FRONT International: Cleveland Triennial for Contemporary Art is BACK!

Launched in 2018, FRONT International: Cleveland Triennial for Contemporary Art is a free, public contemporary art exhibition comprised of artist commissions, performances, films, and public programs that takes place across Cleveland, Akron, and Oberlin every three years. Its inaugural edition An American City, which was curated by Artistic Director Michelle Grabner, generated over 90,000 visitors from more than 25 countries and brought $31 million in new economic activity to the region.

Oh, Gods of Dust and Rainbows, the second iteration of FRONTInternational, will run from July 16 through October 2, 2022. Building on the success of the first edition, FRONT 2022 will further the Triennial’s commitment to stimulating new and sustained cultural conversations within the region. FRONT welcomes visitors of all abilities, ages, backgrounds, genders, races, and religions and is committed to providing opportunities for meaningful inclusion.

Amid a time of ongoing tragedy and loss, FRONT 2022 explores how artmaking offers the possibility to transform and heal us — as individuals, as groups, and as a society. Spanning over twenty-five sites in Cleveland, Akron, and Oberlin, the exhibition bears witness to the region’s past and present scars, from the environmental degradation caused by industrial production to police violence and urban fracture.

The exhibition features over one hundred regional, national, and international artists working across painting, drawing, sculpture, textiles, ceramics, photography, video, text, performance, and other media. Ongoing exhibitions and public installations work in tandem with live programs. Starting with how daily practice allows individual artists to cultivate liberation, the triennial also demonstrates how aesthetic pleasure — sharing joy through movement, music, craft, and color — can bring different people together. Finally, the exhibition suggests ways that contemporary art can speak with power, showing us how to recognize and reimagine the invisible structures that govern our lives.

DON’T MISS OUT… Click here to plan your visit!