The OccuLibrary was initiated in 2011 following the destruction of the Occupy camp libraries when the camps were evicted across the US (more than 3,000 books were destroyed in New York City alone). The project was a rolling collaboration initiated by Carolyn Sortor and including numerous artists (many mentioned below), in which the libraries were reincarnated in various forms, "using aesthetically-informed strategies to lure awareness toward empowering info." Click on the title of each incarnation below for more info:
	Working Groups
		An exhibition at the MAC, Dallas, 2019-01-12 – 02-23, contextualizing the permanent installation at the MAC of the physical library assembled for use in various OccuLibrary incarnations and reviewing some of the achievements of the Occupy movement and its offshoots. By Carolyn Sortor and Michael A. Morris with contributions from various "working groups" and others including Akshat Tewary of Occupy the SEC. In 2021 prints from this show were exhibited at the Metropolitan College of New York in connection with the tenth anniversary of the Occupy movement.
	art as social wormhole
		A reading group/“artificial MFA” course in classic and recent texts on aesthetic issues relating to art's potential to speak to or influence social or political realities; 2013-10-27 – 2015-05-31. Syllabus here; Tumblr here (see posts addressed to "social worms"). The group’s home base was The Reading Room, Dallas, and it also met at other venues exhibiting art relevant to the readings. The syllabus was determined by group consensus, and it and the texts remain online for anyone interested. The group also created the Barona Botanicals event. Organized by Carolyn Sortor for MAP 2013; with support from Karen Weiner.
	Secret Sociality
		An installation of an intimate, partially-hidden library of books and other materials relevant to art and social issues, in the Eastfield College main gallery, 2013-10-12 – 12-06. Two gigs of "secret" info were also delivered to visitors who signed up for it. By Carolyn Sortor with Jeremy Massey for MAP 2013.
	Co- Re-Creating Spaces
		An exhibition at CentralTrak, Dallas, 2012-11-17 – 2013-01-05, surveying how artists are questioning and re-imagining such systems as the law, the media, history, the economy, etc., with works by Morehshin Allahyari, Amy Balkin, Aram Bartholl, Oliver Ressler, Irina Botea, Martha Colburn, eteam, Cao Fei, Yevgeniy Fiks, Martha Rosler, Dread Scott, the Yes Men & Steve Lambert, et al. Co-curated by Carolyn Sortor & Michael A. Morris. Exhibition catalogue here; tumblr here.
	Werkberg OccuLab
		A rolling sculpture housing the OccuLibrary library, with a slideshow projection inside showing various artists' photos of their work spaces. By Greg Metz, Cassandra Emswiler, & Kristen Cochran. (Click through the first photo for more.)
	451 degrees
		A card catalogue for the OccuLibrary library, created by Karen Weiner with Celia and Frank Eberle. (Click through the first photo for more.)
	Yankee Doodles Sing-a-Lot Sing-Along
		A series of participatory programs of art- and music-making for young artists, offered on various dates 2012-13 at The Reading Room, Oil and Cotton, and the Dallas Museum of Art. Created by Danette Dufilho, Anne Lawrence, Regina Yunker Rudnicki, & friends.
	GlamROccuLibrarymentary Trailer Shoot, Vols. 1 & 2
		A project conducted in two installments, first 2012-04-14 – 28 as part of the Fallas Dart Air and then 2018-11-03 – 2019-02-23 at the MAC, in which members of the public were invited to be videotaped reading their selection(s) from a script of inspiring quotations from great artists and other thinkers. The resulting video created Carolyn Sortor and Michael A. Morris is hosted by Glasstire here.
The library of books and other materials assembled for the OccuLibrary has been permanently installed at the MAC, Dallas. Donations of materials as well as other support are welcome. More about the OccuLibrary incarnations at:
	The OccuLibrary tumblr – 2013-09-09 – present.
	The OccuLibrary blog – inception – 2013-09-09.
	History of the OccuLibrary as of 2013-12-31.
Return to C-Cyte Contents; carolyn at c-cyte dot com