Occupy Museums is an art activist movement that grew out of Occupy Wall Street in 2011—a prolonged demonstration in Zuccotti Park, in New York City’s Wall Street financial district. The movement protesting financial greed and corruption sparked actions against economic inequality worldwide. Occupy Museums continues to engage in this vital conversation.

Clearly, Christopher Y. Lew and Mia Locks, Curators of the 2017 Whitney Biennial, recognize the value of art activism. They invited Occupy Museums to present Debtfair, a wall-sized installation that tackles the subject of art and the economy.

You’ll hear the voices of Tal Beery, Imani Jacqueline Brown, Kenneth Pietrobono and Noah Fischer. In 2012, these four activists, along with Arthur Polendo, launched Debtfair as a platform for their research into the complex and obscure financial systems that impact artists in the United States. They surveyed 500 artists, posing the question: “How does your economic reality affect your art?”

Sound Editor: Guney Ozsan | Photography by Tamara Rafkin, except where noted.

Related Episodes: Artist Playlist: Eddie Arroyo Listens to the Art of Capitalism, The Art of Breaking the Bank, The Art of Capitalism

Related Links: Occupy Museums, Occupy Wall Street, Christopher Y. Lew, Mia Locks, Whitney Biennial, Debtfair, Tal Beery, Imani Jacqueline Brown, Kenneth Pietrobono, Noah Fischer, Arthur Polendo