What we do
Artists at Risk Connection (ARC) defends and advances the right to artistic freedom, providing practical resources and support to artists and cultural workers, so they can live and work safely, free from fear.
Protect
ARC provides direct assistance to at-risk artists and connects them with an international network of organizations and resources.
Advocate
ARC monitors, documents, and advocates for artists targeted for their creative expression, social justice efforts, or human rights work. ARC defends and promotes artistic freedom around the world.
Amplify
ARC raises awareness about the challenges facing artists and cultural workers, and leads global calls for safeguarding the right to artistic freedom through storytelling, campaigns, publications, podcasts, and events.
Where we work
We work wherever artists face danger or repression, collaborating with local and international partners to ensure that no creative voice is silenced, regardless of geography or circumstances.
Africa
Latin America & The Caribbean
Asia & The Pacific
Middle East & North Africa
Europe
North America
Featured news from ARC
Artist
stories
Stories of at-risk artists from all over the world who are committed to protecting their right to freedom of expression and using their art to fight for justice.
Mexico
PH Joel
Nigeria
DJ Switch
Cuba
Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara
China
Rahima Mahmut
Turkey
Aslı Erdoğan
Russia
Yulia Tsvetkova
Exhibitions
The Art of Resistance:
Contemporary Art from
Russia & Belarus
Curated by Vera Shengalia
INSTAGRAM FEED
ARC is honored to receive The Wynn Kramarsky Freedom of Artistic Expression Award from the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts @warholfoundation—a meaningful affirmation of our global mission to defend artistic freedom and support artists and cultural workers under threat.
As authoritarianism, protracted conflict, and repression continue to endanger creative voices, this recognition helps us continue expanding our reach and deepening our impact. Thank you for standing with artists at risk and ARC!
Read our full press release: https://artistsatriskconnection.org/arc-news/arc-honored-as-andy-warhol-foundation-2025-grantee-and-award-recipient/
ARC is honored to receive The Wynn Kramarsky Freedom of Artistic Expression Award from the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts @warholfoundation—a meaningful affirmation of our global mission to defend artistic freedom and support artists and cultural workers under threat.
As authoritarianism, protracted conflict, and repression continue to endanger creative voices, this recognition helps us continue expanding our reach and deepening our impact. Thank you for standing with artists at risk and ARC!
Read our full press release: https://artistsatriskconnection.org/arc-news/arc-honored-as-andy-warhol-foundation-2025-grantee-and-award-recipient/
“Painting is my calling, and though the journey may not be smooth, it doesn`t deter me from this pursuit. I`ve embraced all the hardships and challenges of being a painter to protect my art. I believe it`s one of the few things that anchors me in this world, like seeing the sun every morning.”
As Iran`s artist and activist communities face mounting pressures, ARC looks back at an Iranian artist who we interviewed for one of our artist stories:
Faezeh Zandieh @faezehzandieh is a printmaker and painter from Tehran, Iran. After witnessing a violent confrontation between men on the streets of Tehran in 2020, Faezeh began to explore the concept of masculinity and identity in her work. Her prints and paintings grapple with Iran’s patriarchal culture and the societal forces that push men toward violence.
During the Women, Life, Freedom protests, a gallery showing Faezeh’s work was censored by Iranian intelligence forces. Shortly thereafter, Faezeh received an opportunity to relocate to France. With residences and support from @urdla and @fondationbullukian, Faezeh has been able to build her life abroad and expand her artistic practice.
Learn more about Faezeh and her work: https://artistsatriskconnection.org/story/faezeh-zandieh
Artwork courtesy of the artist: Untitled; 2025; Oil on canvas.
#WomenLifeFreedom
“Painting is my calling, and though the journey may not be smooth, it doesn`t deter me from this pursuit. I`ve embraced all the hardships and challenges of being a painter to protect my art. I believe it`s one of the few things that anchors me in this world, like seeing the sun every morning.”
As Iran`s artist and activist communities face mounting pressures, ARC looks back at an Iranian artist who we interviewed for one of our artist stories:
Faezeh Zandieh @faezehzandieh is a printmaker and painter from Tehran, Iran. After witnessing a violent confrontation between men on the streets of Tehran in 2020, Faezeh began to explore the concept of masculinity and identity in her work. Her prints and paintings grapple with Iran’s patriarchal culture and the societal forces that push men toward violence.
