7pm Doors Open for Live Music by Alex Kimball Williams
7:30pm Film
(Film running time: 53min)
8:45pm Q&A with Artist Dario Robleto

The Aorta of an Archivist traces three “firsts” in the history of recording: the first time live music and singing were recorded, the first time brain waves were recorded in a dream state, and the first time a human heartbeat was recorded while listening to music. These stories are told through narration, sound, and visuals drawn from a variety of sources, including still images of historic events, footage from NASA, and photographs of experiments Robleto conducted in a makeshift laboratory.

Aorta of an Archivist was commissioned by the Spencer Museum of Art. This world premiere in-theatre screening will feature live audio description by the Audio-Reader Network and American Sign Language interpretation for an accessibility-friendly experience!

Guests:

Dario Robleto is a transdisciplinary artist, researcher, writer, and teacher based in Houston, Texas. He has exhibited his work extensively since 1997 at museums such as the Menil Collection, Houston, TX, and the Whitney Museum of American Art. His work has been profiled in numerous publications and media including Radiolab, Krista Tippet’s On Being, and the New York Times. He has served as a researcher and resident at institutions such as Rice University, the Smithsonian Museum of American History, the SETI Institute and the Radcliffe Institue for Advanced Study at Harvard University. He is currently serving as an Artist-in-Residence in Neuroaesthetics at the University of Houston’s Cullen College of Engineering and as Artist-at-Large at Northwestern University’s McCormick School of Engineering and the Block Museum of Art. In 2016 he was appointed as the Texas State Artist Laureate.

Alex Kimball Williams is a multicultural writer, speaker, musician & scientist. They operate within several groups, including BLACK Lawrence (Black Literature & Arts Collective of Kansas), Epicenter (East-side People’s Intercultural Center) & Girls Rock Lawrence. Their work often focuses on identity politics, ethnic conflict, culture & the beauty of people of color. Kimball Williams is the recipient of the 2018 MLK Dreamer’s award, a local award given to one person per year for spreading a revolutionary vision & change in the community. Whether it’s performing protest songs, writing articles online or teaching inclusion & cultural competence, Kimball Williams radically stirs up the community with their multicultural & scientific approach to issues of social & environmental justice.