Mural Arts Institute: Symposium 2022 Opening Events

Mural Arts Institute is hosting a two-week long series of events exploring the intersection of environmental justice and art. While most events during the two weeks are virtual and free, September 14th will bring people together for a full day of in-person and hybrid programming at the Free Library of Philadelphia. Pre-registration is required, and sliding scale admission (Solidarity through Redistribution) ensures admission to the full Symposium, lunch, and admission to rooftop beer garden and networking event.

For full event descriptions, please visit the MAI Arts and Environmental Justice Symposium webpage.

A boxed lunch is included. Please fill out this form to let us know your dietary and accessibility needs.

Building upon the work of artists and activists stewarding this work across the country through the Arts and Environmental Justice Capacity Building Initiative, Mural Arts Philadelphia is bringing together conversations, workshops, and events that highlight transformative cultural practices and participatory public art that shift ecological, political, and social experiences of front-line communities.

This annual symposium invites you to engage with how creative people and practices are helping us explore the intersection of racial, environmental, and economic justice and meeting the specific calls of the moment. Please join us in person for a full day of programming at the Free Library of Philadelphia on September 14, and at hybrid events hosted in Austin, Bakersfield, Philadelphia, and Santa Fe from September 12 – 23, 2022.

The Mural Arts Institute is supported by The JPB Foundation and The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

Cost: Sliding Scale

If you are an individual paying out of pocket.

• Solidarity: $0 for full day symposium
• Stepping Up: $25 for full day symposium
• Full Cost: $100 for full day symposium
• Full Cost (Sponsored by your employer): $150
• Redistribution: $250 for full day symposium

If you are an individual signing up for the symposium, please use some of the questions below to help you assess your level of contribution. Questions are intended to offer an invitation of personal inquiry related to privilege and may illicit complex and non-binary answers. Ultimately, cost for attendance is a sliding scale and should align with your ability.

• Did you graduate from high school?
• Have you received degree(s) from institutions of higher education?
• Are you fully employed, with benefits?
• Is your employer covering the cost of your attendance to the symposium?
• Does your income support you, plus others?
• Are you primary caretaker of children or elders?
• Do complexities with your mental and/or physical health impact your ability to show up fully regularly throughout the week? Are you worried about being able to feed yourself or others who rely on you this week?
• Are you living paycheck to paycheck?
• Do you have significant debt?
• Do you, or your parents, own property?
• Are you a U.S Citizen or Permanent Resident
• Have your ancestors benefited from colonization, violence upon BIPOC communities, or extraction from the planet?

Income generated from ticket sales will support the Mural Arts Institute to offer low cost and free consulting to low-income artists, cultural workers, and activists.