Steven Nelson
@snelsonus.bsky.social
Former dean, Center for Advanced Study in the Visual Arts, National Gallery of Art; UCLA professor emeritus; and left-handed art historian who sees lots of shiny objects.
Reposted by Steven Nelson
The Walker Art Center and the Minneapolis Institute of Art are among the hundreds of businesses shuttering on January 23 in protest of the ICE killing of Renee Macklin Good.
Minnesota Art Spaces to Close in Solidarity With Anti-ICE Strike
The Walker Art Center and the Minneapolis Institute of Art are among the hundreds of businesses shuttering on January 23 in protest of the ICE killing of Renee Macklin Good.
hyperallergic.com
January 23, 2026 at 1:13 AM
The Walker Art Center and the Minneapolis Institute of Art are among the hundreds of businesses shuttering on January 23 in protest of the ICE killing of Renee Macklin Good.
Sunday in our nation’s capital.
January 18, 2026 at 6:41 PM
Sunday in our nation’s capital.
“Ask anyone who has lived in a country that became an autocracy, and they will tell you some version of a story about walls closing in on them, about space getting smaller and smaller. The space they are talking about is freedom.” - M. Gessen
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/18/o...
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/18/o...
Opinion | One Year of Trump. The Time to Act Is Now, While We Still Can.
www.nytimes.com
January 18, 2026 at 3:32 PM
“Ask anyone who has lived in a country that became an autocracy, and they will tell you some version of a story about walls closing in on them, about space getting smaller and smaller. The space they are talking about is freedom.” - M. Gessen
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/18/o...
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/18/o...
“Abolition is less an act of demolition than a construction project. It is creative creation, the boundless, boundary-less struggle to make our collective lives better, what Ruth Wilson Gilmore calls “life in rehearsal.” — Robin D. G. Kelley
"Strangest of all is the liberal pipe dream that local police will stand up against ICE and CBP, when police have collaborated with ICE and been deployed to protect agents from protesters, even in so-called sanctuary cities."
An interview with Robin D.G. Kelley
www.bostonreview.net/articles/ren...
An interview with Robin D.G. Kelley
www.bostonreview.net/articles/ren...
Renee Good's Murder and Other Acts of Terror
An interview with Robin D. G. Kelley on how to think about ICE—and the broader history of police violence.
www.bostonreview.net
January 17, 2026 at 10:16 PM
“Abolition is less an act of demolition than a construction project. It is creative creation, the boundless, boundary-less struggle to make our collective lives better, what Ruth Wilson Gilmore calls “life in rehearsal.” — Robin D. G. Kelley
Reposted by Steven Nelson
I’m so happy to see Leigh Raiford’s brilliant book, “When Home is a Photograph,” coming out in the Duke University Press series, “The Visual Arts of Africa and Its Diasporas,” which I co-edit with Dr. Kellie Jones.
January 17, 2026 at 2:10 PM
I’m so happy to see Leigh Raiford’s brilliant book, “When Home is a Photograph,” coming out in the Duke University Press series, “The Visual Arts of Africa and Its Diasporas,” which I co-edit with Dr. Kellie Jones.
Reposted by Steven Nelson
I’m seeing posts from people (outside of MN) about how US citizens should carry their passports.
And let me say that *inside* MN, we are calmly responding to requests with: “No, I don’t have to show you any documentation.”
Because that’s how you protect everyone, regardless of immigration status.
And let me say that *inside* MN, we are calmly responding to requests with: “No, I don’t have to show you any documentation.”
Because that’s how you protect everyone, regardless of immigration status.
January 16, 2026 at 12:17 AM
I’m seeing posts from people (outside of MN) about how US citizens should carry their passports.
And let me say that *inside* MN, we are calmly responding to requests with: “No, I don’t have to show you any documentation.”
Because that’s how you protect everyone, regardless of immigration status.
And let me say that *inside* MN, we are calmly responding to requests with: “No, I don’t have to show you any documentation.”
Because that’s how you protect everyone, regardless of immigration status.
“Nigerian Modernism” at Tate Modern is a breathtaking exhibition that details the artists and cultural figures working during much of the 20th century. The work is incredible, and the exhibition expertly curated.
January 15, 2026 at 10:23 AM
“Nigerian Modernism” at Tate Modern is a breathtaking exhibition that details the artists and cultural figures working during much of the 20th century. The work is incredible, and the exhibition expertly curated.
Reposted by Steven Nelson
Frey: "You cannot drag pregnant women through the snow. You're not allowed to take teenagers out of their car and detain them when they are in fact American citizens. That is against the law in every state. That is against our US Constitution."
January 12, 2026 at 9:51 PM
Frey: "You cannot drag pregnant women through the snow. You're not allowed to take teenagers out of their car and detain them when they are in fact American citizens. That is against the law in every state. That is against our US Constitution."
The two least helpful pronouncements when responding to the actions of ICE and the Trump administration:
1. We’re better than this. (No, we’re not.)
2. This is not America. (Yes, it is.)
Feel free to add more.
1. We’re better than this. (No, we’re not.)
2. This is not America. (Yes, it is.)
Feel free to add more.
January 12, 2026 at 9:55 AM
The two least helpful pronouncements when responding to the actions of ICE and the Trump administration:
1. We’re better than this. (No, we’re not.)
2. This is not America. (Yes, it is.)
Feel free to add more.
