In Relation Roundtable: Producing Space

What does it mean to be “in relation” to oneself, to each other, and to the space in which we live and work? Under the divisive and alienating conditions of today, how does the relational act as a tool for imaging the imprints we leave and the linkages we build on and with one another? Touching on a wide range of arts and performance practices, this three-part roundtable will explore the idea of relationality and the notion of being “in relation” as both a theme and methodology for mapping, planning and reimagining both history and the historical present.

The phrase “in relation” implies an associative connection, even pointing to a form of intimacy between two (or more) things that blurs their distinction. Making good on this model of inquiry, IN RELATION brings together artists, curators and academics whose work – in various ways – embraces a reflexive and interdisciplinary approach. For each session, two or more speakers have been invited carte-blanche to present on their ongoing work, which will then be followed by a facilitated discussion.

Bodies shape and are shaped by the architectures and infrastructures around them. Engaging the topics of site and space, our first session will consider the shifting terrains in which art is both produced and displayed, and the role the aesthetic plays in mediating the built environment. Inspired by the site of Pioneer Works itself – a former iron works factory that has become a venue for contemporary art – this session will look past the literal idea of “site” to consider the ways we might begin to think about the social and political structures we inhabit.

Joshua Lubin-Levy is writer, dance dramaturg and curator. Completing his PhD in the department of Performance Studies at New York University, his dissertation is centered on the life and work of Jack Smith, bringing together his interest in queer aesthetics and performance as critical practice. He is a graduate of the Whitney Independent Study Program and currently a Joan Tisch Teaching Fellow at the Whitney Museum of American Art. For the past year he has been a Visiting Assistant Instructor in Theater and Performance at Bard College and this summer will join the faculty of the Institute for Curatorial Practice in Performance at Wesleyan University. www.joshualubinlevy.com

Alan Ruiz is a visual artist based in New York City whose work explores the way architectural space is produced as material and ideology. His work has been included in exhibitions at the Queens Museum, Storefront for Art & Architecture, TG, Nottingham, The Kitchen, and the Bronx Museum of the Arts. His writing has been featured in ED, BOMB Magazine, Women & Performance: a journal of feminist theory, TDR, InVisible Culture, and Archinect. He received an MFA from Yale University and was a fellow in the Whitney Independent Study Program. Ruiz teaches courses at The New School, Parsons, Pratt Institute and is a current Visiting Artist fellow at Wesleyan University.

Lucy Hunter is a writer and historian based in Brooklyn, NY. She is a PhD student in art history at Yale University, where her research explores intersections of corporate culture and experimental art during the Cold War era.

Image: Alan Ruiz, Western Standards C-3270, 2018. Steel studs, existing architecture. Courtesy TG, Nottingham.