NEW YORK, NY.- Art21 today announced the premiere of "Between Worlds," the first episode in Season 12 of its acclaimed broadcast series Art in the Twenty-First Century on PBS. The episode features internationally renowned Sophie Calle, Lubaina Himid, Tuan Andrew Nguyen, and Dyani White Hawk. This group of artists creates paintings, beadwork, photographs, films, and more to dramatize histories of colonization and migration, reveal the complex relationships between their personal lives and the cultures they move between, and find ways to build connections where none before existed.
Directed by Bryan Chang and the Meerkat Media Collective production team, series produced by Nick Ravich, and curated by Tina Kukielski and Jurrell Lewis, the episode premieres on Friday, October 17, at 10 PM ET. An advanced screening of "Between Worlds" will be presented at Art21’s biennial film festival, Art21 at the Movies.
As the leading independent producer documenting the art of our time, Art21 was established with a mission to expand access to artists and their ideas, meet audiences where they are, and explore the salient connections between artists and their communities. In this episode, viewers will join Vietnamese-American multidisciplinary artist Tuan Andrew Nguyen, as he collaborates with the Vietnamese Gulf Coast shrimping community in Buras, Louisiana on a new film; French writer and conceptual artist Sophie Calle, as she lays her damaged photographs and personal belongings to rest in the ancient underground caverns of Arles, France; Artist and member of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe Dyani White Hawk, as she explores rarely seen Indigenous artworks housed in the collection of the Brooklyn Museum; and pioneer of the 1980s Black British Arts Movement, Lubaina Himid, as she searches Lancashire flea markets for the everyday objects that become the surfaces for her paintings, connecting her acclaimed works to the items we encounter day to day.
Art21 produces intimate portraits of artists at crucial moments of creation, inviting audiences to experience the artistic process in ways not possible in more traditional exhibitions or presentations. Across four artistic practices and myriad expressions of vulnerability, care, creativity, and connection, this episode illustrates how artists can foster unity in a world that feels divided. As featured artist Himid says, "At the heart of everything, I'm trying to bypass the gatekeepers of contemporary museums and say ‘Let's have a conversation in this space about your life, my life, and our histories and where we belong.'"
"Marking 25 years of sharing artists’ stories, Art21 continues to offer access to the creative voices that will shape our future. In the new season of Art in the Twenty-First Century, artists traverse the fragments of inherited personal, cultural, and political histories to offer ways to make meaning, build connection, and envision new possibilities in uncertain times," stated Tina Kukielski, Susan Sollins Executive Director and Chief Curator, Art21.
"Between Worlds" will air on October 17, 2025, on PBS at 10 PM. A dual media player on Art21.org will accompany the premiere, offering descriptive audio for each artist segment to enhance accessibility for blind and low-vision audiences. As part of its broader commitment to digital inclusion, Art21 recently completed a WCAG 2.0 audit of its website and continues to improve its accessibility for all visitors.
Art21 at the Movies will return for two nights of screenings and conversations, including a premiere of the first episode of Season 12 of Art in the Twenty-First Century. An opening fundraiser will be held at Metrograph Theater on Wednesday, October 8 and an all-day film festival will take place at the Museum of Modern Art on Friday, October 10, from 2 PM to 10 PM. Both events offer attendees an opportunity to develop a deeper connection to the artists and filmmakers of Art21 productions, as well as several other award-winning filmmakers. Tickets for October 10 are available in late August at the link here.
UP NEXT IN SEASON 12
Episode 2: "Realms of the Real," directed by Stephanie Wang-Breal
Premiere Date TBD
The second episode of Season 12 shows how artists Njideka Akunyili Crosby, Ragnar Kjartansson, Candice Lin, and Tomás Saraceno push everyday materials and historical truths into the fantastical, absurd, and sublime. Sites featured include Europe’s oldest banana plantation outside Reykjavik, Iceland and the former Agfa photographic film and dye factory in Berlin.
Episode 3: "Human Nature," directed by Ian Forster, Art21 senior producer
Premiere Date TBD
The third and final episode of Season 12 spotlights how artists Lenka Clayton, Josh Kline, Delcy Morelos, and Sin Wai Kin explore what it means to be human, looking at our collective responsibilities, our influence on the built and natural environment, and ways of being. Scenes shift between the former Monastery of Santa María de las Cuevas—now an arts center in Seville, Spain—the countryside near Bogotá, Colombia, and the Troy Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
