Game of Democracy
Art, Engineering, Chance, Choice, and Civic LifeMiranda Brandt, Roman De Santos, Leilani Elkaslasy, Joshua Heinstein, Cameron Hernandez, Amanda Kitrell, Felix Peng, Marika Ragnartz, Theo Rode, Taryn Simon, Ben Simpson, Jack Van der Reis, and Sara Wexler
April 27 - July 31st, 2026
Sprague Gallery
Receptions and Gallery Talks:
Friday, May 1st, 11:00 am – 12:00pm and 3:00pm – 4:00pm
Wednesday, May 6th, 12pm - 1:30pm
This exhibition brings together student work developed in the course The Game of Democracy: Art, Engineering, Chance, Choice, and Civic Life, presented in dialogue with Taryn Simon’s Kleroterion. Drawing inspiration from the ancient Athenian kleroterion—a device used over 2,500 years ago to randomly select citizens for public service—the exhibition explores how systems of chance, design, and technical ingenuity have shaped democratic participation, past and present.
Simon’s sculpture reimagines the historic sortition device as a contemporary learning object, prompting urgent questions about fairness, representation, and civic trust. Responding to this work, students have created their own “devices of democracy”: tools, systems, and speculative structures that engage randomness, accountability, and collective decision-making through artistic, engineering, and humanistic perspectives.
Together, the works on view examine democracy not as a fixed inheritance, but as an evolving design problem—one that demands creativity, ethical reflection, and cross-disciplinary collaboration. Timed to the nation’s approaching semiquincentennial, the exhibition offers a timely reflection on how art and STEM can help reimagine democratic ideals for the future.