During the Women, Life, Freedom protests, a gallery showing Faezeh’s work was censored by Iranian intelligence forces. Shortly thereafter, Faezeh received an opportunity to relocate to France. With residences and support from @urdla and @fondationbullukian, Faezeh has been able to build her life abroad and expand her artistic practice.
Learn more about Faezeh and her work: https://artistsatriskconnection.org/story/faezeh-zandieh
Artwork courtesy of the artist: Untitled; 2025; Oil on canvas.
#WomenLifeFreedom
“There are few words left to adequately condemn in its totality the depravity of the Israeli government’s attacks and campaign of erasure against the Palestinian people, its art, culture, land, and memory.” — ARC Executive Director Julie Trébault.
On June 30, 2025, a series of Israeli strikes killed over 70 Palestinians, among them two artists, visual artist Amna Al-Salmi and filmmaker Ismail Abu Hatab. Amna and Ismail were among at least 30 killed in a strike on the Al-Baqa Cafe in Gaza City, one of the few remaining spaces in Gaza with stable electricity and internet access. It was a refuge and meeting place for artists, journalists, and activists.
ARC unequivocally condemns the indiscriminate killing of Palestinian civilians by Israel, erasing artistic, cultural, and activist voices, and we call on the Israeli government to cease strikes and re-commit to a permanent ceasefire. Moreover, ARC implores the international community to ensure accountability and justice for Israel’s actions.
Read our full statement: https://artistsatriskconnection.org/statement/arc-condemns-israel-strikes-killing-dozens-including-two-artists/
@penamerica @peninternational
“There are few words left to adequately condemn in its totality the depravity of the Israeli government’s attacks and campaign of erasure against the Palestinian people, its art, culture, land, and memory.” — ARC Executive Director Julie Trébault.
On June 30, 2025, a series of Israeli strikes killed over 70 Palestinians, among them two artists, visual artist Amna Al-Salmi and filmmaker Ismail Abu Hatab. Amna and Ismail were among at least 30 killed in a strike on the Al-Baqa Cafe in Gaza City, one of the few remaining spaces in Gaza with stable electricity and internet access. It was a refuge and meeting place for artists, journalists, and activists.
ARC unequivocally condemns the indiscriminate killing of Palestinian civilians by Israel, erasing artistic, cultural, and activist voices, and we call on the Israeli government to cease strikes and re-commit to a permanent ceasefire. Moreover, ARC implores the international community to ensure accountability and justice for Israel’s actions.
Read our full statement: https://artistsatriskconnection.org/statement/arc-condemns-israel-strikes-killing-dozens-including-two-artists/
@penamerica @peninternational
📢 ARC in The New York Times @nytimes 📰
Significant cuts by the current U.S. administration to the General Services Administration (GSA) have jeopardized the preservation of artistic and cultural heritage as a beleaguered workforce attempts to maintain and safeguard the 26,000+ works in the federal art collection.
ARC Executive Director Julie Trébault spoke with The New York Times for a written piece by Lydia DePillis, Graham Bowley, and Robin Pogrebin @rpogrebin that highlights how these staff cuts pose serious questions for the tracking, up-keep, and protecting of more than a century of American art in cultural institutions and federal buildings across the nation.
🔹 We`re grateful to journalists spotlighting these issues and amplifying our message.
Read the full article: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/08/arts/trump-cuts-leave-few-caretakers-for-a-massive-federal-art-collection.html
#artisticfreedom #artistsatrisk #freeexpression
📢 ARC in The New York Times @nytimes 📰
Significant cuts by the current U.S. administration to the General Services Administration (GSA) have jeopardized the preservation of artistic and cultural heritage as a beleaguered workforce attempts to maintain and safeguard the 26,000+ works in the federal art collection.
ARC Executive Director Julie Trébault spoke with The New York Times for a written piece by Lydia DePillis, Graham Bowley, and Robin Pogrebin @rpogrebin that highlights how these staff cuts pose serious questions for the tracking, up-keep, and protecting of more than a century of American art in cultural institutions and federal buildings across the nation.
