The partnership kicks off on January 11, 2017 at 6:30 p.m. in the museum’s Ring Auditorium, with a discussion between artists Nick Cave, Imran Qureshi, and Pat Steir. On the following day (January 12) the US Department of State will recognize the three aforementioned artists, as well as Jenny Holzer, Wolf Kahn, and Rachel Whiteread, with the International Medal of Arts during an awards ceremony. “Through culture, we can introduce ideas,” said Virginia Shore, acting director and chief curator of Art in Embassies, in a statement. “And each of these artists has contributed to the artistic landscape of our nation in significant ways.” Future initiatives will be announced this coming spring. Art in Embassies was initiated by New York’s Museum of Modern Art in 1953 and formalized as part of the US State Department by the Kennedy administration in 1963.