The 2024–2025 season of Oxy Live!, Occidental’s annual speaker program opened Sept. 24 in Thorne Hall and featured conceptual artist Tavares Strachan in conversation with award-winning interviewer Paul Holdengräber. The conversation between the two lasted over an hour, with topics ranging from Arctic exploration to Sisyphus.
Meldia Yesayan, executive director of Oxy Arts, said via email that Oxy Live! is the college’s unique speaker platform based on intimate and nuanced conversations. According to Yesayan, the program invites voices to campus that challenge norms and push us to think differently. Yesayan said that Strachan epitomizes an interdisciplinary spirit that is central to that vision.
“[Strachan’s] work crosses boundaries between art, science, history and philosophy and makes the case that art can be a platform or a portal to access a multitude of ideas and fields of thought,” Yesayan said via email.
According to a New York Times profile, Strachan’s experiences have included working as a studio artist, astronaut and Arctic explorer.
On the evening of the conversation, three lines of attendees filed into Thorne Hall. The event began with an introduction by Professor of Art and Art History Mary Beth Heffernan. She welcomed the Occidental community, thanked the supporters of Oxy Live! and gave introductions to Strachan and Holdengräber.
Heffernan concluded her introduction by highlighting Strachan’s focus on human connection and setting the stage for an engaging evening conversation.
“Tavares, you once reflected that your art is about connecting with the audience — about being close to the audience,” Heffernan said. “Paul and Tavares, I wish [the same] for you and our engagement tonight.”
Five minutes into the conversation, Strachan said he would commit to speaking the truth with Holdengräber — with some nuance.
“Well, how about this,” Strachan said. “How about we agree to forcefully pursue the truth.”
During the conversation, the speakers discussed one of Strachan’s most well-known works, “The Encyclopedia of Invisibility.” This piece is a collection of entries focused on historically marginalized individuals, places and events. The encyclopedia is on display at the Oxy Arts exhibition “Invisibility: Powers and Perils.”
Holdengräber said his father bought him an Encyclopedia Britannica and he grew up with the traditional book and that reading it caused him to wonder how many voices have been overlooked and silenced. Strachan said that he thinks violence in the exclusion is a part of the process of making.
“My question to you is, how do you make a whole slew of Encyclopedia Britannica without violence?” Strachan said.
Strachan said that “The Encyclopedia of Invisibility” isn’t meant to be taken literally but rather acts as a portal into the imagination of people. According to Strachan, the book is also a thought experiment and a tool to counter violence.
“The way that you counter violence is through the imagination. It’s not with brick and mortar or guns and roses. It’s through the imagination,” Strachan said. “Would everyone join us in this thought experiment? What happens if we made our own encyclopedia?”
Rose LeGoff, the French Visiting Language Assistant, said that she found the concept of “The Encyclopedia of Invisibility” compelling and would be interested in exploring the book herself.
“I feel like it’s this new 21st-century version of Diderot’s encyclopedia, the original encyclopedias from enlightenment times in the 17th century,” LeGoff said. “[This] is a form of the updated, contemporary times version with a new truth to it and new stories that need to be taught — [stories] that we are now ready to hear.”
LeGoff said that a lot of topics discussed resonated with her, even if unrelated to “The Encyclopedia of Invisibility.”
“I remember [Strachan] talking about how the artist is trying to reconnect with their younger self — having a discussion with their younger child — and I think that’s very sensible,” Le Goff said.
Le Goff said that she’s excited to attend future Oxy Live! events to engage with other passionate speakers and their stories.
Nile Langenfeld (sophomore) said that the depth of the conversation exceeded his expectations.
“It was very meta in a sense, which I appreciated because I feel like it’s very easy for us to consume art on a very basic level,” Lagenfeld said. “It’s refreshing to have conversations that are a level up.”
During the conversation, Holdengräber said that the encyclopedia has a notion of reclaiming spaces and histories of erasure. The two discussed one specific entry in the encyclopedia — an excerpt from the autobiography “A Black Explorer at the North Pole” by Matthew Henson. Strachan said that he was and continues to be inspired by the story of Henson, a Black explorer who traveled to the North Pole in 1909.
Strachan said that Henson’s unique story speaks to the Sisyphean nature of human memory and consciousness.
“I think there is something about civilization and [humankind] that loves to push the rock up the hill and let it fall back,” Strachan said. “I think a part of that [process] is ignoring that we share consciousness.”
Strachan said that he finds his creative purpose in sharing the wonder of these stories and ideas.
“It’s fascinating,” Strachan said. “My [job] is to share that fascination with everyone. I think somewhere in there is the reason for doing all this.”
Contact Julian Villa at jvilla@oxy.edu