🔹 We`re grateful to journalists spotlighting these issues and amplifying our message.
Read the full article: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/08/arts/trump-cuts-leave-few-caretakers-for-a-massive-federal-art-collection.html
#artisticfreedom #artistsatrisk #freeexpression
“Probably, I was the first political prisoner asking for pencils, brushes and paints."
– Philippenzo @philippenzo, Russian graffiti artist, activist, and The Art of Resistance participant.
Every other week, ARC is featuring an artist from our new digital exhibition, The Art of Resistance: Contemporary Art from Russia and Belarus.
This moving testament to the power of creative defiance in the face of authoritarianism brings together 13 visual artists from Russia and Belarus who have mobilized to oppose the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and to advocate for peace.
See Philippenzo’s powerful work, and read his story at:
https://artistsatriskconnection.org/exhibition/philippenzo-exhibition/
#ArtistsAgainstTheWar #artivism #TheArtofResistence #UNESCO
“Probably, I was the first political prisoner asking for pencils, brushes and paints."
– Philippenzo @philippenzo, Russian graffiti artist, activist, and The Art of Resistance participant.
Every other week, ARC is featuring an artist from our new digital exhibition, The Art of Resistance: Contemporary Art from Russia and Belarus.
This moving testament to the power of creative defiance in the face of authoritarianism brings together 13 visual artists from Russia and Belarus who have mobilized to oppose the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and to advocate for peace.
See Philippenzo’s powerful work, and read his story at:
https://artistsatriskconnection.org/exhibition/philippenzo-exhibition/
#ArtistsAgainstTheWar #artivism #TheArtofResistence #UNESCO
🇵🇸 “Visual projects are a transfer of the lives of the audience and their stories by using art to transform destruction and devastation into love, hope, and life,” shared the multidisciplinary Palestinian artist Shareef Sarhan @shareef_sarhan with ARC.
In 2003, Shareef founded the collective Windows from Gaza, amplifying Palestinian voices when they were largely isolated from the rest of the world. Throughout Shareef’s decades-long career, he has centered his creative approach on preserving memories and communicating the experiences of the Palestinian people to global audiences.
Since October 7, 2023, over 7,000 pieces of Shareef’s artwork have been destroyed. Despite this, Shareef is rebuilding previous projects and creating new works. At the heart of all his artistic oeuvre is the faith that his works will be remembered for the hope they imbued and the memories they held.
Join ARC in celebrating Shareef’s artistry and activism, and read his full artist story: https://artistsatriskconnection.org/artist-voice/shareef-sarhan/
🇵🇸 “Visual projects are a transfer of the lives of the audience and their stories by using art to transform destruction and devastation into love, hope, and life,” shared the multidisciplinary Palestinian artist Shareef Sarhan @shareef_sarhan with ARC.
In 2003, Shareef founded the collective Windows from Gaza, amplifying Palestinian voices when they were largely isolated from the rest of the world. Throughout Shareef’s decades-long career, he has centered his creative approach on preserving memories and communicating the experiences of the Palestinian people to global audiences.
Since October 7, 2023, over 7,000 pieces of Shareef’s artwork have been destroyed. Despite this, Shareef is rebuilding previous projects and creating new works. At the heart of all his artistic oeuvre is the faith that his works will be remembered for the hope they imbued and the memories they held.
Join ARC in celebrating Shareef’s artistry and activism, and read his full artist story: https://artistsatriskconnection.org/artist-voice/shareef-sarhan/
“This latest arrest of Toomaj Salehi, after previous arrests and even a commuted death sentence, is yet another chapter in a campaign of sustained harassment that the rapper is facing for his public comments.”
Amid the nearly week-old war triggered by Israeli attacks on Iran, human rights groups have warned of a heightened crackdown on dissent by Tehran. Salehi has full-throatedly condemned Israel’s strikes on his country, while also decrying the failure of Iranian authorities to protect citizens in the face of the bombardment which began on June 13.
The Iranian rapper was first arrested in October 2022 after publicly supporting the mass protest movement, “Woman, Life, Freedom,” that emerged in response to the killing of Mahsa Amini.
