Swoon, Brooklyn Street Art, Ai Weiwei Films & More Set for Brooklyn Museum in April

The Brooklyn Museum will present a variety of public programs for adults, teens, and kids in April. Public programs include talks, late night events, performances, screenings, and hands-on workshops for children and adults that amplify the Museum's exhibitions and permanent collection, serve its diverse public, and support learning through the visual arts.

Highlights for April include day long screenings of films by and about the artist Ai Weiwei; a conversation with Brooklyn Street Art founders Steven P. Harrington and Jaime Rojo, artists Swoon and Luna Park, and independent curator Keith Schweitzer; a discussion between arts icon Judy Chicago, curator Catherine Morris, and art historian Frances Borzello; a special concert by the Brooklyn Symphony Orchestra; and a screening of Crime After Crime, part of the Sackler Center series, "States of Denial: The Illegal Incarceration of Women, Children, and People of Color."

Sundays in April
April 6, April 13, April 27
11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.
Arty Facts:Inside/Outside

Materials fee (Museum admission not included): $10 per family (up to four participants); $5 for Gallery/Studio families and Members at the Family level; free to Members at the Friend level and above.

Children ages four to seven and their parents or caregivers explore the galleries, enjoy a team activity, and make their own art in each ninety-minute Arty Facts class. In April, students will explore our period rooms and art with outdoor subjects. Each Sunday's program is a variation on the monthly theme. Participants meet in the Rubin Lobby at 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Parents and caregivers are asked not to bring siblings older than seven or younger than four.

Thursday, April 3, 7 p.m.
Film and Conversation: Crime After Crime
Free with Museum admission
Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Auditorium, 3rd Floor

Crime After Crime (Yoav Potash, 2011, 93 min.) follows the story of Deborah Peagler, a survivor of domestic violence who was wrongfully imprisoned for over 25 years for the murder of her abuser. Attorneys Nadia Costa and Joshua Safran reopen her case pro-bono in a fight to rectify injustice against battered women. The screening will be followed by a Q&A with Costa and Safran. Part of the Sackler Center series, "States of Denial: The Illegal Incarceration of Women, Children, and People of Color."

Sunday, April 13, 2 p.m.
Exhibition Talk: "From Finish Fetish to Feminism"
Free with Museum admission
Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Auditorium, 3rd Floor

Artist Judy Chicago; Catherine Morris, Sackler Family Curator for the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art; and art historian Frances Borzello talk about the early evolution of Chicago's art. In conjunction with the exhibition Chicago in L.A.: Judy Chicago's Early Work, 1963-74, the conversation traces the artist's career from minimalism and Finish Fetish to the beginnings of The Dinner Party, which has been a part of the Museum's permanent collection since 2007. A book signing follows.

Tuesday, April 15, 2-4 p.m.
Brooklyn Afternoons: Art and Conversation for Individuals with Memory Loss
Free with R.S.V.P.

Individuals with memory loss and their caregivers are invited to join us each month for conversations about art. The program is free, but space is limited, and registration is required. To register or for more information, call (718) 501-6350 or email access@brooklynmuseum.org.

Thursday, April 17, 7:30 -9 p.m.
Drop-In Drawing
Tickets: $8 materials fee; $7 for Museum Members
Meet in the Rubin Lobby, 1st Floor

Explore artists' processes, build professional drawing tools and techniques, and meet others who share your interests in a casual and fun environment. Each workshop is led by a skilled teaching artist and focuses on a different object from our collection. Open to all ages; no experience necessary. For more information or to R.S.V.P., email gallery-studio@brooklynmuseum.org.

Saturday, April 19, 11:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.
Film Series: Ai Weiwei
Free with Museum Admission
Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art, Forum, 4th Floor

In celebration of the exhibition Ai Weiwei: According to What?, the Brooklyn Museum is holding special screenings of films by and about the artist throughout the day, including Disturbing the Peace (Ai Weiwei, 2009, 78 min.); Without Fear or Favour (Alan Yentob, 2010, 51 min.); So Sorry (Ai Weiwei, 2011, 55 min.); and Never Sorry (Alison Klayman, 2012, 91 min.).

Sunday, April 20, 2 p.m.
Brooklyn Symphony Orchestra
Tickets: $10 for Members; $20 for non-Members
Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Auditorium, 3rd floor

The Brooklyn Symphony Orchestra continues its fortieth season with a concert featuring works by Gustav Mahler, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, and Brooklyn native Douglas Anderson. For tickets and more information, visit www.brooklynsymphonyorchestra.org. Tours exploring the connections between art and music will precede and follow the performance.

Thursday, April 24, 7 p.m.
In Conversation: Brooklyn Street Art
Tickets: $12 and include Museum general admission; free to Members
Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Auditorium, 3rd floor

Brooklyn Street Art founders Steven P. Harrington and Jaime Rojo lead a dynamic, multimedia conversation that explores the evolution of street art stories as told by the earliest graffiti writers to today's D.I.Y. artists. They'll reveal secret backgrounds, show what stylistic themes are occurring today, and hint at the future of street art in New York. They are joined in conversation by artists Swoon and Luna Park, and independent curator Keith Schweitzer. A reception with DJ, cash bar, and street art-making project will follow. To purchase tickets, visit www.museumtix.com. Free for Museum Members; to reserve, email membership@brooklynmuseum.org. Presented in conjunction with the site-specific installation Swoon: Submerged Motherlands , on view from April 11 to August 24 in the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Gallery on the 5th Floor.