Monuments and Political Speech

September 23, 2020 — What are the circumstances that allow for speech to become political? How is political speech encouraged or restrained? In recent months monuments have become sites for civic discourse, where we debate the ways in which we want to reform or revolutionize our social structures. This event invited some of the artists for Commonwealth whose work addresses these issues, to be in dialogue with invited panelists. Panelists included Artistic Director and Co-founder of Monument Lab Paul Farber; photographer and visual journalist Brian Palmer; and three of the artists commissioned as part of Commonwealth: Sharon Hayes, Nelson Rivera, and Mónica Rodríguez. Moderated by Commonwealth co-curator and Chair of Painting + Printmaking at Virginia Commonwealth University Noah Simblist.