Creative Resistance: a conversation with Aaron Hughes

We are very excited to welcome Aaron Hughes to Asbury Book Cooperative to discuss historical creative resistance pulling from the zine State Violence, Abolition, and GI Resistance published by Justseeds, and Surviving the Long Wars: Creative Rebellion at the Ends of Empire, published by Bridge Books.

Frontline Arts/The Printmaking Center of NJ presents this speaker series and follow-up workshops which are made possible by an A.R.T.–Phase II Grant from NJEDA in partnership with The Asbury Book Cooperative.

Learn about the book: Surviving the Long Wars: Creative Rebellion at the Ends of Empire

Surviving the Long Wars offers a groundbreaking exploration into the complex histories of US warfare and militarism, illuminating the pivotal role of art in cultivating justice, healing, and abolition. Inspired by Indigenous responses to the “American Indian Wars” and artists from the Greater Middle East and South Asia challenging the “Global War on Terror,” this volume examines the intersections between these legacies of creative rebellion and the experiences of contemporary Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) veterans. Informed by the emerging Veteran Art Movement and its ties to global struggles for demilitarization and abolition, the book advocates for solidarity and imaginative resistance against war and empire.

Featuring poetry, speeches, and artworks from the 2023 Veteran Art Triennial & Summit held in Chicago, the collection exemplifies the Triennial’s profound impact and critical legacy. With interdisciplinary insights spanning Native and Indigenous Studies, Middle Eastern Studies, Critical Ethnic Studies, and Museum and Exhibition Studies, Surviving the Long Wars celebrates Chicago’s legacy of resistance, while confronting erasures of Indigenous history. Renowned contributors such as Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz, Laleh Khalili, Kyle T. Mays, and Junaid Rana offer fresh perspectives on the enduring impacts of US militarism and the potential for unexpected coalitions to emerge. At its core, Surviving the Long Wars is a clarion call for artists, organizers, and scholars to unite against US imperialism, envisioning a future of peace and justice through art and collective action.

Learn about the editor: Aaron Hughes

Aaron Hughes is an artist, curator, and anti-war veteran. Working through an interdisciplinary practice rooted in drawing and printmaking, Hughes works collaboratively to create meaning out of personal and collective trauma, transform systems of oppression, and seek liberation. He develops projects that utilize popular research strategies, experiment with forms of direct democracy, and operate in solidarity with the people most impacted by structural violence.

His work has appeared in venues around the world including Museum of Modern Art in New York, BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art in Gateshead, Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, Haus der Kulturen der Welt in Berlin, Maruki Gallery in Tokyo, and Ashkal Alwan in Beirut. He has received a number of awards, grants, residencies, and fellowships from a variety of institutions, including Center for Study of Race, Politics, and Culture at the University of Chicago, Illinois Humanities, Ashkal Alwan, Blue Mountain Center, Lawrence Arts Center, Links Hall, The Kitchen, and Penland School of Craft. His recent publications including Surviving the Long Wars: Creative Rebellion at the Ends of Empire (Bridge Books, 2024), Invitation to Tea: A Tea Project Archive & Recipe Book (StepSister Press, 2022), and Remaking the Exceptional: Tea, Torture, and Reparations | Chicago to Guantánamo (DePaul Art Museum, 2022).

Hughes works with a range of art and activist groups including Justseeds Artists' Cooperative, About Face: Veterans Against the War, emerging Veteran Art Movement, and Prison + Neighborhood Arts/Education Project.

Hughes lives and works in Chicago.