Boston is known for many things, but it has never been known for hosting a world-class art triennial. That is changing thanks to the creation of the Boston Public Art Triennial, which will host its debut edition in May 2025. With an impressive in-house team and advisory boards, as well as an exciting lineup of confirmed artists, this ambitious new program is ramping up to be an unmissable event. With deep local roots, the team charged with developing and executing this exhibition are keenly aware of the local opportunities and constraints as they relate to providing equitable access to art throughout the city.
Whitewall sat down with Kate Gilbert, Executive Director; Pedro Alonzo, Artistic Director; and Marguerite Wynter, Director of Partnerships & Engagement about the exciting new program, how it came into existence, and what people should know ahead of next year’s inaugural edition.
Portrait courtesy of Kate Gilbert.
WHITEWALL: Can you tell us a bit about the history of this new Triennial and how it transformed from an idea into reality?
KATE GILBERT: The Boston Public Art Triennial is the now-seemingly inevitable outgrowth of Now + There, a public art organization I founded in 2015 as an extension of my art practice and out of sheer frustration with the unrealized potential of my adopted city. This was at a point when Boston’s visual landscape didn’t match the cultural, civic, and technological innovation happening in the region. Really smart, talented people were coming here but leaving too quickly, citing our closed ways—an anemic nightlife, divided neighborhoods, and siloed industries and social circles.
After nine years and over 50 temporary public art installations with local, national, and global artists, we realized that one of the most exciting effects of the work we were fostering was the conversations and subsequent collaborations. For instance, a state legislator used an 18-month project by Ann Lewis, who worked with incarcerated women, as a time clock to effect criminal justice reform. We started seeing a cause-and-effect, a receptivity to diverse opinions and their representation in our shared public spaces, and dare I say, an “opening” of this city.
The Boston Public Art Triennial came from a line of questioning, “How can we focus our work to increase engagement, invite more institutions to partner with us, and create a critical mass of artworks that help us reimagine a more open, vibrant, and equitable Boston?”
My hope is that people will come for the Triennial’s first-of-a-kind, that they’re inspired by the artist-led, expert-informed installations of “The Exchange”, and that they commit to being part of the change. And, of course, who doesn’t go into this work of democratizing contemporary culture and ‘ennial production not hoping to redefine contemporary art practices?
Portrait courtesy of Pedro Alonzo.
Developing a Resonant and Impactful Triennial in Boston
WW: Can you talk about your role as curator and Artistic Director, and how you collaborate with the Triennial’s other curator, Tess Lukey?
PEDRO ALONZO: In order to make meaningful change it is important to create space for young people and young ideas. In order to make the Triennial more resonant and impactful, it was critical to incorporate a young curator. I realize that at my stage in life and career, I tend to see the world in a specific way. It is important to work with a curator who has a different perspective of the art world. I developed the initial concept of “The Exchange”. However, together we fully developed the curatorial premise as well as selected the artists and are working together to develop the projects. Although each of us works directly with certain artists we are in constant communication and tapping into each other’s networks to develop the projects.
“In order to make meaningful change it is important to create space for young people and young ideas,”
Pedro Alonzo
WW: What is the significance of the exhibition title, “The Exchange”?
PA: “The Exchange” comes from living in Boston for 17 years. Boston is a city of experts. They are everywhere, in every field. However, experts are often challenged in developing compelling narratives that resonate with a broader audience outside their specialty. Meanwhile, artists are natural storytellers whose work can help us see the work differently. The idea is to bring artists and experts to develop meaningful artworks that resonate across the city. Tapping into local experts has the advantage of automatically building community outside the traditional art world audience. This method also highlights the great work that is being done in Boston in many fields.
Julian Charriere, “Not All Who Wander Are Lost”, 2019, © Julian Charriere; VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn, Germany.
Unique Collaborations with Experts and Artists
WW: There seem to be biennials and triennials opening and closing all over the country and world. I’m curious to hear your thoughts about what makes this event so unique.
PA: The collaborations between experts and artists make the Triennial unique. Because we are working with experts in many fields, not only academics and researchers but practitioners working with homeless youth as well as animal welfare, we are presenting a complex and varied panoramic view of Boston. We have been very careful with the selection process, inviting artists who see this as an opportunity to expand their practice. I am certain this will result in excellent artworks.
WW: Are there any other details about some of the projects being realized for the opening that you are able to share?
PA: I can say that Patrick Martinez is working with Breaktime, an organization that deals with homeless youth, to bring attention to and humanize an issue that we tend to forget. Laura Lima, the Brazilian artist, is working with an animal sanctuary, to study wildlife habitat and behavior in order to create sculptures that enhance the lives of wildlife. I love the idea of art for animals.
This puts the idea of why art is made and who it is for on its head. Lastly, Swoon is working to challenge the stories that we tell about addiction.
Stephen Hamilton, “Worshippers of the Water Spirit,” courtesy of the artist.
Dynamic Support by Local Partners like Breaktime
WW: Who are some of the local partners you are working with to realize this exhibition?
MARGUERITE WYNTER: We are looking forward to working with many local partners for the first Boston Public Art Triennial in Boston; including many that have supported us throughout the years of the organization such as Design for Social Intervention (DS4SI) and the Rose Kennedy Greenway, plus new partners like Breaktime, Speak for the Trees, North American Indian Center of Boston, and many more to come.
Fostering relationships between artists and the public is a big part of our values, and in creating this first for Boston, a public art triennial, it’s not possible without our partners, from the visual and performing arts to civic organizations and beyond.
“Fostering relationships between artists and the public is a big part of our values,”
Marguerite Wynter
WW: What are some of the ways you plan to engage and connect with your audience ahead of the opening next year?
MW: Our extensive community engagement work has already begun! The Triennial is committed to engagement and reciprocity with all the neighborhoods in Boston, even the ones that will not feature Triennial projects for this edition. This is enacted by design through collaboration with a paid Community Advisory Group, whose members are known as Community Captains, and are critical linkages to artworks being site-specific. The Community Captains represent a myriad of disciplines from arts and culture workers to civic organizers to youth leaders. Captains help engage community members and help us understand what neighbors want to see and experience in their communities, which leads to the development of our public programming throughout the edition.
This spring we hosted Triennial Community Listening Sessions to focus on creating dialogue and understanding to build networks throughout Greater Boston. Facilitated by members of the Community Advisory Group, the Listening Sessions provide space for conversation and reflection with neighbors about their neighborhoods, allowing us to learn more about how to meaningfully engage with residents.
Public art can be a catalyst for conversations on present issues in communities, such as climate justice and freedom and democracy, and we hope that with our learnings from the sessions, we can develop public programming to reflect “The Exchange”.
Laura Lima, “Communal Nest #1,” 2021, courtesy the artist and Tanya Bonakdar Gallery, NY-LA.
Patrick Martinez, Installation view of the Kenneth C. Griffin Hall (Whitney Museum of American Art, NY, 2023).
