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Visual Arts Speakers

 

From the art of revolution to the art of spirituality, re-imagined urban spaces to the crossroads of technology and environmentalism, Lavin’s visual arts speakers inspire wonder, overturn stereotypes, and help us tap into the creative process.

10
Visual Arts
Speakers
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LaToya Ruby Frazier

Award-Winning Photographer | Associate Professor at School of the Art Institute of Chicago | MacArthur Genius

For LaToya Ruby Frazier, art is a weapon—a catalyst for social justice. Her photographs and videos document today’s America: post-industrial cities riven by poverty, racism, healthcare inequality, and environmental toxicity. Bridging the personal with the social, her gorgeous work amplifies the voices of the vulnerable and transforms our sense of place and self. 
 
Teju Cole

Professor of Creative Writing at Harvard | Author of Black Paper | Former Photography Critic for NYT Magazine

A prodigious novelist, critic, and photographer, Teju Cole’s first novel, Open City, won the PEN/Hemingway Award. His second, Every Day Is for the Thief, was named a Book of the Year by The New York Times. Most recently, Cole produced Blind Spot—a synthesis of written observations and travel photography. 
Wanuri Kahiu

Acclaimed Writer & Director of Rafiki | Co-Founder of AFROBUBBLEGUM

Wanuri Kahiu is an acclaimed artist and filmmaker who shatters conventional thinking about representation in African culture. Kahiu creates work in her very own genre, which she’s coined “AfroBubbleGum”: an aesthetic mash-up of Marvel’s Black Panther and the candy store of your dreams. In talks, Kahiu shows why “fun, fierce and frivolous African art” is a political act.  
 
Nathan Pyle

#1 New York Times Bestselling Author of Strange Planet

How often do we get to see the world as though it were brand new? Rarely, if ever. That’s what makes Nathan Pyle’s Strange Planet—an Internet sensation and #1 New York Times bestselling book—so special. Deeply funny and slightly surreal, the comic holds a mirror to the absurdity of our own behavior. Having gained over 5 million Instagram followers in less than a year, it’s clear Pyle’s work has struck a meaningful chord around the world, and his talks are equally as delightful. With humor and heart, he shows us how to find inspiration and creativity in the fabric of our daily surroundings.   
Jer Thorp

Author of Living in Data | Former Library of Congress Innovator in Residence | Former NYT Data Artist-in-Residence

When Twitter, Microsoft, and Facebook need an expert to analyze their data, who do they turn to? The answer is Jer Thorp—the most respected Data Artist in America (what he does goes far beyond analysis). By creating multi-dimensional, visually stunning projects, often using hundreds of square feet of imagery and billions of pieces of data, Thorp makes data visible—and changes the way we think and act.
Candy Chang

Urban Space Artist Behind the "Before I Die" Walls

World-renowned artist and urban designer Candy Chang engages communities to share everything from their greatest hopes to their deepest anxieties in public. In her captivating and intimate talks, she demystifies the creative process, inspires personal reflection, and provokes new ideas for community and well-being. 
Titus Kaphar

2018 MacArthur Fellow | Award-Winning Painter and Sculptor

With more urgency than a headline, Titus Kaphar’s artworks capture the spirit of social justice and change in America today (exemplified in his TIME cover portrait of the Ferguson protests). Kaphar’s art and talks expose racism, inequality, and a criminal justice system that is anything but just. 
 
Eman Mohammed

TED Senior Fellow and Photojournalist

Photographer Eman Mohammed knows what it feels—and looks—like to be deemed the other. Through photography, and in hopeful, vibrant talks, Mohammed strives to bring battling sides together to “reveal the human face that [her subjects] tried so hard to avoid,” dissolving the perception of a clear-cut enemy.  
Edward Burtynsky

World-Renowned Photographer, Winner of the TED Prize

World-renowned photographer Edward Burtynsky creates stunning photos—“reflecting pools of our time. On stage, he talks about the connection between art and social transformation, human nature and consumption, and industry and environment. 
Molly Crabapple

Award-Winning Artist and Journalist | Author of Brothers of the Gun

Molly Crabapple is an artist and writer whose work has been described as “God’s own circus posters,” by Rolling Stone. Unabashedly political, she worked with Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to create a moving and beautiful short film about the Green New Deal. Crabapple’s art and talks engage injustice, subversiveness, and rebellion.