Petah Coyne and Jodi Throckmorton

Join us for a one-to-one conversation between Rising Sun artist Petah Coyne (PAFA) and Jodi Throckmorton, co-curator of Rising Sun: Artists in an Uncertain America and former Curator of Contemporary Art at PAFA. The artist and curator will speak about their contributions to Rising Sun, the development of project in collaboration with the African American Museum in Philadelphia, and how the tumultuous years of the Trump Presidency, the pandemic and the murder of George Floyd impacted the project. They will talk about Petah's monumental installations in Rising Sun, and share insights into her artistic practice and career that spans 50 years. 

The evening continues after the talk with the Rising Moon Rooftop Reception, a very special gathering atop PAFA's rooftop terrace and embrace the magic of the Rising Moon. Prepare yourself for an extraordinary night filled with art, culture, and celestial wonders. Combined tickets for both events are available. Learn more. 

Registrants for this event are also invited to experience PAFA’s installation of Rising Sun: Artists in an Uncertain America before the panel, from 5:00 – 5:50 pm.

Jodi Throckmorton is Chief Curator at the John Michael Kohler Arts Center. Before joining JMKAC in 2022, she was Curator of Contemporary Art at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, where she most recently earned accolades for curating a retrospective exhibition and publication on the work of Joan Semmel titled Joan Semmel: Skin in the Game. She also organized the exhibition and publications for Rina Banerjee: Make Me a Summary of the World (2018) with Lauren Dickens and Postdate: Photography and Inherited History in India (2015). During her over seven years at PAFA, she added transformational works by contemporary artists to the collection, including purchases of work by Mequitta Ahuja, Joan Brown, Chitra Ganesh, Ebony G. Patterson, Marie Watt, and Dyani White Hawk, among others. Throckmorton also partnered with Paulson Fontaine Press to make PAFA the East Coast archive of prints by African American artists from the press. In 2018 and 2019, Art Agency, Partners recognized PAFA as a leader in museum acquisitions by women and African American artists. Among her other past projects are Nick Cave: Rescue (2018), Paul Chan: Pillowsophia (2017), Melt/Carve/Forge: Embodied Sculptures by Cassils (2016). Alyson Shotz: Plane Weave (2016), Bruce Conner: Somebody Else’s Prints (2014), Questions from the Sky: New Work by Hung Liu (2013), Dive Deep: Eric Fischl and the Process of Painting (2013), Ranu Mukherjee: Telling Fortunes (2012), and This Kind of Bird Flies Backward: Paintings by Joan Brown (2011). Previously, she held curatorial positions at the Ulrich Museum of Art at Wichita State University and the San Jose Museum of Art in California.