ARC @ South Eastern Art Museum Directors Conference 2026
Norfolk, United States
Tuesday 21 April 2026
10:00AM – 11:00AM EDT
Chrysler Museum of Art
1 Memorial Pl.
Norfolk, VA 23510
Join ARC for a focused and timely conversation as part of the Southeastern Art Museum Director Conference 2026, hosted by the Chrysler Museum of Art in Norfolk, Virginia (April 19-21), on the evolving landscape of artistic freedom in the United States. This session brings together a select group of art museum directors from across the U.S. Southeast for an intimate exchange aligned with the conference’s goal of advancing leadership, dialogue, and best practices across the field.
The program will feature ARC Executive Director Julie Trébault, who will share insights from ARC’s latest research, alongside a short conversation with Professor and artist Shaomin Li of Old Dominion University. Drawing from his own experience, Li will speak to the realities of navigating international pressure and the complexities of artistic and curatorial freedom.
Grounded in ARC’s recent findings, including the National Artist Safety Survey and prior collaborations with the Association of Art Museum Directors, the session will explore pressing questions: How is risk distributed across the cultural field? What responsibilities do institutions hold in protecting artistic freedom? And what does it mean for museums to act not only as stewards of culture, but as active partners in safeguarding the conditions under which art can be made?
Speakers
Shaomin Li
Shaomin Li is Eminent Scholar and Professor of International Business and Chair of the Department of Management at Old Dominion University. His research focuses on political and economic systems and culture across countries. His commentaries and articles have appeared in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and The Economist. He graduated from Peking University with a degree in economics and received his PhD in sociology from Princeton University. He later conducted postdoctoral research at Harvard University.
Trained as a portrait artist, he actively draws editorial cartoons on contemporary political and social issues, primarily international affairs. He received the 2008 Outstanding Faculty Award from the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia.
Julie Trébault
Julie Trébault is the Founder and Executive Director of ARC — Artists at Risk Connection, a global organization dedicated to safeguarding artistic freedom and supporting artists and cultural workers under threat. Under her leadership, ARC provides critical resources and support to more than 2,100 artists in more than 60 countries facing persecution from state and non-state actors, empowering them to overcome challenges to their creative expression. Prior to founding ARC, she served as director of public programs at the Museum of the City of New York and the Center for Architecture.
