What does it mean to be a Syrian artist living in exile today? How does one organize a cultural community of practitioners that exists more concretely virtually than it does in person? With the whole world involved in the Syrian crisis, what do Syrian artists do to get their displaced community actively involved in the global art scene? What does it mean to create the first mobile Syrian Biennale, which traces the route of refugees from Lebanon to Central Europe?

The discussion exploring these questions and more was held Khaled Barakeh, coculture's founder and director. Working in the incredibly crucial nexus of art, activism, migration, and community-building, Khaled gave a lecture on his artistic practice, coculture's activities which elevate the work of other migrant artists from the Middle-East, and his experience using art as a tool for social change and in response to the Syrian crisis. MacDowell poet alumna Eileen Myles introduced the artist and his presentation was followed by a conversation with MacDowell alumna Dahlia Elsayed.

Held on October 28th 2019, this event was presented by the Artists at Risk Connection, MacDowell Colony, and ArteEast and made possible thanks to the generous support of the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts and the Violet Jabara Trust. Additional support for this program was provided by the Middle East Institute's Arts and Culture Center through a grant from the Ford Foundation-IIE.