The opening night reception for In Common: New Approaches with Romare Bearden is hosted by Mary Watson, Executive Dean of the Schools of Public Engagement at The New School.

The exhibition highlights Romare Bearden’s work as an artist, educator, scholar, songwriter, and social activist. Drawing from the Romare Bearden Foundation collection and other private collections, the exhibition presents a selection of works demonstrating Bearden’s keen exploration of race and racial stereotypes, often taking inspiration from history, literature, the Bible, jazz, and African American communities. His work is complemented by six leading and emerging contemporary artists—Black Quantum Futurism, Kahlil Robert Irving, Lorraine O’Grady, Hank Willis Thomas, Mickalene Thomas, and Charisse Pearlina Weston—whose visions resonate with those of Bearden and contribute to a multigenerational dialogue on the political agency of art.