Sunday October 19 * 1-5pm * offsite at MLK Library * LINK
As part of the fall exhibit at the MLK Library, D.I.Y. in the District: Celebrating D.C.'s Artist-Run Spaces, the community art space Rhizome DC presents a two-day D.I.Y. appreciation festival.
All day on Saturday, October 18 and Sunday, October 19, join us for cross-genre sound, experimental storytelling, improvised movement, artmaking, and more—a full-spectrum celebration of DIY experimentation in Washington, DC.
Each event reflects a different aspect of the DIY ethos—from sound and movement to memory, improvisation, poetry, and community organizing. It centers Black, queer, and immigrant contributions to DC's independent arts landscape and invites participants to both remember and reimagine cultural space in a rapidly shifting city. The energy will build to a powerful improvised performance, where an all-star lineup of musicians comes together to explore the themes of memory, place, disappearance, and emergence.
Schedule of events for Sunday, October 19:
1:00 PM | Healing Sounds for People and Plants - Join us for a healing sound workshop with Naoco Wowsugi, who plays gongs and percussion for people and plants.
2:00 PM | Workshop: Mapping D.C.’s D.I.Y. Memory Archive - Tatev Sargsyan and Maps Glover lead a participatory cartography session in collaboration. Visitors contribute personal memories of D.I.Y. venues, events, or collectives to an interactive, evolving map of D.C.’s cultural landscape.
3:00 PM | Open Mic & Final Improvised Performance: Sonic Futures - Join us for the final sonic celebration of the weekend, an open mic where DC improvisers take the stage in an open mic session to share their spontaneous sounds, voices, and ideas on sustaining the DIY scene.
Ongoing, 1:00-5:00 PM | Art build/sewing workshop with Femme Fatale DC & Love Stories Vintage: Create your own quilt square to contribute to our interactive map installation.
This event is presented in conjunction with the fall exhibit D.I.Y. in the District: Celebrating D.C.'s Artist-Run Spaces, on view through December 7 at the MLK Library.
This program, and the DC Public Library Arts and Exhibits Program, is made possible in part through support from the DC Public Library Foundation.
Visit the exhibit website for a full schedule of artist-driven programs during October and November.