The Facility for Arts Research (FAR), part of Florida State University’s College of Fine Arts, has launched “FAR & Away Conversations,” a four-part virtual series of live-streamed discussions focusing on interactions between artists and thinkers whose careers, passions and artistic interests intersect.
“We, at FAR, wanted to find a way to continue our annual program of visiting artists despite the pandemic,” said FAR Co-director Rob Duarte. “At the same time, we worked to come up with a version of our public events that didn’t just consist of pre-recorded lectures or more Zoom conferences.”
“FAR & Away Conversations” highlights nationally and internationally recognized artists who are accompanied by a guest of their choosing. Both individuals interact with virtual audiences in real-time conversations loosely based on conceptual intersections of their work.
“Centering the voices of artists of color is an important intention behind the series,” said Marty Fielding, operations manager at the Facility for Arts Research. “The artist and their invited collaborator devise the format for their conversation, so each event will have its own character. The invited artists also span in a wide range of media: printmaking, installation, performance and social engagement.”
The next event will feature printmaker and sculptor Noel W. Anderson and gallerist Jayne Johnson at 7 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 10, on Zoom. The event is free and open to the public, but registration is required.
Anderson received his Master of Fine Arts degree in printmaking from Indiana University and an MFA from Yale University in sculpture. He is currently the area head of printmaking in NYU’s Steinhardt Department of Art and Art Professions. Anderson utilizes print-media and arts-based-research to explore philosophical inquiry methodologies.
Johnson owns JDJ, a contemporary art gallery located in New York’s Hudson Valley that highlights artists who embody a range of artistic practices and sociopolitical perspectives.
“An exciting aspect of the upcoming event is that Jayne and Noel have the relationship of a gallery owner and a represented artist,” Fielding said. “This professional insight will be enlightening for students as well as others in the audience.”
The series, which was originally created to showcase artists who had served short-term residencies at FAR, is now virtual due to the COVID-19 pandemic. For this online iteration of the series, Duarte has engineered a live-stream that is both visually unique and allows viewers to participate in the conversation through real-time chat.
“For these discussions, I think we’ve managed to invite an incredible lineup of artists and create a format that feels intimate, engaging, and interactive,” Duarte said. “We’re really excited about these live discussions and those that tuned into the inaugural event seemed to really enjoy it.”
Organizers are also excited to be able to reach a larger audience through a virtual platform.
FAR’s mission is to develop and share arts research-related resources with FSU and the larger community, providing a variety of public lectures, residencies, exhibitions, and internship/volunteer opportunities and supports rigorous investigation and inquiry across artistic media and disciplines with a focus on collaboration.
FAR is continuing with programming that focuses on the inherent potential in interactions between artists and thinkers who share common interests.
For more information, visit https://artsresearch.fsu.edu/.