The Art of Social Change

Andrea Fraser, artist 15.07.2025 39p

Renowned artist Andrea Fraser joins us to discuss art, institutions, and power. Since the 1980s, Andrea has used performance, video, and installation to critique the art world with humor and sharp insight, addressing gender, race, privilege, and the commodification of art. This conversation was recorded in collaboration with CIMAM during their 56th Annual Conference in Los Angeles.

Candice Hopkins, Forge Project 02.04.2025 39p

In this episode, we speak with Candice Hopkins, executive director and chief curator of Forge Projects, whose work as a citizen of the Carcross/Tagish First Nation centers on decolonizing institutions and integrating Indigenous knowledge within and beyond exhibition spaces. Drawing from a worldview where art, land, water, and culture are inseparable, Candice reflects on how Indigenous communities perceive art as part of a broader ecosystem rather than a segregated discipline. This conversation was recorded in collaboration with CIMAM during their 56th Annual Conference in Los Angeles, where Candice spoke on “Sustainable Communities: Indigenous Perspectives and Worldviews.”

Christina Chirouze, curator & Sofia Baussan, artist 21.01.2025 41p

For our 37th episode, we had the pleasure of speaking with two Cristina Chirouze Montenegro, the founder of Mazorca and the artist Sofia Baussan whose stories were brought together by the shared interest of building cultural bridges between Central America and Europe.Cristina shared how growing up in Guatemala during a period of political transition shaped her commitment to using art as a tool for social change. She spoke about founding Mazorca, a platform designed to create cultural bridges through residencies, exhibitions, and collaborations, creating bonds between Central America and Europe.Sofia reflected on her personal journey of exploring memory and identity through her project 'Constellation des Terres,' which uses family photographs to uncover intimate histories and connections. If you would like to see images of the works we discussed in this episode go to our Instagram account @theartofsocialchange.The Art of Social Change is brought to you by Gabriela Salomon and Alix de La Chapelle.Enjoy the episode!

Sehyoung Lee, artist 16.12.2024 33p

In this episode, we sit down with Sehyoung Lee in his studio at Artagon to discuss his multidisciplinary practice, which bridges performance and visual arts. Originally from Seoul and now based in Paris, his work delves into the complexities of navigating Western culture as an Asian artist. The conversation explores fascinating subjects like the cultural impact of K-pop, masculinity, cultural dissonance and reincarnation.

Irene Adorni and Giulia Monte, Parsec 06.11.2024 28p

In this episode, we’re joined by two members of Parsec - an Italian collective of curators, artists, and cultural workers who are reshaping the art scene in Bologna and beyond. Irene Adorni is an artist and Giulia Monte, a researcher and publisher. They see independent art spaces as invaluable communities, where points of views can differ and be shared. And they shared what happened behind PARSEC’s closed doors during COVID, proving how art can be transformative in times of hardship.This episode was recorded during the Reset Network General Assembly in Budapest in April 2024

Deniz Kirkali, curator 01.10.2024 29p

For our 34th episode we had the pleasure of speaking with Deniz Kirkali, co-founder of GARP Sessions. Garp Sessions is a summer programme that brings artists and thinkers together in Babakale, Çanakkale for a duration of 10 days. It aims to generate conversations around a question/topic/keyword and create room for interaction between people, practices, and researches. It prioritizes collective thinking, digesting and exchange among participants through reading sessions, workshops and collective meals.

György Szabó, founder of Trafo - House of Contemporary Arts 09.07.2024 33p

For this episode, we spoke to a key actor of the Hungarian cultural scene: György Szabó Discovering arts and performance during university, Gyuri immediately invested himself in the development of the art scene, by organising events as part of his university art club. Striving to promote both local and international artists, Gyuri witnessed the change of the central and Eastern European art scene since the 1980s, founded Trafo and saw the change following the victory in Hungary of nationalist president Viktor Orban who has been ruling the country for the past 14 years.

Luiza Texeira de Freitas, curator 03.06.2024 35p

For our 32nd episode we spoke to Luiza Texeira de Freitas in Lisbon. Luiza currently specializes in advising private collections on how they can have a lasting impact in the communities around them. We spoke about the conundrum of bringing art fairs into new cities and what ethical collecting can look like. If you would like to see images of the projects we discussed during the podcast you can go to our Instagram account @theartofsocialchange. We hope you enjoy this episode!

Meriem Chabani part II, architect 26.04.2024 37p

This is the second part of our interview with Meriem Chabani, co-founder of New South, an international architecture, urban design and research practice based in Paris and Brussels. Our last episode left off as Meriem explained her architecture graduation project Remade in Bangladesh, where she looked at how new urban planning and architecture could improve the working conditions and the versatility of the Bangladesh’s landscape. If you want to see images of the projects discussed please go to our instagram account @theartofsocialchange. Enjoy the episode !

Meriem Chabani, architect 22.03.2024 36p

For our 31st episode we spoke to Meriem Chabani, co-founder of New South Architects. New South is an international architecture, urban design and research practice based in Paris and Brussels. During our conversation we discussed how relationships of power are present in cities, often taking the form of architecture and urban planning. We explored the idea of working from the point of view of the global south in order to find solutions that may also apply elsewhere. Our interview got so good that we ended up dividing this episode in two parts. We will be releasing part 2 in the coming weeks. If you would like to see images of the projects we discussed during the podcast you can go to our Instagram account @theartofsocialchange. We hope you enjoy this episode!

