ARTivism: Inspiring Activism Through The Arts

We're thrilled to share that ICAAD, in partnership with SikhLens and Cerritos College Art Gallery, is bringing our acclaimed 1984 exhibition to the West Coast.

ICAAD's Artivism Program centers artists as architects of just futures — working alongside communities to confront structural discrimination, preserve collective memory, and imagine alternatives to systems of harm. By weaving creative practice with legal advocacy and institutional engagement, we transform lived experience into pathways for accountability, healing, and systemic change.

Art, Resilience, and the Legacy of 1984 - West Coast Edition will open on the 42nd anniversary of the outbreak of the Sikh Genocide, and run through International Human Rights Day.

The exhibition will feature a selection of works from our acclaimed 2024 New York showing, which drew over 500 visitors in just 9 days and was recognized by the NYC Public Advocate, alongside new works by artists on the West Coast.

We will soon be issuing a call to West Coast artists to submit their work for inclusion, mirroring the community-centered process that made the New York edition so powerful. 

The exhibition is free and open to the public, with programming that includes an opening reception, speaker events, interactive healing dialogues, and educational components for students and the wider community.

For a community that has long carried the weight of 1984, this is a space to remember, to heal, and to be seen.

Stay tuned for the call to artists and more updates. Your ongoing support makes this work possible.