In-person Event and via Livestream
A Public Reception Follows  

Celebrate the Transformative Intersection of Design, Culture & Justice

CLICK HERE to access the livestream of the program. 

Join us for an inspiring exploration of the architecture firm MASS Design Group’s (MDG) Restorative Justice Design Lab and celebrate the Museum’s ongoing namesake exhibition Justice is Beauty: The Work of MASS Design Group.

Dwayne Betts, founder and director, Freedom Reads, Michael Murphy, a founding principal of MASS Design Group, and Scott Semple, former commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Correction and founder, Semple Consulting, LLC explore how the power of culture -- architecture, literature, design, art, and music can educate and support social justice, and influence policy and public opinion. Betts and Murphy bring their experience as authors to the conversation. Mr. Murphy is co-author of the recently published book The Architecture of Health: Hospital Design and the Construction of Dignity (Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum, 2021) and Mr. Betts' most recent collections of poetry are Felon: Poems (W. W. Norton & Company, 2021) and Bastards of the Reagan Era (Four Way Books, 2015). 

Their remarks will mark the occasion and significance of a Freedom Reads Library joining the Justice is Beauty exhibition -- highlighting an ongoing collaboration of the two organizations to celebrate the transformative power of design and libraries in dignifying the spaces inside prisons.  MASS Design worked with Freedom Reads to design the library fixtures that will be occupying spaces in prisons across the country.

The exhibition with the new library installation will be open for viewing, and a public reception follows the event. 

Free. Registration required.

This program will be presented in-person in the National Building Museum's Great Hall. It will also be broadcast live. Once you complete your ticket purchase, you'll receive a confirmation email containing the link to view the live broadcast, if you are not attending in-person.

For media access, please contact Karen Baratz, Baratz Communications. 

The National Building Museum is prioritizing the health and safety of our guests, speakers, staff, and volunteers. We are requiring that all of our guests wear masks. Further, by registering to attend this program in person, you attest that you have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or have received a negative COVID-19 test within the previous three days. Thank you for helping us slow the spread of COVID-19. 

Image: The Freedom Library in the Segregated Housing Unit at Old Colony Correctional Center in MA. Photo courtesy Freedom Reads.