A Place in the World

A Place in the World (2025, dir. David Shayne, 59 min) traces the sixty-year career of British sculptor Garth Evans (b. 1934), charting his path from working-class roots to international acclaim.

At the center of the film is Untitled Sculpture, the monumental steel work Evans installed in Cardiff in 1972 as part of a nationwide public art program. The abstract sculpture quickly became a lightning rod for debate, drawing criticism and confusion from residents who questioned both its meaning and its public funding. Curious about how people really felt, Evans returned to the site disguised and carrying a tape recorder, quietly recording passersby as they reacted to the work. With humor and honesty, the film explores themes of class, memory, and the enduring role of public art.

This screening is followed by a conversation with Garth Evans, author and critic Michael Brenson, and cultural leader and producer Anita Contini, moderated by Hudson Hall Director of Development Liz Broadfoot. Presented in conjunction with Garth Evans: Watercolors.

Film credits: A Place in the World (2025); Director: David Shayne; Executive Producers: West City Films; Producer: Leila Philip. Made by Pulpit Rock Films.

Garth Evans
Over a career spanning six decades, Garth Evans has presented work in more than one hundred solo and group exhibitions, including Garth Evans at Yorkshire Sculpture Park, curated by Richard Deacon in 2013. He has received numerous awards and residencies, among them a Guggenheim Fellowship. His work is held in major public and private collections worldwide, including Tate Britain, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art, the Victoria and Albert Museum, and the British Museum. In 2018 he founded the Sculpture Forum, an online platform for the discussion of sculpture.

Michael Brenson
Michael Brenson is a writer, curator, and critic focused on modern and contemporary sculpture. He was a member of the sculpture faculty at Bard College’s Milton Avery Graduate School of the Arts for two decades and previously served as an art critic for The New York Times. He is the author of Visionaries and Outcasts: The NEA, Congress, and the Place of the Visual Artist in America (2001). Brenson has curated exhibitions at MoMA PS1 and SculptureCenter and has organized and moderated programs at institutions including the National Gallery of Art and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. His honors include fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, the Getty Research Institute, and the Clark Art Institute. He lives in Accord, New York.

Anita Contini
Anita Contini is a cultural leader and producer whose work has shaped major public art initiatives in the United States and internationally. She is the founder of Creative Time, where she served as President and Director from 1974 to 1986, producing projects such as Art on the Beach and Masstransiscope. She later served as Vice President and Director of the 9/11 Memorial and Cultural Programs at the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, where she led the design selection process for the National September 11 Memorial and Museum. Most recently, she was Senior Liaison for Arts and Culture at Bloomberg Philanthropies, where she oversaw initiatives including the Public Art Challenge. She currently serves on several arts and advisory boards and continues to work at the intersection of art, civic life, and public space.

Tickets:
- Free; reservations recommended

Supporters:
- New York State Council on the Arts (with the support of the Governor and the New York State Legislature)
- Fund for Columbia County of the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation
- The Spark of Hudson
- The Dyson Foundation
- Cornelia T. Bailey Foundation
- Bank of Greene County Charitable Foundation
- Children’s Foundation of Columbia County
- Alexander & Marjorie Hover Foundation
- National Endowment for the Arts