed. 

The Symposium kicks off on Friday, October 10, at 8pm with an evening of performances devoted to the theme of Triple Canopy’s next issue, holes: absences, aporias, portals, and clearings, from the body to the earth, from plotholes to potholes. The event will include a reflection by critic Zoë Hopkins on the late artist Pope.L, author of Hole Theory (2002), and performances by artist and writer Gregg Bordowitz, vocalist Muyassar Kurdi (with music by Makimakkuk), poet Lucas de Lima, writer and performer Maya Martinez, artist Louis Osmosis, and choreographer Symara Sarai.

Day two will begin at 2pm with critics Andrea Long Chu and Rachel Hunter Himes discussing when and why criticism fails—and who is failed by bad criticism. It’ll be followed at 3:30pm by a panel on the legacy of the cultural front with scholar Michael Denning and artist-organizers Kay Gabriel, Amirtha Kidambi, and Jackson Polys (New Red Order), who’ll look to the 1930s to ask how culture workers might join forces with activists and unions to respond to today’s crises. At 5pm, sociologist Alix Rule and artist David Levine will revisit their 2012 essay “International Art English” with critic Dawn Chan and scholar Dennis Yi Tenen, comparing the language of the art world to AI-generated slop. 

At 8pm, Ryan C. Clarke will lead a conversation and performance about bass as a physical force, political metaphor, and sonic technology in and beyond Black music. Clarke, a critic and tonal geologist, will speak with artist, writer, and DJ Jace Clayton; they’ll share the stage with an ensemble of improvisers—Dorothy Carlos, Buz Donald, Brandon Lopez, and Kwami Winfield—who’ll respond to the conversation through music.

A free afterparty at El Zason will follow, with music by artist collective and independent record label PTP, plus discounted food and drinks all night.

During the Symposium at Roulette, PTP will sell tapes, publications, and other wares, and Worker Coffee will sell coffee and tea. Beverages will be graciously provided by Grimm Artisanal Ales, Narragansett Brewing Company, and Zev Rovine Selections. Media sponsors include BOMB, Boston Art Review and The New York Review of Books.

Friday, October 10
8pm: Holes Marathon
Gregg Bordowitz, Zoë Hopkins, Lucas de Lima, Muyassar Kurdi with Makimakkuk, Maya Martinez, Louis Osmosis & Symara Sarai
An evening of performances of—and about—holes.

Saturday, October 11
2pm: Bad Criticism
Andrea Long Chu & Rachel Hunter Himes with Rachel Ossip
A conversation on when, why, and whom cultural criticism fails.

3:30pm: Culture at the Front
Michael Denning, Kay Gabriel, Amirtha Kidambi & Jackson Polys (New Red Order) with Ciarán Finlayson
A panel on the history and future of leftist opposition movements that connect artists and writers with organizers and unions.

5pm: Language Against Intelligence
David Levine, Alix Rule,  Dawn Chan & Dennis Yi Tenen with Alexander Provan
A conversation about the afterlife of International Art English in the age of text-based slop.

8pm: Surround Sound
Ryan C. Clarke, Jace Clayton, Dorothy Carlos, Buz Donald, Brandon Lopez & Kwami Winfield
A live, low-frequency improvisation and conversation about bass (as a technology and metaphor) in and beyond Black music. Presented with Roulette.

9:30pm: Symposium Afterparty at El Zason
A celebration at El Zason (491 Atlantic Ave.), with music presented by PTP, drink specials, and discounted tacos.