Author, scholar and activist Todd Gitlin discusses “Art Making in an Age of Uncertainty” for ASU’s Forkosh Hirshman Art and Society lecture series

TEMPE, Ariz. – Todd Gitlin, a professor of journalism and sociology at Columbia University and author of several books – most recently “Letters to a Young Activist” – will lecture on “Art Making in an Age Uncertainty” at 7:30 p.m., Feb. 9, in Katzin Hall, on the Arizona State University campus. Gitlin’s free lecture is sponsored by the ASU Art Museum’s annual Forkosh Hirshman Art and Society lecture series, developed by Valley residents Linda Hirshman and David Forkosh to foster dialogue about cultural and social issues. 

Gitlin will talk about how America’s media-saturated society has influenced art making. “When entertainment is the non-stop wall-to-wall stuff of airport lounges and elevators, auto commutes and waiting rooms, what happens to art?” queries Gitlin. “How do artists, also clamoring for attention, keep from becoming nothing more than the foam on the 24/7 entertainment torrent?”

During the 1960s, Gitlin was an activist and news writer who helped organized the first national demonstration against the Vietnam War. His analyses of media and society have been widely published in the national and international press and he has appeared on numerous television and radio programs, including NPR’s “Morning Edition.” He holds degrees from Harvard University, the University of Michigan and the University of California, Berkeley and has taught journalism and sociology for more than 25 years. Gitlin’s books include “The Twilight of Common Dreams: Why America is Wracked by Culture Wars” and “The Sixties: Years of Hope, Days of Rage.” He frequently lectures on culture and politics and according to The Philadelphia Inquirer, “Letters to a Young Activist” should “evolve into a classic guide for its audience.” 

The Forkosh Hirshman Art and Society lecture series, made possible by the FMH Foundation, also is sponsoring a brunch with Gitlin at 11 a.m., Sunday, Feb. 8, at the Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale. Artists Pedro Alvarez (Cuba), Lawrence Gipe (California) and Jeanne Silverthorne (New York) will join a discussion with Gitlin, offering an artist’s perspective on art-making in an age of uncertainty. Tickets are $25. For more information, call 480-965-2787. 

The ASU Art Museum, named “the single most impressive venue for contemporary art in Arizona” by Art in America, is part of the Herberger College of Fine Arts at Arizona State University.

Media Contact:
Denise Tanguay 
480.965.7144
denise.tanguay@asu.edu