ARC - Artists at Risk Connection

ARC - Artists at Risk Connection ARC safeguards the right to artistic freedom of expression

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Museums and cultural institutions today are increasingly confronted with censorship, political and social pressure, publ...
06/01/2026

Museums and cultural institutions today are increasingly confronted with censorship, political and social pressure, public controversy, and self-censorship — raising urgent questions about artistic and academic freedom.

Tomorrow, on June 2, ARC Executive Director Julie Trébault will participate in “Museums Under Pressure,” an evening debate hosted by ICOM France in Paris and online, bringing together museum leaders, cultural professionals, and advocates to discuss the growing challenges facing the cultural sector.

As part of ARC’s ongoing work to advance artistic freedom and cultural rights, the conversation will explore how museums can continue to encourage civic dialogue, critical thinking, and meaningful public exchange while protecting curatorial and academic freedom.

Featured speakers include Souâd Belhaddad, Xavier de la Selle, Vincent Moisselin, Manon Six, and Julie Trébault, moderated by Hélène Jagot.

📍 6pm-8:30pm CET, 2 June 2026 | Ecole du Louvre, Paris & Online
🗣 Simultaneous interpretation available in English, French, and Spanish.

Register here: https://ow.ly/FcXz50Z6jGx

Artist to Artist | Building ResilienceThrough ARC’s Cuban Migrant Artists Resilience Fellowship, filmmaker Fernando Frag...
05/27/2026

Artist to Artist | Building Resilience

Through ARC’s Cuban Migrant Artists Resilience Fellowship, filmmaker Fernando Fraguela Fosado and mentor Quinn Halleck are engaging in an artist-to-artist exchange grounded in mentorship, storytelling, and creative resilience.

Fernando, whose work examines identity, exile, and resistance through intimate filmmaking, reflected on the experience:

"Quinn’s guidance has gone beyond the technical aspects of my short film. He has guided me from an auteur perspective, with the empathy of a director who understands both artistic vision and the realities of the industry."

Mentorship is one way ARC helps build resilience by creating pathways for artists to access community, knowledge, and creative support across borders.

Explore how ARC is building resilience through fellowships globally:
https://ow.ly/oUNW50Z4R22

Today, on the UN World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development, we’re reflecting on a meaningful moment ...
05/21/2026

Today, on the UN World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development, we’re reflecting on a meaningful moment from September 2025 at in Barcelona.

ARC’s Executive Director Julie Trébault joined global cultural leaders for the side event “Weaving Cultural Futures: Artistic Freedom, Feminist Advocacy, Local Governance in Action,” exploring how artistic freedom, feminist advocacy, and local governance can work together to shape inclusive cultural futures.

ongoing efforts to advance artistic freedom within international cultural policy discussions, the conversation highlighted the importance of protecting cultural rights and supporting diverse artistic voices worldwide.

Featured speakers included Jordi Pascual, Oriol Martí Samba, Sally Abu Bakr, Ana Francis Mor, and Romina Bianchini Ferrero / Mujeres x la Cultura Network.

Today, we reaffirm that artistic freedom is fundamental to cultural diversity and cultural rights. When artists and communities can create, express themselves, and participate in cultural life without fear, more inclusive and vibrant societies can thrive.

05/18/2026

Museums are more than places that preserve history. They help shape how societies understand themselves.

On International Museum Day, ARC Executive Director Julie Trébault reflects on her years working inside museums and cultural institutions, and why their civic role feels especially urgent today.

As censorship and political pressure continue to impact artists, educators, writers, and cultural workers around the world, this statement asks an important question:
Can cultural institutions remain neutral when freedom of expression and historical memory are under threat?



American Alliance of Museums, Association of Art Museum Directors, and International Council of Museums - ICOM

05/16/2026

Scenes from Frieze New York 2026. 🗽

From emerging artists to works engaging questions of identity, displacement, resistance, and cultural
memory, this year’s fair reflects many of the urgent conversations shaping contemporary art today.

At a moment of growing political and social uncertainty globally, spaces like Frieze continue to highlight how artists are helping communities process history, challenge dominant narratives, and imagine new possibilities.

Frieze Art Fair New York is on view May 13–17 at The Shed.

79% of cultural professionals say artificial intelligence threatens their livelihoods.But the impact is not evenly distr...
05/15/2026

79% of cultural professionals say artificial intelligence threatens their livelihoods.
But the impact is not evenly distributed.

While some countries are shaping regulations, building infrastructure, and influencing how culture circulates online, many others face structural barriers that limit their ability to participate in those decisions.

This creates a growing imbalance in who controls visibility, value, and cultural narratives in the digital age.

As AI continues to transform the cultural ecosystem, the question is not only how these systems work, but who they work for.

At ARC, we believe international advocacy is critical to protecting artists and ensuring that cultural rights are part of this global conversation.

