High Line Plinth: An Afternoon with Tuan Andrew Nguyen

About this event

A series informed by themes central to Tuan Andrew Nguyen’s Plinth commission: The Light That Shines Through the Universe. As part of the public programming for Tuan Andrew Nguyen’s High Line Plinth commission, The Light That Shines Through the Universe, the High Line presents a monthly lecture and guided meditation series at the Spur. Presented in partnership with the Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art, the series invites visitors to engage more deeply with themes central to Nguyen’s work. Each session features a lecture by a scholar, artist, or cultural leader, followed by a guided meditation led by an invited practitioner. The series is hosted by Tashi Chödrön, Himalayan Programs and Communities Ambassador at the Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art, who, in her two decades with the Rubin, has led meditation programs for over ten years and is the current host of the Rubin’s Mindfulness Meditation podcast. Through this combination of intellectual and contemplative practice, the series invites audiences to pause, reflect, and consider the artwork’s historical and philosophical themes through both thought and experience. High Line Plinth: Lectures & Meditations – An Afternoon with Tuan Andrew Nguyen — Saturday, September 19, 2026 2:30pm-4pm (Rain date: Sunday, September 20) Join us for an in-depth conversation between the artist behind The Light That Shines Through the Universe, Tuan Andrew Nguyen, and Cecilia Alemani, Donald R. Mullen, Jr. Director & Chief Curator of High Line Art. This program will focus on Nguyen’s practice, the inspiration for his Plinth commission, and the sculpture’s symbolic rebirth, followed by a guided meditation focused on transformation. The guided meditation will be led by Jessica Angima, a Kenyan-American artist, organizer, and dharma practitioner in the Western Insight and Theravada traditions. With over ten years of training and mentorship, she leads meditation and contemplative experiences in community green spaces throughout New York City. Bio: Tuan Andrew Nguyen (b. 1976, Saigon, Vietnam) lives and works in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Nguyen has had major solo presentations at the New Museum, New York, NY (2023); Fondació Joan Miró, Barcelona, Spain (2024); Zeitz MOCAA, Cape Town, South Africa (2024); Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington D.C. (2024); and the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL (2025). The artist’s videos and films have been included in major international festivals, biennials, and exhibitions including 36th Bienal de São Paulo (2025); Prospect.6, New Orleans, LA (2024); the 12th Berlin Biennale, Berlin, Germany (2022); Manifesta 14, Prishtina, Kosovo (2022); Aichi Triennale, Aichi Prefecture, Japan (2022); Biennale de Dakar, Dakar, Senegal (2022); Asian Art Biennial, National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts, Tapei, Taiwan (2021); Manifesta 13, Marseille, France (2020); Sharjah Architecture Triennial, Sharjah, UAE (2019); SOFT POWER, SFMoMA, San Francisco, CA (2019); the 2019 Sharjah Biennial, Sharjah, UAE (2019); 2017 Whitney Biennial, New York, NY (2017); the 55th International Short Film Festival, Oberhausen, Germany (2009); 8th NHK Asian Film Festival, Tokyo, Japan (2007); 18th Singapore International Film Festival (2005) and 4th Bangkok Experimental Film Festival, Bangkok, Thailand (2005). Nguyen has received numerous awards, including the 2023 Joan Miró Prize, 2025 Trellis Art Fund Milestone Grant, and 2025 MacArthur Fellowship. Nguyen is set to unveil two major commissions in late October 2025: Temple, at National Gallery Singapore as part of the 2025 Singapore Biennale, and Naga, at Princeton University Art Museum during the unveiling of the museum’s new building. His work is included in the permanent collections of institutions including the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL; Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn, NY; Carré d’Art – Musée d’art contemporain de Nîmes, France; Centre national des arts plastiques (CNAP), Paris, France; Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas, TX; Des Moines Art Center, Des Moines, IA; Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; Honolulu Museum of Art, Honolulu, HI; Kadist Art Foundation, San Francisco, CA; Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO; Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, TX; Museum MACAN, Jakarta, Indonesia; Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY; Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO; Nevada Museum of Art, Reno, NV; Phoenix Art Museum, Phoenix, AZ; Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia, PA; Princeton University Art Museum, Princeton, NJ; Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art (QAGOMA), Brisbane, Australia; Singapore Art Museum, Singapore; San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, CA; Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, NY; Taguchi Art Collection, Japan; The Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, NY, and the Worcester Art Museum, Worcester, MA. Jessica Angima is a Kenyan-American artist, organizer, and dharma practitioner in the Western Insight and Theravada traditions. With over ten years of training and mentorship, she leads meditation and contemplative experiences in community green spaces throughout New York City. Photo Consent: By attending this event, you agree that photos and/or video footage of you may be taken, and you grant your permission to Friends of the High Line and its agents/licensees to use such photos/footage for promotional and other purposes. Accessibility: We encourage all persons with disabilities to attend. To request additional information regarding accessibility or accommodations at a program, please contact [email protected]. Program venues are accessible via wheelchair, and ASL interpretation can be arranged two weeks in advance. If you require registration information for this event in Spanish or Simplified Chinese, contact us at [email protected]. Data Privacy: By signing up for this event, you agree that Friends of the High Line may use your information in accordance with the terms of our Privacy Policy. Lead support for High Line Art comes from Amanda and Don Mullen. Major support is provided by The Brown Foundation, Inc. of Houston and Charina Endowment Fund. Major support of High Line Art's digital infrastructure is provided by Bloomberg Philanthropies. Major support for the High Line Plinth is provided by members of the High Line Plinth Committee, contemporary art leaders who are committed to realizing major commissions and engaging in the public success of the Plinth: Shelley Fox Aarons and Philip E. Aarons, Amy and David Abrams, Jennifer and Jonathan Allan Soros, Sarah Arison, Elizabeth K. Belfer, Fairfax Dorn, Kerianne Flynn, Ingrid Cincala Gilbert, Hermine Riegerl Heller, Janine and J. Tomilson Hill, The Holly Peterson Foundation, Annie Hubbard, Miyoung Lee and Neil Simpkins, Randi Levine, Jennifer Levitt, W. Scott McCormack and Noah Jay, Amanda and Don Mullen, Douglas Oliver and Sherry Brous, Mario Palumbo and Stefan Gargiulo, Susan and Stephen Scherr, Dani R’bibo, Eric Schwartz and Debra Fram, Susan and David Viniar, Olivia Walton, and Vivian and James Zelter. Program support for High Line Art is provided by Sarah Arison, Suzanne Deal Booth, Charlotte Ford, Molly Gochman, and Joyce F. Menschel. Additional support is provided by Agnes Gund and Shane Akeroyd. Program funding for the Plinth Lectures and Meditations series is provided by the Scintilla Foundation. High Line Art is supported, in part, with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Kathy Hochul and the New York State Legislature, and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the New York City Council, under the leadership of Speaker Julie Menin.