About the 2026 Festival
What does it mean to be free? Who gets to claim freedom—and at what cost? Freedom is more than an ideal or slogan—it’s an encounter with competing systems, values, laws and visions of the world. At a time when debates over freedom reveal deep cultural and political divides, we turn our attention to its porous, evolving nature. We’ll examine freedom’s many dimensions: political liberation and civic rights, freedom of expression and imagination, bodily autonomy, spiritual and inner freedom, and the tensions between freedom and responsibility. How have artists, thinkers, and cultural leaders shaped our understanding of it—challenging, expanding, and sometimes upending unexamined assumptions? And what might freedom mean for the future of democratic societies? This year’s Cleveland Humanities Festival invites the public to reflect, imagine, and engage with these pressing questions through a series of public events in the spring of 2026.
Film Screening and Discussion: We Were Here - The Untold History of Black Africans in Renaissance Europe
March 16, 2026
5 pm Tinkham Veale University Center, Ballroom B, 11038 Bellflower Road
Plum City Reading
March 18, 2026
7 pm Loganberry Books, 13015 Larchmere Boulevard, Cleveland, OH 44120
Lunch on Fridays: Nate Powell
March 20, 2026
12:15 pm Peter B. Lewis Theater, Cleveland Institute of Art, 11610 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44106
Artist in the Atrium: Nate Powell
March 21, 2026
11 am - 3 pm Cleveland Museum of Art, 11150 East Boulevard, Cleveland, OH 44106
Stop by the Ames Family Atrium between 11:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. to get a firsthand look at the art-making process. Each session provides the opportunity to engage and interact with a different Northeast Ohio maker during pop-up demonstrations and activities. See their work unfold and learn how artists create. Explore a related selection of authentic objects from the CMA’s Education Art Collection in a pop-up Art Up Close session. See, think, and wonder.
The Revolution Takes Time: Peter Watkins' LA COMMUNE (PARIS, 1871)
March 22, 2026
2 pm Cinematheque at the Cleveland Institute of Art, 11610 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44106
Director: Peter Watkins Run Time: 345 min. Format: DCP Release Year: 2003 Language: French
Starring: Bernard Bombeau, Eliane Annie Adalto, Geneviève Capy, Maylis Bouffartigue, Pierre Barbieux
Windows of Hope: A Joy Filled Art Project
March 23, 2026
7 pm CCPL Bedford Branch, 70 Columbus Road, Bedford, Ohio 44146
Imagine being in a room with one window—what view would keep your spirit alive? In this program, participants will create a layered collage made of stacked frames, creating the illusion of looking through a window to the space beyond. Through color, texture, and creativity, you’ll craft a personal piece that reflects your vision of interior freedom.
This event is sponsored by Cuyahoga County Public Library.
Radical Visions for Re-Connecting Academia and Nature A Community Truth, Reckoning, and Right Relationship Convergence
March 24-25, 2026
8:30 am – 4 pm moCa Cleveland, 11400 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44106
Freedom to Play
March 25, 2026
4 pm Midtown Collaboration Center, 1974 E 66TH Street, Cleveland, OH. 44103
Suffragettes - USA!
March 25, 2026
7 pm Cuyahoga County Public Library, North Royalton Branch, 5071 Wallings Road, North Royalton, OH 44133
Celebrate Women's History Month and explore the friendship of two iconic women’s rights leaders.
Susan B Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton were close friends for 50 years. They collaborated fighting for women’s rights and advocated for the rights of others. Join us to hear about their challenges, setbacks and legacies. Discover how their pioneering significantly contributed to the passing of the 19th amendment giving women the right to vote.
Pepón Osorio: The Imperfect Practice of Freedom
March 26, 2026
4:30 pm Linsalata Alumni Center, 11310 Juniper Road, Cleveland, OH 44106