Read the full article by Viviana Rangel on La Silla Vacía:
https://ow.ly/KNrJ50Z0hUs

What would more equitable cultural governance look like in practice?

******************

El 79% de los profesionales de la cultura considera que la inteligencia artificial amenaza sus medios de vida.

Pero el impacto no es igual para todos.

Mientras algunos países avanzan en regulación e infraestructura, muchos otros enfrentan limitaciones estructurales que dificultan su participación en estas decisiones.

Esto genera un desequilibrio creciente sobre quién controla la visibilidad, el valor y las narrativas culturales en el entorno digital.

A medida que la IA transforma el ecosistema cultural, la pregunta no es solo cómo funcionan estos sistemas, sino para quién funcionan.

En ARC, creemos que la incidencia internacional es clave para proteger a los artistas y garantizar que los derechos culturales formen parte de esta conversación global.

Lee el artículo completo de Viviana Rangel:
https://ow.ly/KNrJ50Z0hUs

¿Cómo sería una gobernanza cultural más justa en la práctica?

🌍 Around the world, artists and cultural workers are facing growing censorship, political persecution, displacement, and...
05/12/2026

🌍 Around the world, artists and cultural workers are facing growing censorship, political persecution, displacement, and violence.
On May 15, join Artists at Risk Connection, IMPACT , and the Program in Peacebuilding and the Arts at Brandeis University for an online conversation exploring how we build stronger systems of protection, solidarity, and support for artists at risk.
This timely discussion will feature Julie Trébault, alvin starks (Borealis Philanthropy), Tania Bruguera, and Majed Sawalha (بيت الصداقة الفلسطيني), alongside an audience Q&A on the realities artists are navigating today and what collective action can look like moving forward.
Artistic freedom is inseparable from human rights. These conversations matter.
🗓 May 15
💻 Free virtual event
✍️ Register in advance:
https://ow.ly/iA8n50YYn5e

ARC está realizando una breve encuesta dirigida a artistas cubanos viviendo en el exilio, la migración o el desplazamien...
05/11/2026

ARC está realizando una breve encuesta dirigida a artistas cubanos viviendo en el exilio, la migración o el desplazamiento.

El objetivo es comprender mejor las experiencias, necesidades y desafíos de la comunidad artística cubana fuera de Cuba, con el fin de desarrollar futuras iniciativas, oportunidades profesionales y programas de apoyo a largo plazo.
• 10–15 minutos
• Encuesta confidencial
• La encuesta permanecerá abierta después del 15 de mayo
• Las personas que respondan antes del 15 de mayo participarán en un sorteo donde una (1) persona será seleccionada para recibir un estipendio de $100 USD.

📩 Envíanos un mensaje privado para recibir el enlace de la encuesta.
🤍 También agradeceríamos mucho que compartieras esta publicación con artistas cubanos que conozcas.

Gracias por ayudar a fortalecer esta comunidad.

Today is artist Gao Zhen’s 70th birthday, and he is spending it in detention in China.Nearly two years after his arrest,...
05/10/2026

Today is artist Gao Zhen’s 70th birthday, and he is spending it in detention in China.

Nearly two years after his arrest, he remains imprisoned after a one-day trial. He’s being prosecuted for artworks created years before the law used against him even existed.

Gao Zhen, of the Gao Brothers, is being punished for artistic expression. His works have been seized, his health is deteriorating without proper medical care, and his family still cannot leave the country.

ARC joins 51 organizations in a global coalition calling for his immediate and unconditional release.
Read the full joint letter here: https://ow.ly/ccWC50YWMNW

Art is not a crime.

We’re deeply grateful to Frame Contemporary Art Finland and the Pavilion of Finland at the 61st International Art Exhibi...
05/08/2026

We’re deeply grateful to Frame Contemporary Art Finland and the Pavilion of Finland at the 61st International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia for their generous support of ARC – Artists at Risk Connection.

At a moment when the Venice Biennale brings global attention to artists, it also reflects the tensions shaping the cultural field today—questions of voice, representation, and the conditions under which art can be created and shared.

Around the world, many artists continue to face censorship, displacement, and risk simply for creating.

This support is more than a gesture. It contributes to ensuring that artists at risk can continue their work, remain visible, and stay connected to their communities. At this time, we remember the curatorial vision and leadership of the late Koyo Kouoh, whose work consistently challenged institutions to think more expansively, ethically, and transnationally about power, culture, and belonging.

Make sure to check out the pavilion and scan the QR code to support ARC, check out the link below to explore the pavilion: https://ow.ly/fNTv50YWzYg

Every contribution makes a difference—helping artists at risk stay safe, continue creating, and remain connected to their communities.

Visit the Pavilion of Finland at the Venice Biennale
9 May – 22 November 2026

Jenna Sutela, Aeolian Suite, 2026
Installation view, Pavilion of Finland
Photo: Ugo Carmeni. Courtesy of Frame Contemporary Art Finland

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