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Social Alchemy Symposium
Hosted by Big Car CollaborativeReconnect with others through conversations about the roles of art, design and place in society, while enjoying respite in the town of New Harmony, the site of two historic utopian experiments in communal living.
Event Details
Artists, placemakers, writers, historians, designers, architects, philosophers, urban and rural city planners, and community organizers are invited to converge in New Harmony, Indiana—famous site of two utopian experiments—for an exploration of imagination, history and design in the quest for ideal communities.
HIGHLIGHTS
From the evening of Sunday, April 10, to the evening of Wednesday, April 13, the symposium will feature:
- Conversations with more than 20 notable authors, artists designers, researchers, philosophers and historians—from Indiana and around the world—about utopias/dystopias and the role of utopian thinking yesterday, today and tomorrow
- Visualizing Spaces, an art exhibition at the New Harmony Gallery of Contemporary Art
- A film screening
- Self-guided activities
CONFIRMED SPEAKERS
- Darran Anderson, Irish author who wrote Imaginary Cities and whose work focuses on the intersections of urbanism, culture, technology and politics [virtual talk]
- Maurice Broaddus, author of fiction centered on utopian and dystopian ideas through the genres of science fiction, urban fantasy and horror
- Cara Courage, executive director of the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit and scholar in the realms of socially engaged art and placemaking
- Susan Neville, creative nonfiction author, short-story writer and professor emerita of English at Butler University with interests in dystopia and place
- David Rubin, founder of the Land Collective in Philadelphia and Indianapolis and recipient of the Rome Prize in Landscape Architecture whose empathy-driven approach addresses issues of social justice through the design of public spaces
- Emily St. John Mandel, author of the 2015 utopian/dystopian novel Station Eleven and other books and essays
- Kent Schuette, New Harmony–based professor emeritus of architecture and urban design at Purdue University
TENTATIVE SCHUDULE
While some details are yet to be finalized, you can view a tentative schedule here.
WHY ATTEND?
- To gain a deep understanding—via history, literature, philosophy and design—of the relationship between the built environment and social good
- To connect with others interested in imagining and planning better communities
- To experience the extraordinary atmosphere and architecture of New Harmony, nestled at the convergence of the Ohio and the Wabash rivers and steeped in a historic utopian spirit
REGISTRATION
The symposium is free to attend, but its organizer, Big Car Collaborative, suggests a $125 donation from participants who are not residents of New Harmony. To register, click on the RSVP link above or visit the symposium’s Eventbrite page.
Conference attendees receive a special $89/night rate at the New Harmony Inn Resort and Conference Center. Call 812.682.4431 to book and mention “Social Alchemy Symposium.” Click here for other lodging options.
SYMPOSIUM PRESENTERS
The Social Alchemy Symposium is presented by Big Car Collaborative in partnership with the University of Southern Indiana, Historic New Harmony, the New Harmony Gallery of Contemporary Art, the Working Men’s Institute, the Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites, Pattern Magazine, the University of Indianapolis and the New Harmony Project.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Contact Big Car Collaborative at info@bigcar.org.
The Social Alchemy Symposium received support from an Indiana Humanities Collaboration Grant and from the Efroymson Family Fund.