Edge of Reason

Liberty: A principle emphasizing freedom, autonomy, and the inherent rights of individuals.

In this episode, artist Lorna Simpson and poet and scholar Dr. Elizabeth Alexander question the nature of individual rights, autonomy, and separate the idea of "liberty" from "freedom" via Simpson's evocative representations of race, gender, and identity and Alexander's celebrated poetic insights.

Inquiry: The spirit of questioning, exploring, and seeking to understand, rather than merely accept, established truths.

In this episode, artist Pipilotti Rist and MOCA curator Anna Katz unearth the dynamic relationship between nature, technology, and the human experience.

Image Credit: Pipilotti Rist, Twin concept pictures, 2023 © Pipilotti Rist. Courtesy the artist and Hauser & Wirth.

Progress: the belief in constant societal advancement through reason, knowledge, and education.

In this episode, artist Thomas J Price and renowned scholar Steven Pinker discuss the challenges of defining human advancement and the importance of measuring both tangible and intangible progress.

Image Credit: Installation view, ‘Thomas J Price, Untitled (Icon) Series,’ 2017 © Thomas J Price. Courtesy the artist and Hauser & Wirth. Photo: Ken Adlard

Individualism: The idea that each person possesses a distinctive and autonomous self that is able to develop within society.

 In this episode, artist Christina Quarles and Xicana writer Cherríe Moraga navigate the conundrum of individual identity, revealing the profound intersections and deviations that shape our understanding of who we are.

Image Credit: Christina Quarles, (And Tell Me Today's Not Today) (detail), 2023 © Christina Quarles. Courtesy the artist, Hauser & Wirth, and Pilar Corrias, London. Photo: Fredrik Nilsen

Humanism: the value and agency of human beings while recognizing the relationship between the human experience, evolution, and extinction.

In this episode, artist Nicolas Party and researcher Thomas Moynihan explore their mutual interest in human agency, the arbitrary circumstances of planetary civilization—and dinosaurs!

Image Credit: Nicolas Party, Portrait with a Donkey (detail), 2023 © Nicolas Party. Courtesy the artist & Hauser & Wirth. 

Reason: The application of logic to understand the world and reach greater conclusions.

In this episode, artist Allison Katz and Nuar Alsadir of "Couples Therapy" ponder the uses and limitations of rational thought as a way to understand ourselves, touching on the seen and unseen forces that shape our identity.

Image Credit: Allison Katz, The Cockfather (detail), 2021 © Allison Katz. Courtesy the artist and Hauser & Wirth