Give Light: Labor Drawings, Posters, Art and Graphics from Movements Celebrating Labor History, People’s Art, and Popular Liberation

The exhibition title Give Light comes from Ella Baker’s quote “Give light and people will find the way.” In this spirit, the artists and collectives included in Give Light — Little Manila Queens Bayanihan Arts, Indonesia’s Taring Padi, Bushwick’s Mi Casa Resiste, Australia’s Workers Art Collective, South Africa’s International Labour Research & Information Group, Just Seeds, Alicia Grullón, Leilani Derr, and more — dare to imagine liberatory possibilities and interconnected forms of solidarity. The work included in the exhibition helps us to visualize the potential of our movements and our power. It reminds us that all our struggles are connected and calls for the rebellious hope we need at this moment, to unite in global solidarity and keep each other healthy and safe.

Organized by Annabelle Heckler, Ingrid Romero, Jaclyn Reyes, and Josh MacPhee.

CUNY School of Labor and Urban Studies, the Labor Research & Action Network conference at Rutgers University, and the Labor and Working Class History conference in Chicago, travelling pop-up exhibition.

Special thanks to CUNY School of Labor and Urban Studies and CUNY Social Practice for their support. Thank you AgitArte, Dr. Alethia Jones, Alicia Grullón, Chloë Bass, Crystal Clarity, Dennis Lapid Madamba, Erica Smiley, Estefanía Rivera Cortés, Jiwoon Yulee, Ju Ly Ban, JustSeeds, Leila Khan, Leilani Nobuko Derr, Mario Fong, Mikaela González, Nafisa Ferdous, Sam Wallman, Sang Min Kim, Sarah Watson, Sugeily Rodríguez Lebrón, SunE (선이), and artists and collectives from across our movements.

Please follow the artists and get to know their work!

@agitarte_cultural_works
@aliciagrullon
@annabelleheckler
@celebratepeopleshistory
@denmada
@ilrig_sa (Leila Khan)
@jmacphee
@justseeds
@leilani.nobuko.derr
@littlemanilaqueens
@micasaresiste
@mikaelagonzalezzz
@msclarity83
@ourmembersbeunlimited
@peptidolinear
@safaa.art
@sft7la
@soulhandles
@sugeilyrodriguez.lebron
SunE (선이, on X at @5un_e_day)
tandangsora.nyc
@taring_padi
@workersartcollective
@yellowbag_min