1. We’re better than this. (No, we’re not.)
2. This is not America. (Yes, it is.)
Feel free to add more.
Artist formerly known, “The Cholmondeley sisters and their swaddled babies,” c.1600–1610. This is one of my favorite paintings at Tate Britain.
January 11, 2026 at 4:40 PM
Artist formerly known, “The Cholmondeley sisters and their swaddled babies,” c.1600–1610. This is one of my favorite paintings at Tate Britain.
Bowing to pressure, the Smithsonian has removed a caption mentioning Trump’s impeachment beside the photograph of him in the National Portrait Gallery.
January 11, 2026 at 12:49 PM
Bowing to pressure, the Smithsonian has removed a caption mentioning Trump’s impeachment beside the photograph of him in the National Portrait Gallery.
Reposted by Steven Nelson
The reactionary centrist logic is simple: if the left does something bad it’s the left’s fault, and if the right does something bad, it’s also the left’s fault for making them do it. It’s a simple formula and once you see it every one of their arguments is the same
January 10, 2026 at 11:24 PM
The reactionary centrist logic is simple: if the left does something bad it’s the left’s fault, and if the right does something bad, it’s also the left’s fault for making them do it. It’s a simple formula and once you see it every one of their arguments is the same
Increasing the pressure on the Smithsonian.
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/08/a...
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/08/a...
The Smithsonian Faces New Pressure to Submit to Trump’s Will
www.nytimes.com
January 10, 2026 at 5:17 PM
Increasing the pressure on the Smithsonian.
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/08/a...
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/08/a...
Reposted by Steven Nelson
THIS WEEKEND: More than 1,000 marches and vigils are taking place nationwide to honor Renee Nicole Good, demand accountability for ICE’s killing of Renee, and make visible the human cost of ICE’s terror. Please join us: mobilize.us?tag_ids=2913...
January 10, 2026 at 1:18 PM
THIS WEEKEND: More than 1,000 marches and vigils are taking place nationwide to honor Renee Nicole Good, demand accountability for ICE’s killing of Renee, and make visible the human cost of ICE’s terror. Please join us: mobilize.us?tag_ids=2913...
Reposted by Steven Nelson
The past couple days have made it clear that arresting and prosecuting Johnathan Ross isn’t just the right thing to do, it is necessary to prevent future violence by ICE who have interpreted the situation as “we can do that to whoever we want”
A woman recording an ICE agent tells him "Shame on you."
The agent responds, "Have you all not learned from the past couple of days?"
"Learned what?" she asks
Then he knocks her phone out of her hand
The agent responds, "Have you all not learned from the past couple of days?"
"Learned what?" she asks
Then he knocks her phone out of her hand
January 10, 2026 at 3:25 PM
The past couple days have made it clear that arresting and prosecuting Johnathan Ross isn’t just the right thing to do, it is necessary to prevent future violence by ICE who have interpreted the situation as “we can do that to whoever we want”
The Washington Opera is leaving the Kennedy Center. Good for them.
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/09/a...
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/09/a...
Washington National Opera Is Leaving the Kennedy Center
www.nytimes.com
January 9, 2026 at 10:59 PM
The Washington Opera is leaving the Kennedy Center. Good for them.
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/09/a...
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/09/a...
Reposted by Steven Nelson
AOC: “I understand that VP Vance believes shooting a young mother of three in the face three times is an acceptable America that he wants to live in, & I do not — That is a fundamental difference between VP Vance & I — I do not believe the American people should be assassinated in the street”
January 9, 2026 at 6:30 PM
AOC: “I understand that VP Vance believes shooting a young mother of three in the face three times is an acceptable America that he wants to live in, & I do not — That is a fundamental difference between VP Vance & I — I do not believe the American people should be assassinated in the street”
Reposted by Steven Nelson
Frey: "This notion of inflammatory comments -- c'mon guys. I dropped an F bomb, they killed someone. Which one of those is more inflammatory? I'm going with the killing somebody."
January 9, 2026 at 3:49 PM
Frey: "This notion of inflammatory comments -- c'mon guys. I dropped an F bomb, they killed someone. Which one of those is more inflammatory? I'm going with the killing somebody."
@amyklobuchar.com's response is collusion.
By refusing to coordinate with local law enforcement, ICE is not making our community safe. It is making it less safe.
www.startribune.com/she-was-an-a...
www.startribune.com/she-was-an-a...
‘She was an amazing human being’: Mother identifies woman shot, killed by ICE agent
Renee Nicole Good, 37, lived in Minneapolis with her partner just blocks from where she was shot.
www.startribune.com
January 8, 2026 at 5:11 PM
@amyklobuchar.com's response is collusion.
Reposted by Steven Nelson
Reposted by Steven Nelson
Once you understand that you're dealing with murderous liars, you stop entertaining what they say as possibly credible and legitimate. The fight against them is about stopping them from terrorizing and killing by any means, not winning debates about your reality versus theirs.
January 8, 2026 at 4:04 PM
Once you understand that you're dealing with murderous liars, you stop entertaining what they say as possibly credible and legitimate. The fight against them is about stopping them from terrorizing and killing by any means, not winning debates about your reality versus theirs.