Artists and Poets Unite in Chelsea for a Night of Community and Emotional Expression
### The Art of Gathering: Reflecting on the “Remember to Dream: Election Day Reading”
When the turbulent political climate of the United States collided with Election Day on November 5, 2024, in New York City, amidst the uncertainties and anxieties, the art world provided an alternative—an oasis of reflection, creativity, and shared experience. An event hosted inside Gladstone Gallery in the heart of Chelsea, titled *”Remember to Dream: Election Day Reading,”* transformed into a space of creative solace for those seeking reprieve from impending election results and the tense atmosphere gripping the nation.
#### Art as a Refuge for Reflection
Curated by multidisciplinary artist and poet **Carrie Mae Weems**, the event was part of her larger exhibition *”The Shape of Things” (2021)*—an immersive installation of mixed-media that turned the gallery into a meditative cyclorama. It was a surreal but intimate experience, free of polling booths and partisan discussions. Eschewing the electoral anxiety of the outside world, the evening stretched from 3 pm to midnight, offering a program of live performances, poetry readings, and music, reflecting on social, political, and cultural issues.
Inside the walls of Weems’s *Shape of Things*, a rotating group of poets, artists, and performers shared their work. Prolific poet **Terrance Hayes** read pieces from his earlier collection, “American Sonnets for My Past and Future Assassin,” inspired by the divisive first term of Donald Trump. The lines, “Things got terribly ugly incredibly quickly…,” reverberated through the gallery, echoing the sentiment many attendees felt about their nation’s trajectory.
As guests gathered in seats and sprawled out on the floor, they were reminded by these artists that art is not merely escapism but an expressive force that can reckon with discomfort and uncertainty. Many works shared that day wrestled with themes of race, power, political violence, and cultural identity, making the gallery a hub of cathartic expression in a fraught time.
#### A Multidisciplinary Experience
The event curated by Nigerian-American poet **Precious Okoyomon**, poet **Vincent Katz**, and multidisciplinary artist **Brian DeGraw** in collaboration with Thai artist **Rirkrit Tiravanija**, emphasized breaking out of the conventional boundaries of artistic gatherings. Outside the gallery, the assembly spilled onto the streets, where attendees enjoyed free food—**paella-style chicken and lamb rice dishes**—served from a makeshift kitchen. These community tables, set up under Chelsea’s fall sky, blurred the line between participants and artists, creating shared experiences that were reflective of deeper communal gatherings.
Inside, poet and sound artist **LaTasha Nevada Diggs** drew from her recent collection *Village* (2023). The collection spoke to the intricate relationship between art and caretaking, further illustrating how artists must navigate both creative and material worlds. Diggs’s reading was accompanied by jazz improvisations from musician **Marty Erlich**, whose saxophone melodies echoed through the gallery, adding depth to the poetry being shared.
A variety of media and expressions animated the gathering. Verses drew parallels between historical and contemporary political struggles, while projections on the walls interspersed clips documenting racial injustices alongside videos of a laughing Weems as she swung playfully on a botanical swing—these contrasting images highlighted both the pain and joy that art can capture.
#### Conversations About Liberation
Zooming in from a remote location, poet **Eileen Myles** read their intense poem *”Them (Palestinians),”* which addressed Israeli violence in Gaza and the West Bank. The juxtaposition of international issues within the local context of the election was a reminder of the interconnectedness of global justice struggles.
Later in the evening, **Erica Hunt**, another established poet and organizer, read her works while Erlich continued providing a musical backdrop. Poet **Funto Omojola**, pulling from their forthcoming collection *If I Gather Here and Shout*, drew attention to cultural practices in Nigeria and the violence inflicted on Black populations by Western medical institutions. This thematic range gestured at the expansive nature of the evening—where poetry and art became tools for confronting inequities and voicing oppressed narratives.
#### Activating Art Spaces for Mutual Aid
Much more than an isolated cultural event, the gathering sparked discussions on the potential of art spaces as platforms for both creativity and activism. In a post-event interview, LaTasha Nevada Diggs envisioned how arts communities could continue their work beyond Election Day, thinking about the gallery not only as a place for art but also as a hub for mutual aid—food pantries, soup kitchens, and other forms of community support coming together under the banner of creativity.
“Last night’s event was wonderful for its intimacy and its timely distraction from the election,” Terrance Hayes commented afterward, reflecting on the need for spaces where people come together for purposes beyond voting—spaces of reflection, questioning, and art