Carrying forward the resonances of our ongoing exhibition Rays, Ripples, Residue, on view until April 26, the Spring 2026 season moves from witnessing and towards inhabiting. Rather than simply observing traces, this season invites participants to work from the inside-out, through sustained, process-oriented programming that emphasizes duration, depth, and collective learning.

This spring, 421 expands its role from a site of making into a space for ongoing inquiry and exchange. Through longer-form programs, emerging practitioners and curious minds are invited to engage more deeply with artistic practice, discourse, and experimentation as they unfurl across the season.

Shifting away from a standalone series of workshops, the Spring program functions as a continuum of interconnected learning environments. Reading circles, seminars, writing intensives, and material-based multidisciplinary inquiries take place across weeks and recur throughout the season, encouraging participants to return, reflect, and build upon shared experiences.

The season also introduces six programming pillars that frame 421’s public programs: The Practice Lab, The Writers’ Quarters, The Speculative Circle, Intergenerational Learning, Professional Development, and Special Events. Together, these pillars clarify the intent behind each program while emphasizing practice as a framework that develops through repeated encounters and sustained dialogue.

Returning cornerstone programs this season include Pencil In with Sarah Afaneh and Tatreez Circle with Joanna Barakat, alongside new landmark initiatives, such as Maktaba: A Speculative Thought Circle and 421 Family Day, and a variety of additional studio sessions, seminars, and youth programs.

EXHIBITIONS ON VIEW

Rays, Ripples, Residue

Curated by Munira Al Sayegh, Nadine Khalil, and Murtaza Vali 

November 1, 2025 – May 17, 2026