Without hyperbole, 2020 was a generation defining year: a global pandemic, a polemic election, and a year of protest for racial justice. How did Art21 respond to such a pivotal year? The global pandemic necessitated nationwide lockdowns and new ways of engaging with our communities. It also required Art21 staff and community to meet unforeseen challenges and expand the ways it supports artists and educators. Learn how Art21, a celebrated global leader in presenting thought-provoking and sophisticated content about contemporary art, responded to pandemic restrictions by launching a new professional development initiative, Art21 Ambassadors, online. Consider how that initiative fostered partnerships with organizations such as SFMOMA, Davis Publications, and the Museum of Modern Art, while increasing Art21's professional development audience by 1,732%.

In this session, hear how the organization responded to events, threats, and trends over the last twenty years, which unknowingly laid a solid foundation to respond to a year like 2020, and Nordin's personal background in museum education, which shaped her response.

The Innovative Thinker Lecture is an annual presentation established in honor of SITE’s former Director of Education, Juliet Myers. This lecture highlights the significant work of a visionary educator in the field of contemporary art. Sponsored by the Gale Family Foundation.

Emma Nordin is the Associate Director of Education Initiatives at Art21. In this role, she supports new and existing educational programs and projects including content development, professional development, and event programming. Previously, she was the Manager of School Programs at the New-York Historical Society, where she was responsible for the hiring, training and supervision of part-time educators, offsite partnerships in schools, and program writing. She was also a former Vice President and Conference Chair, Trustee-at-Large and intern of New York City Museum Educators Roundtable (NYCMER). She completed her graduate studies in the John W. Draper Interdisciplinary Master’s Program at New York University and her Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Maryland, College Park.