Join us on Monday, October 19, 2026 at the Civitella Castle for Presentations by Director’s Guest Asia Freeman and Visual Arts Fellow Athena LaTocha. Reserve your spot below or tune in to our livestream on Instagram @CivitellaRanieri.
6:00 PM CEST Welcome Cocktail
6:15 PM CEST/12:15 PM EDT Presentations
Born in Mexico, Asia Freeman was raised in Alaska, fishing, wildcrafting, and making art. A painter and installation artist, she graduated from Yale and earned an MFA in Visual Art from Vermont College of Fine Arts. Asia teaches visual art courses for the University of Alaska. She is the Artistic Director and founder of the multidisciplinary art space, Bunnell Arts at Tuggeht (Dena’ina) in Homer, Alaska. Asia curates touring exhibitions about cultural protection. She often collaborates on exhibitions with her spouse, filmmaker Michael Walsh. Her artwork is in Alaskan museums and collections worldwide.
Athena LaTocha is an artist whose works explore the relationship between human-made and natural worlds. Her works are informed by her upbringing in the wilderness of Alaska and the impact of industrial development. LaTocha’s process is about being immersed in these environments, while responding to the storied and, at times, traumatic histories that are rooted in place. LaTocha is the recipient of the 2024 Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation Award, the Foundation for Contemporary Arts Grants to Artists Award (2024), and the Anonymous Was A Woman Award (2023), among others.