Our mission as a 501(c)3 is to continue to provide artists a platform to share opinions and thoughts for critical dialogue in the arts on issues relevant to the contemporary context and for historic review. Critically acclaimed ATOA was conceived and organized in 1974 by Lori Antonacci, Douglas I. Sheer, and Robert Wiegand. It has offered talks by more than 1,000 artists and includes a significant number of art critics, historians, gallery directors, and curators. Serving a large art world constituency, the series has presented to an audience of hundreds of thousands. Among the many artists and others who have appeared at ATOA have been: Benny Andrews, David Amram, Dore Ashton, Will Barnet, Romare Bearden, Robert Blackburn, Linda Benglis, Ashley Bickerton, Louise Bourgeois, Ed Clark, Christo & Jeanne-Claude, Chuck Close, Minna Citron, Arthur Danto, Douglas Davis, Agnes Denes, Inka Essenhigh, Audrey Flack, Ronald Feldman, Dorothy Gillespie, Michael Goldberg, Leon Golub, Ron Gorchov, The Guerrilla Girls, Anthony Haden-Guest, Grace Hartigan, Al Held, Budd Hopkins, Wolf Kahn, Ivan Karp, Alex Katz, Ellen Koment, Ruth Kligman, Hilton Kramer, Joseph Kosuth, Donald Kuspit, Al Leslie, Lucy Lippard, Robert Longo, Alice Neel, Vernita Nemec, Mercedes Matter, Knox Martin, Marisol, Musa Mayer, George McNeil, Ana Mendieta, Jay Milder, Elizabeth Murray, Jules Olitski, Dennis Oppenheim, Betty Parsons, Pat Passlof, Philip Pavia, Philip Pearlstein, Judy Pfaff, Howardina Pindell, Larry Poons, Deborah Remington, Miriam Shapiro, Nancy Spero, Pat Steir, Carolee Schneemann, Marcia C. Sheer, Kenneth Snelson, Lucas Samaras, Calvin Tomkins, Judd Tully, Ultra Violet, Lilly Wei, Hannah Wilke, Martha Wilson, James Wines. 

The ATOA presents speakers and topics from all art disciplines including painting, sculpture, printmaking, performance art, and computer art on all issues ranging from aesthetics, cultural politics, and practical survival skills for artists.

Artists and all interested in presenting a panel are welcome to submit proposals for the coming season to: dougIsheer@gmail.com.