Black Radical Space: The Black School and Bryan C. Lee Jr in conversation

Designer and activist Bryan C. Lee, Jr will convene with the founders of The Black School for a conversation about Black radical pedagogical experiments, past, present, and future.  GSD community members Toshiko Mori and Tara Oluwafemi will join for the second half of the program.

Based on our commitment to community building and our core principles of Black love, wellness, and self-determination, The Black School’s mission is to promote and extend the legacy of art in Black radical histories by providing innovative education alternatives centered in Black love. Through youth art workshops, community-wide events/programing, and our student-staffed art and design studio, we use art to transform social realities while celebrating Black people’s history and the beauty and ingenuity of our ever-evolving culture.

The Black School (TBS) is an experimental art school teaching Black/POC students and allies to become agents of change through art workshops on radical Black politics and public interventions that address local community needs. TBS was founded by Joseph Cuillier III and Shani Peters in 2016. We are socially engaged artists, designers, and educators with a combined 20 years of relevant experience working at the intersections of K-12/university teaching, art, design, and activism. In five years we have served over 400 students, facilitated over 100 workshops and classes, produced three Black Love Fests, collaborated with more than 40 professional artists, trained and employed 16 design apprentices, and partnered with over 50 organizations. With this foundation of programmatic success, we are now working towards our ultimate goal to build a Black Art School in Joseph’s hometown of New Orleans, LA.

Bryan C. Lee Jr. is the Design Principal of Colloqate and a national Design Justice Advocate. Lee has twelve years of experience in the field of architecture Lee is the founding organizer of the Design Justice Platform and organized the Design As Protest National Day of Action. Bryan has led two award-winning architecture and design programs for high school students through the Arts Council of New Orleans and the National Organization of Minority Architects.