Angela Davis Conversation avec Elvan Zabunyan

In this unique encounter in Paris, Angela Davis and the contemporary art historian Elvan Zabunyan pursue a dialogue they began in 2020. In front of a wider audience this time round, they will continue to reflect upon the intersection between current developments in the arts and global politics.

In an interview dating back to the summer of 2020, Angela Davis responded to Elvan Zabunyan by stressing "the central place of art in the development of peoples' struggles for democracy, justice, freedom and equality". She added: "it is often assumed that the most important figures in a movement are the theorists, orators, and organizers. The assumption is that is they who take on the central task of of building movements and that art simply helps to make us more receptive to these ideas… I think that it is precisely because art allows us to become aware of the bonds that bring us together and to collectively experience possibilities for the future, that it plays such a profound role in the development of radical social movements." For Angela Davis, the arts, in whatever form they may take, shed light on the future. These words resonate with what the Festival d'Automne has always stood for since its creation, and its desire to put in place new cultural paths.