Monica de Miranda, artist 19.01.2024 39p

For our 29th episode we spoke to Angolan-Portuguese artist Mónica de Miranda in Lisbon. Monica’s research-led practice is grounded in the concepts of urban archeology and emotional geography. Her films, installations and photographs are inspired by her own personal story and anchored in postcolonial politics, emancipation and identity. During our interview we discussed her recent film The Island, her installation Mirage and the series of photographs titled Shadows Fall Behind. If you would like to see images of the works we discussed during the podcast you can go to our Instagram account @theartofsocialchange. We hope you enjoy this episode!

Chaveli Sifre, artist 30.11.2023 27p

For our 29th episode, Alix had a conversation with Chaveli Sifre while visiting La Embajada’s booth in Liste, a fair in Switzerland dedicated to international, independent galleries and spaces. In her gallery's booth, Chaveli was conducting an experiment. Sitting in a corner, looking over a glass contraption, she distilled an odd mixture of water, money given to her or found in wishing wells, and locally sourced "healing alpine plants". Through this performance, Sifre explored the reduction of bodies to capital and means to reverse this process. Listen to the full episode to find out more about this serendipitous encounter.

Marielsa Castro, curator 30.06.2023 51p

In our 28th episode, curator Marielsa Castro made us wonder, What does it take to construct the bonds that bind communities together? How can we create genuine relationships with our neighbors?During our conversation, we discussed how her interest in collectivity and commoning has led her to be a part of the cooperative Coopia and how this has influenced her current role in the Jumex Museum in Mexico City. She walked us through the museum’s recent project Museos en Común, where the entire team sought to build a long-lasting bond with with the people of their neighboring food market Mercado Granada.As usual If you would like to see images of the artworks and projects we discuss on the podcast, and to stay up to date on the upcoming episodes you can go to our Instagram account @theartofsocialchange.

Yoshua Okón, artist 08.05.2023 43p

For this episode, we had a conversation with Yoshua Okón. Yoshua was born in Mexico City in 1970, where he currently lives and where Gabriela met with him. His work ressembles a series of near sociological experiments executed for the camera. They blend stage situations, documentation, and improvisation to question our perceptions of reality and truth. In this episode, Gaby and Yoshua talked about staging real life soap operas, about police forces in Mexico, Astroturfing, about sneaking into a Los Angeles cinema set, political slogans, the movie industry and so many other things. Enjoy!

Filipa Cesar, artist & Marinho de Pina, architect 01.04.2023 42p

For our 26th episode we had a conversation with artist and Afield fellow Filipa Cesar and architect Marinho de Pina. We talked about their historic and personal bonds to the country of Guinea-Bissau and its war of independence. They walked us through their efforts in preserving the country's historic footage of the revolution and the unique place they created in order to continue with this dream: the Mediateca Onshore.

Sandra Terdjman & Abi Tariq, AFIELD 06.03.2023 36p

For this 25th episode we had a conversation with Sandra Terdjman and Abi Tariq from AFIELD, an initiative that feels very close to what we strive to do on the podcast. AFIELD is an international network of cultural changemakers created in 2014. It awards fellowships for social initiatives from arts and culture, organizes events, leads a study program, and many other things. AFIELD is anchored in the fundamental belief that artists are essential to the fabric of society, as thinkers, visionaries and changemakers. By providing the resources and support, AFIELD believes in their profound capacity to lead transformational change in their communities and in society as a whole.

Gaëlle Choisne, artist 31.01.2023 45p

For our 24th episode we had a conversation with Gaëlle Choisne. She told us the serendipitous accident that prompted her to become an artist, a fateful event that catalyzed her multi-disciplinary artistic practice. Between occult fables and objective sciences, Choisne navigates through imaginaries as composite as the techniques which give them shape. She told us about her mixed heritage and how visiting her mother’s country, Haiti inspired some of her recent films. Together we explored several of her performances about love and collective healing, showing us how her works address the world’s disorder through a creative lense.

Joana Hadjithomas & Khalil Joreige, artists 01.01.2023 46p

For this episode we had a conversation with Joana Hadjithomas and Khalil Joreige, a fascinating duo of artists and filmmakers. They walked us through their first encounter growing up in the tumultuous Lebanon and how this shaped their artistic practice. In films and installations, the artists examine the unreliability of images, history, memories, and even first-person experiences in narrating the world around us.

Martha Wilson part II, artist 01.12.2022 44p

For our 22nd episode, Gaby recorded a continuation of our interview with Martha Wilson, this time in New York. Last time we met Martha as she was preparing for her first solo-show at the Pompidou Center and it turns out that Paris left quite an impression on her, so she decided to return and make a brand new project titled Generations of Feminism in France. In this episode we talk about her venturing from a photography-based practice to a completely different format. We discussed the ways in which trauma can be channeled into creative practices and conversed about the invisible challenges that become apparent once we reveal patriarchal structures.

Ndayé Kouagou, artist 08.06.2022 39p

Our 21th episode with artist Ndayé Kouagou was full of questions. The artist revealed how a situation of crisis led him to daringly enter the world of art. He walked us through his performance works and talked about the importance of constantly questioning oneself. Ndayé Kouagou (1992) is an artist and performer based in Paris; his practice always starts from texts of which he is the author. Voluntarily or involuntarily confused, he tries as best as he can to bring a reflection on these three topics; unease, power and vulnerability.