People Talking: Vic Brooks & Alexander S. C. Rower

Thursday, May 14
6 – 7:30pm
$35; members $25

On the occasion of the Pictures in Motion screenings of works commissioned by the Calder Foundation in 2017, our next People Talking program features Alexander S. C. Rower, Alexander Calder’s grandson and president of the Calder Foundation, and Vic Brooks, curator of the 2017 film commission. Juana Berrío, Marsha Perelman Senior Director of Programs at Calder Gardens, is the moderator.

Expanding on Calder’s relationship to sound and moving image, the conversation situates his practice within a broader, transdisciplinary field. A prolific artist working across media and in dialogue with collaborators from diverse disciplines, Calder approached form as an open system—one that continues to unfold through contemporary artistic inquiry.

Vic Brooks is a curator of film, performance, and visual art. She serves on the board of Atelier Calder and curatorial committee of Calder Gardens, and is senior curatorial advisor at Aspen Art Museum and a consultant to the Doris Duke Foundation. She is editing Tuning Calder’s Clouds (Athénée Press, 2026), producing The Color Scheme, a play by Aria Dean, and curating Featuring, a cinema series for KADIST. She is a Film Independent Spirit John Cassavetes Award nominee and recipient of the Warhol Foundation’s Curatorial Research Fellowship.

Alexander S. C. Rower is the grandson of Alexander Calder and the president of the Calder Foundation, New York. Rower created the nonprofit organization in 1987, when the concept of artist foundations was almost nonexistent. Since then, he has documented more than 22,000 works by Calder, established an extensive archive dedicated to the artist’s practice, and collaborated on over 100 exhibitions worldwide. Rower serves as vice president of the board of directors for the Atelier Calder residency program in Saché, France. He is chair of the curatorial committee of Calder Gardens and a member of the Trustees of Calder Gardens.

People Talking is a series of conversations exploring themes central to Calder Gardens and contemporary culture, emphasizing storytelling and interdisciplinary exchange. Led by artists, cultural producers, and scientists, each program reflects Calder’s experimental ethos, nuanced understandings of movement and transformation, and innovative approaches to engaging with the environment today. 

Programming at Calder Gardens is generously supported by Jill and Sheldon Bonovitz, Donna Green, and Michael Sternberg.