Inaugural gallery exhibition in our new space: Lets Talk of a System @ Intersection 5M

Intersection for the Arts proudly presents Let’s Talk of a System, a group exhibition that takes its inspiration and title from a quote by renowned German theorist and artist Joseph Beuys:

“Let's talk of a system that transforms all the social organisms into a work of art, in which the entire process of work is included…something in which the principle of production and consumption takes on a form of quality. It's a Gigantic project.”

This exhibition positions artists and the act of cultural production at the forefront of the burgeoning field of social entrepreneurialism, a field that utilizes entrepreneurial principles to organize, create, and manage projects that can effect social change. In this exhibition, issues of climate change, sustainable agriculture, transnational industry, fair trade, social justice, and youth empowerment form the broad foundation from which art can be seen as playing a crucial role in identifying and illustrating social issues, as well as providing creative, and oftentimes, concrete solutions.

In its 45th year of operation, Intersection is opening a new gallery space in conjunction with an innovative, cross-sector project in the Chronicle building located at the corner of 5th and Mission Streets in downtown San Francisco. Partnering with The Hub Bay Area, a co-working space, event series and business support tool for a global and local community of changemakers and social entrepreneurs, and TechShop, a membership-based do-it-yourself workshop that provides access to tools, equipment, instruction for creative communities - Intersection continues to build upon its rich legacy in positioning arts and culture as necessary components for healthy civic life. This unique collaboration continues Intersection's commitment to the powerful role arts and culture play in tackling the world’s most pressing social, cultural, and environmental challenges. This collaboration is part of a prototype for a new, open urban campus of for-profit and non-profit businesses, artists and entrepreneurs that dissolves boundaries and consistently instigates synergistic collaboration across disciplines in order to inspire and enable new ideas for change.

Let’s Talk of a System opens the conversation of how to create meaningful social change in today’s world. Some of the work in the exhibition exposes economic, industrial and global systems that generate inequality, injustice, and unbalance; other work in the exhibition provides both generative ideas and concrete actions to manifest change.