As part of the fifth session of the RAW Académie, RAW Material Company invites you to a public lecture given by Thread on Friday 9th November 2018 at 5.30pm.
Thread, which operates as both an artist residency and socio-cultural center, was hatched in 2013 by the director of the Josef and Anni Albers Foundation, Nicholas Fox Weber, and local Sinthian community leader and doctor, Dr. Magueye Ba. Inspiration for the project came from legendary Bauhaus and Black Mountain College artists Josef and Anni Albers, who believed that art is everywhere—not just in Western, urban capitals. Thread allows local and international artists to live and work in Sinthian, a rural village in Tambacounda, the southeastern region of Senegal. It is a socio-cultural center that also functions as an agricultural hub for Sinthian and the surrounding villages. Too, it is a flexible and evolving public space -- venues for celebrations, classes in language and health, and performances and village meetings are just a few of the ways the local population has taken over programming of the community center.
Moussa Sene: Moussa Diogoye graduated from the English Department of University Cheikh Anta Diop of Dakar and holds a Masters in project management studies. After receiving his masters, he worked for the Korean International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) as an Administrative and Projects Officer. Afterward, he joined the International NGO Enda Energy, Environment and Development where he was in charge of coordinating the West and Central African civil society climate change policy work. Moussa was a member of the Board of Climate Action Network International until he joined Thread as its General Manager.
Brian Harris: Born and raised in Brooklyn, NY, Brian began his career in commercial film and video production in New York City. He came to Senegal in 2013 where he served for 3 years in the U.S. Peace Corps, working in a Franco-Arabic school in a peri-urban community outside of Dakar. After completing his service, Brian joined Le Korsa, a dynamic non-profit organization that provides grants to institutions and community groups focusing on health, education, agriculture, and the arts. Brian has concurrently worked at Thread since 2016 and currently acts as Projects Director and Artist Coordinator.