ARC calls on the Iranian government to immediately disclose Salehi’s whereabouts, release him without delay, and end its campaign of intimidation against artists.
Read our full statement: https://artistsatriskconnection.org/statement/arc-condemns-irans-targeting-of-dissident-rapper-salehi-amid-war/
#WomanLifeFreedom #FreeToomaj @penamerica @peninternational @pen_canada @toomajofficial
“This latest arrest of Toomaj Salehi, after previous arrests and even a commuted death sentence, is yet another chapter in a campaign of sustained harassment that the rapper is facing for his public comments.”
Amid the nearly week-old war triggered by Israeli attacks on Iran, human rights groups have warned of a heightened crackdown on dissent by Tehran. Salehi has full-throatedly condemned Israel’s strikes on his country, while also decrying the failure of Iranian authorities to protect citizens in the face of the bombardment which began on June 13.
The Iranian rapper was first arrested in October 2022 after publicly supporting the mass protest movement, “Woman, Life, Freedom,” that emerged in response to the killing of Mahsa Amini.
ARC calls on the Iranian government to immediately disclose Salehi’s whereabouts, release him without delay, and end its campaign of intimidation against artists.
Read our full statement: https://artistsatriskconnection.org/statement/arc-condemns-irans-targeting-of-dissident-rapper-salehi-amid-war/
#WomanLifeFreedom #FreeToomaj @penamerica @peninternational @pen_canada @toomajofficial
🕊️ Yesterday, in Paris, ARC Executive Director Julie Trébault, with Cité internationale des arts (@citedesartsparis), On the Move (@otm.network), and DutchCulture (@dutchcultureamsterdam), had an inspiring conversation with refugee artists: Taigué Ahmed (@taigueahmed), a dancer from Chad and Zhenya Machneva (@zhemachneva), a textile artist from Russia.
The conversation also gathered numerous influential exiled artists, including Iranian filmmaker Hossein Rajabian (@hosseinrajabian) and Burmese visual artists Nge Lay (@ngelayartist) and Aung Ko (@aungko_artist).
On #WorldRefugeeDay, we honor their courage and the hundreds of artists ARC has supported—those forced to flee because their creativity, voices, and visions challenge power and demand change.
In this spirit, don’t miss "Poser pour la Liberté" at Campus Condorcet (@campuscondorcet)—an evocative tribute to academics and artists in exile, created by ARC board member Pascale Laborier and photographer Pierre-Jérôme Adjedj (@pierre.jerome.adjedj). The exhibition is supported by the PAUSE program and Institut Convergences Migrations (@icmigrations).
https://www.campus-condorcet.fr/fr/agenda/journee-mondiale-des-refugies
@ehess_officiel
🕊️ Yesterday, in Paris, ARC Executive Director Julie Trébault, with Cité internationale des arts (@citedesartsparis), On the Move (@otm.network), and DutchCulture (@dutchcultureamsterdam), had an inspiring conversation with refugee artists: Taigué Ahmed (@taigueahmed), a dancer from Chad and Zhenya Machneva (@zhemachneva), a textile artist from Russia.
The conversation also gathered numerous influential exiled artists, including Iranian filmmaker Hossein Rajabian (@hosseinrajabian) and Burmese visual artists Nge Lay (@ngelayartist) and Aung Ko (@aungko_artist).
On #WorldRefugeeDay, we honor their courage and the hundreds of artists ARC has supported—those forced to flee because their creativity, voices, and visions challenge power and demand change.
In this spirit, don’t miss "Poser pour la Liberté" at Campus Condorcet (@campuscondorcet)—an evocative tribute to academics and artists in exile, created by ARC board member Pascale Laborier and photographer Pierre-Jérôme Adjedj (@pierre.jerome.adjedj). The exhibition is supported by the PAUSE program and Institut Convergences Migrations (@icmigrations).
https://www.campus-condorcet.fr/fr/agenda/journee-mondiale-des-refugies
@ehess_officiel
Want to see more?
Follow us on socials
Want to support artists at risk?
We rely on your donations.
Subscribe to ARC’s newsletter
Subscribe to ARC’s quarterly newsletter and e-blasts for the lastest updates on artistic freedom.