Works in Public Symposium

Please join the Art Students League of New York for the first annual Works in Public Symposium, a groundbreaking series of discussions on public art that will take place at League’s historic building on West 57th Street on Tuesday, May 12. Developed in collaboration with Kendal Henry, Assistant Commissioner of Public Art at the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs (DCLA), the symposium will feature a conversation with renowned Brooklyn-based artist Jean Shin on the role that public art has played in her practice, as well as a panel discussion with leading curators and critics on the practical and conceptual aspects of public art commissions.  

The Works in Public Symposium builds on the success of the League’s Works in Public program, which instructs students on all aspects of public art from ideation to fabrication, culminating each year in the installation of four large-scale works in New York’s Riverside Park.

RSVP here.

‍Session one (4–5:15pm): A conversation between Kendal Henry (Assistant Commissioner of Public Art at the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs) and renowned artist Jean Shin about Shin’s career, practice, and experience producing site-specific works of art intended for public settings.

Session two (5:30–6:45pm): A panel discussion on public art commissions with influential curators and critics Jean Cooney (Executive Director, Creative Time), Kendal Henry (Assistant Commissioner of Public Art at the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs), Melanie Kress (Senior Curator, Public Art Fund) and Shaun Leonardo (Executive Director, Socrates Sculpture Park) moderated by Daniel Kunitz (Editor in Chief, Sculpture magazine).

Reception (7–8pm): A champagne reception and information sharing session for artists, critics, curators, fabricators, and city officials, including representatives from commissioning bodies and agencies.

Our supporters
Works in Public is supported, in part, by The Harry Feinberg Family Foundation, John Padget, The Dr. Lawrence Spielberger & Dr. Greta Spanierman Family Foundation, the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, and the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature. We gratefully acknowledge our community partners Florida Keys Council of the Arts, the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation, Riverside Park Conservancy, Manhattan Community Board 7, and Manhattan Community Board 9. Generous in-kind support is provided by Brandywine Valley Fabricators. For more information, email wip@artstudentsleague.org. To support the program, please email development@artstudentsleague.org.

About the Art Students League of New York
Since 1875, the Art Students League of New York has provided affordable, high-quality fine art education in our historic 57th Street studios. 

Rooted in the atelier tradition of artists teaching artists, the League offers classes and workshops focused on a wide range of media and based in traditional and contemporary techniques that are open to everyone. All of our classes are led by distinguished practicing artists who will guide the development of your creative voice and professional practice within a diverse community of fellow artists.

Each season, the Art Students League presents a robust series of programs and events that are free and open to the public. These programs continue the League’s tradition of fostering discourse around the most interesting and important topics shaping the contemporary art world.