Rethink Public Art:
Art, Community and Peace in a Complex World

Jack Becker, co-founder and executive director of Forecast Public Art, publishers of Public Art Review, will join Anne “Ahni” Rocheleau, founder and director of Spaces for Peace, and Erica Behrens, director of the New York office of Franz Mayer of Munich, on Thursday, April 9 at 6:00 pm for a panel discussion about rethinking the role of public art in connecting art, community and peace in a complex society.

Their panel presentation will examine how to connect art, community and peace in our complex society. Jack Becker will discuss public art and community building, with an emphasis on art that bridges cultures, brings people together and addresses conflict. Ahni Rocheleau will share a visual presentation on how her organization provides groundwork knowledge to create cultures of peace through public art sites. Erica Behrens will discuss Franz Mayer’s fabrication techniques and how the firm works with artists’ designs and clients globally. The presenters will then field audience questions.

Jack Becker has actively pursued his passion for art in public spaces since 1976. A graduate of the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, he specializes in projects that connect the ideas and energies of artists with the needs and opportunities of communities. He is the editor of Public Art Review, the world’s leading journal devoted exclusively to the field of contemporary public art.

Anne “Ahni” Rocheleau founded Spaces for Peace in 2004. The former director and curator of The Rhode Island Foundation Gallery, Ahni has worked as an arts educator and administrator in nonprofit, government, museum and academic worlds. Spaces for Peace collaborates with communities to build open-air public art sites that educate the public to a nonviolent way of life. These sites represent a singular fusion of contemporary visual and sound art with written word, integrated into landscaped architectural spaces in plazas, parks and on campuses.

For more than 16 years, Erica Behrens has worked with artists on public art projects at various stages. Behrens managed highly successful public art projects with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Art for Transit Program in New York City for 11 years. In her current position with Franz Mayer, Behrens works with artist’s designs and clients globally.

Santa Fe Complex is located at 632 Agua Fria Street. Limited parking is available by entering on Romero Street or Manhattan Avenue. Additional paid parking is available at the City of Santa Fe Railyard Parking Garage. “Rethink Public Art” is partnership between the City of Santa Fe Arts Commission, New Mexico Arts, a division of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, Santa Fe Complex and Spaces for Peace.