Prospect New Orleans, the international contemporary art biennial, will host a series of events this month to celebrate the grand opening of its third iteration – “Prospect.3: Notes for Now,” on view October 25, 2014 through January 25, 2015 at 18 venues throughout New Orleans.
Featuring works by 58 participating artists from around the globe, P.3 will officially kick off during a press launch on Thursday, October 23 at the Ashé Cultural Arts Center, located at 1712 Oretha Castle Haley Boulevard. Prospect New Orleans Executive Director Brooke Davis Anderson, Prospect.3 Artistic Director Franklin Sirmans, Ashé Executive Director Carol Bebelle and New Orleans Tourism and Marketing Corporation CEO Mark Romig will welcome local, national and international journalists and VIPs to New Orleans for a first look at the biennial. The event begins at 11 a.m. and is open to press and other invited guests.
On Friday, October 24, P.3 festivities will continue with an opening benefit party, Miss Vesta’s Swamp Galaxy Gala, at the Contemporary Arts Center New Orleans (CACNO). In addition to cocktails, dinner and dancing, the sold out event will honor five distinguished arts supporters, including: Prospect New Orleans Chairperson Susan Gore Brennan, New Orleans-based artist Dawn DeDeaux, Artistic Director of the 2015 Venice Biennial Okwui Enwezor, African art scholar and author of “Flash of the Spirit: African and Afro-American Art and Philosophy” Robert Farris Thompson, and theater director Robert Wilson. The gala will also include the presentation of The Artadia Award, with Champions of Culture, in which P.3 partner, Artadia, will recognize and reward an exceptional New Orleans visual artist featured in “Prospect.3: Notes for Now” or P.3+ with an unrestricted financial award, increased exposure, critical validation and ongoing creative support. The award recipient will be chosen by artist Marilyn Minter (b. Shreveport, LA) and Miranda Lash, current curator of contemporary art at The Speed Art Museum, and formerly of the New Orleans Museum of Art (NOMA).
On Saturday, October 25 at 11 a.m., “Prospect.3: Notes for Now” will officially open to the public with a ribbon cutting and second line parade in Washington Square Park, located at 700 Elysian Fields Avenue. Immediately following, Mrs. Leah Chase, Prospect New Orleans board member, and owner of Dooky Chase’s Restaurant will host a luncheon for all attendees in the park.
The grand opening festivities will conclude on Sunday, October 26 at 1 p.m. with Notes for Now: A Panel Discussion, featuring contributors to the Prospect.3 catalogue. The panel will be co-moderated by Sirmans and Prospect New Orleans Development Manager Elizabeth Baribeau. The event is free, open to the public, and will take place at Dillard University in the Professional School Building, located at 2601 Gentilly Boulevard.
The “Prospect.3: Notes for Now” official information HUB will be located in the lobby of the Contemporary Arts Center at 900 Camp Street. During opening week, guests can stop by the HUB between 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. Wednesday – Saturday, and from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. The HUB will be open Wednesdays through Sundays, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., throughout the remainder of the biennial. Visitors to the HUB will be able to pick up The Advocate’s Guide and Map to Prospect.3: Notes for Now, palm cards, mini coach tour information, volunteer/docent information and general advice on getting around to the venues. In addition, the buses for the P.3+ Regional tours will leave from the CAC and will be organized from the HUB. A mobile HUB on wheels will also be traveling throughout the city distributing the Map and Guides, as well as selling t-shirts, tote bags and other P.3 items.
Prospect New Orleans has also partnered with Culture Connect to produce a mobile experience app for “Prospect.3: Notes for Now.” The app will help visitors navigate the many exhibitions throughout New Orleans and provide rich contextual information about the artists, their work and the participating venues. Visitors can use the app to plan their visits, share experiences while exploring a site, or dig deeper after their visit. Due to launch during P.3’s opening week, the app will have continuous updates throughout the three-month biennial. By texting “P3NOLA” to 990-00, users can download the app.
Prior to the official inauguration of Prospect.3, a special P.3 Reads, hosted by P.3 Artistic Director Franklin Sirmans and P.3 New Orleans-based Artist Sophie Lvoff, will take place on Thursday, October 16 from 6 to 7 p.m. at the New Orleans Public Library, located at 219 Loyola Avenue. In this highly anticipated P.3 Reads, Sirmans and Lvoff will discuss how Walker Percy’s novel “The Moviegoer,” winner of the 1961 National Book Award, has inspired them throughout their careers. The P.3Reads series aims to utilize the shared sense of community that comes from reading as an entrée for audiences who are curious about contemporary art, and would like to better understand the creative processes of contemporary artists. For those already familiar with contemporary art, the series will offer a deeper perspective on the relationship between literature and other art forms. P.3Reads is free and open to the public.