The Fifth Annual Festival Albertine is in full swing this week with a series of events centered around “Reimagining Democracy.” Curated by renowned Russian-American journalist and author Masha Gessen, this festival brings together thinkers, authors, and artists from both sides of the Atlantic to “ask not what a democracy is but what it could be.” Upcoming panels include Rethinking Gender, The Mechanics of Democracy and A Different Path to Education. Each event is free to attend but spots fill up quickly. Seats are allocated on a first-come-first-served basis. If the event you want to go to is sold out, you can stream it live on the festival’s website. If you are an Untapped Cities Insider, you can grab one of the limited reserved seats available for Saturday night’s panels on A Different Path to Education and Redefining Normality and Disease. Not an Insider yet? Become a member today to gain access to free behind-the-scenes tours and special New York City events all year long!
CAPACITY: 10 guests. Spots allocated on a first come, first served basis.
REGISTRATION: Open now!
About the Redefining Normality and Disease Speakers:
Sara Hendren’s recent work includes collaborative public art and social design that engages the human body, technology, and the politics of disability. She frequently writes and lectures on prosthetics, disability studies, hybrid art-engineering practices, critical design, and related topics. Her work has been exhibited in the US and abroad and is held in the permanent collection at the Museum of Modern Art. In spring 2018, she is a Logan Nonfiction Fellow at the Carey Institute for Global Good. Johanna Hedva is a Korean American genderqueer artist. In 2015, Hedva published the manifesto Sick Woman Theory, in which they propose a mode of political protest centered around health care, coping, and sharing stories of living with disabilities in contemporary society.
Siri Hustvedt has a PhD in English literature from Columbia University and is a Lecturer in Psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medical College. The author of six novels, four collections of essays, and a work of nonfiction, Hustvedt is the recipient of numerous awards. Her work has been translated into more than thirty languages.
Laure Murat is the Director of the Center for European and Russian Studies at UCLA, and professor in the Department of French and Francophone Studies. She specializes in cultural studies, history of psychiatry, and queer theory. She is the author of several books, including The Man Who Thought He Was Napoleon. Towards a Political History of Psychiatry (2014), and is a columnist for the French newspaper Libération.
L’Oiseau Mouche is a theater company based in Roubaix, France that consists of 23 members, all of whom are professional actors with mental disabilities. Its working condition is highly collaborative, with everyone taking part in the cleaning, the welcoming of the audience, and other activities. Stéphane Frimat, the director of the company, and actress Alpérine will participate in the panel discussion.
Festival Albertine is presented in partnership with The Recanati-Kaplan Foundation, Susannah Hunnewell, Van Cleef & Arpels, Air France, Institut français, Onassis Foundation USA, Carnegie Corporation of New York, and Emily and James Hamilton. Generous support is provided by Champagne Pommery and Intercontinental New York Barclay. Media Partner: The New York Review of Books. Albertine Books is a bookshop and cultural center operated by the Cultural Services of the French Embassy in the US. Inaugurated in 2014, Festival Albertine has become a vital summit for discourse between leading French-speaking and American thinkers.
