Sunday, June 21, 2026 at 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM
18th Street Arts Center, Santa Monica
**Citizen Artist Reading Group with Dorit Cypis** **Sunday, June 21st | 10 AM - 12 PM** **Virtual - **Meeting Link**** **Free + Open to the Public** *High Performance* magazine, and later *The Citizen Artist* anthology, documented and amplified the voices of artists working outside traditional institutions, embedding their practice in the fabric of civic life. By revisiting these groundbreaking publications, we aim to spark dialogue, collective memory, and action—drawing from a powerful lineage of artist-led civic engagement and radical experimentation. The *Citizen Artist Reading Group* is a year-long inquiry into the intersections of art, politics, performance, and community. Meeting monthly from January–December 2026, the group will engage foundational and experimental texts that have shaped the fields of social practice, community-based performance, and art/life. Together, participants will explore themes ranging from feminist lineages and environmental interventions to activism, justice, and collective transformation. All sessions are virtual and public. Special guests will be invited to each session. **Session 6 – June 21, 2026, 10:00-12:00 PM** Readings: On the Side of the Deepest Soul on Earth: An Interview with JA Kyung Rhee and Hye Sook of Theatre – Steven Durland (p. 137) No Time for the Blues (Aesthetic) – Pearl Cleage (p. 145) Call Me in ’93: An Interview with James Luna – Steven Durland (p. 149) Shooting the Klan: An Interview with Andres Serrano – Coco Fusco (p. 159) The Shock of the Real: An Interview with Karen Finley – Margot Mifflin (p. 171) Guests: Dorit Cypis [Dorit Cypis](https://doritcypis.com/) is an artist with extended skills in education and conflict mediation. Dorit’s familial cultural experiences deeply inform her multidisciplinary practice exploring intersections of history, cultural identity, the construction of meaning, somatic experience, and social justice. Dorit is recognized for artworks that weave together performance, photography, and immersive media installations, as well as for an innovative approach to community engagement. Dorit’s work, which has been exhibited internationally at museums, galleries, and civic spaces, has received awards and fellowships including from National Endowment for the Arts and Guggenheim Foundation. Her art projects often invite audiences to wrestle with questions of memory, belonging, and collective responsibility. Dorit is committed to integrating creative expression with social change initiatives to inspire people within and beyond the art world. In 2016 Dorit founded[ PeoplesLab](https://www.peopleslab.us/)*, bridging our differences to build possibility,* as a platform for training, mediation, and dialogue facilitation. Drawing from diverse cultural influences, her psycho-social approach integrates perceptual, sensorial and communication tools to meet and bridge cultural and personal differences. *PeoplesLab *has developed engagement between diverse populations across entrenched cultural divides including race, policing, homelessness, at risk youth, and the geopolitics of Israel/Palestine. Dorit earned a BFA, Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, MFA, California Institute of the Arts, and Masters of Dispute Resolution, Pepperdine University. Born in Tel-Aviv, Israel, Dorit immigrated to Montreal, Canada as a youth and to the USA as a young adult. Currently, she lives in Los Angeles, CA.