September 12, 2025

CLARK ART INSTITUTE AND WILLIAMS COLLEGE MUSEUM OF ART PARTNER TO PRESENT PERFORMANCE BY TSEDAYE MAKONNEN

Williamstown, Massachusetts—On Saturday, October 4, the Clark Art Institute and the Williams College Museum of Art jointly present an outdoor performance by the Williams College Dance Department. The event is the culmination of the three organizations' collaborative debut of a new iteration of multidisciplinary artist Tsedaye Makonnen’s Astral Sea series. The performance, Refuge Used to Live Among the Hoosic River and the White Oak Trees, takes place on the Fernández Terrace at the Clark at 4 p.m.

Through abstracted and collective movement, Refuge Used to Live Among the Hoosic River and the White Oak Trees highlights the ongoing worldwide violence inflicted upon those who are actively being displaced from their homes, while emphasizing the possibilities of resilience and survival. Based in Black spiritual practices, the performance combines art and dance to explore the fractured experiences of being Black across time and space, seeking to create a feeling of resolve and healing.

Working with Williams College students as performers, Makonnen’s intention is to consider Berkshire histories while creating contemporary connections with Black and immigrant communities. Makonnen’s production was created in collaboration with co-choreographer, Sandra Burton, the Lipp Family Director of Dance and Senior Lecturer in Dance at Williams College and a former member of the Clark’s Board of Trustees.

Makonnen was the 2022 Futures Fellow in the Clark’s Research and Academic Program and is an award-winning interdisciplinary artist-curator. Her practice is the contemporary visual representation of Medieval and Byzantine art through ancient East African visual languages and other Black spiritualities. Her work bridges overlapping histories across trade and migratory routes. Drawing on spiritual symbolism and embodied ritual, Makonnen reclaims visual and spiritual lineages historically sidelined by Western canons. Her work is in the collections of the Smithsonian Institute, Washington, D.C., The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore, and the Studio Museum in Harlem, and has been exhibited at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, and the Venice Biennale.

The performance is free. A publication documenting the project will be available at the performance. For accessibility questions, call 413 458 0524. Inclement weather moves the performance to Sunday, October 5, at 4 p.m. For more information, visit clarkart.edu/events. 

ABOUT THE CLARK

The Clark Art Institute, located in the Berkshires of western Massachusetts, is one of a small number of institutions globally that is both an art museum and a center for research, critical discussion, and higher education in the visual arts. Opened in 1955, the Clark houses exceptional European and American paintings and sculpture, extensive collections of master prints and drawings, English silver, and early photography. Acting as convener through its Research and Academic Program, the Clark gathers an international community of scholars to participate in a lively program of conferences, colloquia, and workshops on topics of vital importance to the visual arts. The Clark library, consisting of nearly 300,000 volumes, is one of the nation’s premier art history libraries. The Clark also houses and co-sponsors the Williams College Graduate Program in the History of Art.

The Clark, which has a three-star rating in the Michelin Green Guide, is located at 225 South Street in Williamstown, Massachusetts. Its 140-acre campus includes miles of hiking and walking trails through woodlands and meadows, providing an exceptional experience of art in nature. Galleries are open 10 am to 5 pm Tuesday through Sunday from September through June, and daily in July and August. Admission is free to all from January through March. From April through December, admission is $22 for adults, $20 for seniors (65+), $10 for young adults (18–25) and college students, and free for all visitors under 18. Admission is free year-round for Clark members. Free admission is also available through several programs, including First Sundays Free; a local library pass program; and EBT Card to Culture. For information on these programs and more, visit clarkart.edu or call 413 458 2303.

ABOUT THE WILLIAMS COLLEGE MUSEUM OF ART

The Williams College Museum of Art (WCMA) creates and inspires transformative experiences that are integral to a liberal arts education, lifelong learning, and human connection. The museum catalyzes cross-disciplinary inquiry through art; advances the academic and experiential preparation of arts leaders; enriches the cultural ecosystem of the Berkshires; engages artists; and creates a learning community that spurs new thinking, creative activity, and civic engagement. WCMA draws on the diverse perspectives and collaborative ethos of the college to enliven the more than 15,000 works in its growing collection.

Construction is now underway on WCMA’s first purpose-built home, designed by the internationally recognized Brooklyn-based firm SO–IL. The design, unveiled in March 2024, blends sustainable, living architecture with the Berkshires landscape while creating a teaching museum for the entire campus and a prominent new gateway to the college and Williamstown. The new WCMA is projected to open in 2027.

Press contacts:
Clark Art Institute: [email protected]

Williams College Museum of Art: [email protected]