Citizen Artist

Bay Lights visionary creator Leo Villareal, crowdsourcing composer Tod Machover of the MIT Media Lab, and NYC’s entrepreneurial Cultural Commissioner Kate Levin discuss the growing influence of public art and technology on our cities with the Knight Foundation's Dennis Scholl. Kate D. Levin Tod Machover Leo Villareal Dennis Scholl

Arts Strike is a dialogue between artists, schools and communities first piloted by Yo-Yo Ma and Damian Woetzel in 2010. This special discussion and demonstration for the Aspen Ideas Festival highlights the unique power of the arts to educate and engage, and will feature local Colorado children alongside renowned artists, several of whom have participated in Arts Strikes in schools across the country. Yo-Yo Ma Cristina Pato Charles "Lil Buck" Riley Damian Woetzel Tracy Straus Anna Deavere Smith

Can the pairing of young Israeli and Palestinian children as dance partners create opportunities for a more peaceful future? And what is the potency today of cultural diplomacy? Enjoy a preview of the upcoming film Dancing in Jaffa prior to its official release. Post-screening, ballroom legend Pierre Dulaine and film producer Diane Nabatoff discuss this documented return to Dulaine’s hometown of Jaffa, Israel, to extend the reach of his global Dancing Classrooms project, previously celebrated in the award-winning film Mad Hot Ballroom. A presentation of "New Views: Documentaries and Dialogue." Co-presented by the Aspen Institute and AspenFILM, and made possible by generous donations from Leonard Lauder and Jane and Michael Eisner. Speakers: Pierre Dulaine, Diane Nabatoff, Damian Woetzel

Join Design for Change founder Kiran Bir Sethi in a hands-on workshop where you yourself become a designer, and learn how to put your ideas for a better world into action! Engage in the type of creative challenge that has inspired and empowered over 25 million children across the globe – in 34 countries and over 300,000 schools – to design innovative pathways to change. Speakers: Kiran Bir Sethi

Known internationally for his light sculptures and site-specific architectural works –which galvanize attention and bring us into closer connection with our cities and communities – Leo Villareal has lit up San Francisco Bay with 25,000, computer-controlled LEDs, in what Christo calls “a milestone in Public Art”. Underwritten by US Trust Speakers: Leo Villareal

World-renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma, 2013 Harman-Eisner artist in residence, discusses his far-reaching vision for how artists can practice their citizenship, as individuals and through institutions—and how the arts fulfill a fundamental human need by forging and strengthening community. Speakers: Yo-Yo Ma, Damian Woetzel

How can Music Directors contribute solutions to challenges facing their communities today? Join a group of distinguished conductors who are artists, community leaders and cultural thinkers, for an enlightening conversation about musical citizenship. (This session is the culminating event of a symposium convened by Harman-Eisner Artist in Residence Yo-Yo Ma, on music and community mobilizing in the 21st Century.) Speakers: Yo-Yo Ma, Damian Woetzel, Mei-Ann Chen, Martha Gilmer, Robert Spano, Scott Speck, Michael Stern, Alastair Willis, David Alan Miller

How do the arts intersect with our world differently now than ever before? Join these founders of dynamic organizations that are changing the way we educate, empower, and inspire communities, by giving artists and the public a voice and hand in change. Speakers: Charles Best, Kiran Bir Sethi, Monica Yunus, Darren Walker

What is the role of art in improving, enriching, and enhancing community, especially in places burdened with poverty? How can we ensure that all have access to ways to express themselves, and to find their voice as artists and as citizens? And how can art and culture challenge us, in a time of deep inequality, to make a truly rich society? This session examines these questions and more. Speakers: Melody Barnes, Damian Woetzel, Eric Liu