Alumni Spotlight: John Engelbrecht

John Engelbrecht

is a visual artist, arts organizer, and educator. But most people know him as Director of Public Space ONE (PS1), a community arts venue in Iowa City which is home to the Iowa City Press Co-op, the Center for Afrofuturist Studies, and the Media Arts Co-op, to name a few.

Countless local, national, and international exhibitions have happened at Public Space One, under the tenure of his directorship, along with consistent programming of performances, workshops, residencies, and other events.

His background in photography informs an everyday, cross-disciplinary art practice which looks with interest and inquiry towards the social, performative, and ephemeral using text and image.

John was on board with Art Office from the beginning, hosting our very first test session through Public Space One. Although his creative practice doesn’t fit nice-and-tidy into a cubicle scenario, he always has a lot on his plate, so making time for art can be a challenge. Art Office helped him carve out studio time, and held him accountable to using it.

Today, John is busy as always with PS1 programming, which keeps his creative gears turning constantly. He also makes music with his son Adam and Mackie Garrett under the name Antifahorn and collaborative video animations with poet/artist Russell Jaffe, who together go by The Nøsters.