The annual Daryl Reich Rubenstein Guest Artist Program, generously funded by Lee Rubenstein and his children Beth Rubenstein '77, Barton Rubenstein '81, and Amy Rubenstein '84, honors the memory of Lee's late wife, Daryl. A passionate advocate for the arts, Daryl curated numerous exhibits at Sidwell Friends and prestigious galleries and museums, including the notable "Max Weber: Prints and Color Variations" at the Smithsonian Institution. In addition to her curatorial work, Daryl contributed extensively to art magazines and authored the comprehensive catalogue raisonné of Max Weber's graphic prints, published by the University of Chicago Press and later reissued in digital format.
Suzanne Brennan Firstenberg sits with over 700,000 small flags that she installed next to the Washington Monument in 2021, each representing a life lost to COVID. Photo by artist.
Daryl Reich Rubenstein Guest Artist Program
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About
Established in 1981 by Lee Rubenstein, this program has since welcomed over 30 nationally recognized guest artists to Sidwell Friends. These artists have exhibited their work and shared their expertise, enriching the lives of students, faculty, and the broader art community.
Sidwell Friends School, a PK–12 co-educational Quaker day school, was founded in 1883 by Thomas Watson Sidwell. Originally named Friends’ Select School, it was established as a pioneering effort in co-ed urban day-school education. Sidwell Friends School is a dynamic educational community grounded in the Quaker belief that there is “that of God in everyone.” Individually and collectively, they challenge themselves to pursue excellence in academic, athletic, and artistic realms.
2023 Guest Artist Nekisha Durrett discusses her exhibition and art with Barton Rubenstein
Guest Artists
Through the Daryl Reich Rubenstein Guest Artist Program, Sidwell Friends School continues to embody these principles, fostering an environment where the arts thrive and where differences among individuals enhance intellectual inquiry, expand understanding, and deepen empathy. This commitment to the arts and Quaker values prepares students and adults alike to “let their lives speak.”
Daryl Reich Rubenstein Guest Artists List
2024
María Magdalena Campos-Pons - performance art and painting
2023
Nekisha Durrett – art focused on marginalized communities
2022
Kenzo Kakuta – installed AIR, at Summit at One Vanderbilt, New York City
2021
Suzanne Firstenberg – installed In America, Honoring Lives Lost
2019
Carol Goldberg – painting and sculpture
2018
Lou Stovall – silkscreen prints
2017
Wanda Raimundi-Ortiz - visual and performance artist
2015
National Portrait Gallery Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition Semi-finalists: Sedrick Huckaby (lithographs), Louie Palu (photography), Alison Taylor (marquetry), Jefferson Pinder (videography)
2014
Bob Mankoff – cartoonist
2012
G. Byron Peck – muralist
2011
Iona Rozeal Brown – painting
2009
Yuriko Yamaguchi – sculpture, watercolors, lithograph, digital prints
2008
Percy Martin – prints
2007
Bruce Davidson – photography
2006
Barton Rubenstein – sculpture, photographs of public art installations, maquettes
2005
Renee Stout – painting, mixed media sculpture and painting
2004
Martha Jackson-Jarvis – photographs, material samples of large scale public art
2003
Jim Sanborn – photographs, spoke about his installation art and work with radiation
2002
Xu Bing – prints and calligraphy, computer software for calligraphy
2001
Nathan Oliveira – prints, monotypes, etching
2000
Vint Lawrence – political drawings and watercolor paintings
1999
Kendall Buster – installation sculpture, maquettes, sketches, photographs of installations
1998
David Adamson – digital prints
1997
Julian Waters – calligraphy
1995
Edward Koren – cartoons
1994
Claire Van Vliet – handmade books and prints
1993
Sam Gilliam - prints
1992
Larry Day - paintings
1991
Joyce Scott – mixed media sculpture, works on paper
1990
Mark Leithauser – exhibition design drawings, maquettes
1989
Joyce Tenneson - photography
1988
Ming Cho Lee – theater set designs, maquettes
1987
Leonard Baskin – prints, drawings, and sculpture
1986
Helen Frederick – drawings and monotypes on artist-made papers
1985
Lou Stovall – silkscreen prints
1984
William Christenberry – paintings, sculpture, photographs
1983
Ellen Lanyon – prints, lithographs
1982
Fritz Eichenberg – prints, etchings, wood engravings