featuring Mark Bradford
newest EVENT
featuring Mark Bradford
LIBERATING THE CULTURAL NARRATIVE THROUGH ARTISTIC EXPRESSION
Mar 10, 2022
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Mark Bradford is an internationally renowned contemporary artist born and based in Los Angeles. He is perhaps best known for his utilization of found materials in abstract collage works that are indicative of the contexts he perceptively observes and lives within. He was raised by a single mother in the West Adams neighborhood of South LA, and went on to work as a hairdresser at his mom’s Leimert Park hair salon. It was in that hair salon that Mark Bradford began repurposing discarded materials for his art.
In 2021, he was recognised as one of the 100 most influential people by TIME magazine, is a recipient of the MacArthur 'Genius Grant', has represented the United States at the Venice Biennale along with countless other professional accolades. Bradford’s practice has resonated around the globe, resulting in recognition outside the United States and inclusion in many internationally renowned collections.
Alongside his work in painting and collage, Bradford has also explored issues of race, class, and gender in video, photography, sculpture, and installation. Through abstract art, Mark has disrupted, transcended, and critiqued the limitations of the traditional American narrative about marginalized communities, offering more complex social and political commentary from his inimitable vantage point. He is purposeful in how he dissects social phenomena such as racism, homophobia, sexism and poverty and the systemic inequities that perpetuate them. In his community activism, he also seeks to liberate the potential of underserved communities by developing innovative programs to support foster youth and bringing art to galleries in underserved communities.
Click here to watch his interview with Anderson Cooper on 60 Minutes.
Click here to watch “Mark Bradford's Layered Urban Art” on Brilliant Ideas
Click here to learn more about his biography, exhibitions and work
Learn more about his work at Sotheby’s, The Guggenheim, LACMA, The Broad
MISSION
To build the capacity of schools to liberate the full potential of each person.
Vision
To establish a shared space for nuanced, deliberative, challenging discourse and professional development around equity and justice that recognizes the interconnected nature of humanity that is fundamental to the survival and wellbeing of our species and our planet.
WHO
We are a network of schools from across the U.S. and around the world—public, private, parochial, and charter—aligned around the urgent needs addressed by our mission and vision.
some of our favorite conversations
December 2, 2020
Prof. Ibram X. Kendi
Turn the classroom into a laboratory of change
November 18, 2021
Loretta J. Ross
Calling in the calling out culture: conversations instead of conflicts
March 11, 2021
Isabel Wilkerson
Grappling with the persistence of systemic racism and steps to advance equity
Engage with the Critical Conversations Speaker Series in a whole new way. Partners earn exclusive access to experts from a range of fields engaged in education-focused, moderated discussions centered around equity and justice.
“Education is the foundation for ultimate change in our society.”
— Isabel Wilkerson
CORPORATE PARTNERS
national partners
“You're never going to out hate these haters, but you can out love them. You can outwork them. You can out organize them. You can out inspire them, and that's what we have to get back to. It's as simple as that.”
— Van Jones
LOCAL partners
“Turn the classroom into a laboratory of change.”
— Professor Ibram X. Kendi
WHO PARTICIPATES
Any school across the U.S.—public, private, charter, and parochial—can participate in Critical Conversations. Independent schools contribute financially to offset costs, while public and charter schools participate for free, underwritten by corporate support.
Events are produced by New Roads School in Santa Monica, CA.
Questions?
Mark Vickers-Willis, Director of Community Engagement at mvickers@newroads.org
"Making a mistake isn't the problem, it's how you handle it."
— Loretta J. Ross