Dissentia will conduct a nation-wide search to bring artists to Philadelphia to create works modeled on carnival and entertainment games. Full-scale sculptural installations will entice the audience to play their way through pieces that explore cultural and socio/political themes. To enhance the flavor of the carnival experience, the exhibit will be held in an outdoor arena into which Dissentia will bring artists who produce edible art and related performers.

Dissentia Curatorial Services believes that the concept and experience of the carnival is fertile ground for artistic exploration. The games, environment, mystique, atmosphere, entertainments, and culture of the carnival will serve as an inexhaustible well into which artists may re-evaluate the carnival experience and explore unrelated societal issues. We are looking to curate work which creates a fine line between art and entertainment.

Dissentia exhibits are focused on placing art into unusual contexts, most notably the back of a U-haul truck and public bathrooms. We believe very firmly in the public interacting with art in spaces that are both eccentric and familiar.

A catalog/activity book will be produced in conjunction with "Carnival of Dissent". The catalog will not only serve as a document of the event, but as an interactive piece as well. The catalog will include biographical data on each curated artist, an artist statement and an artwork made with the intention of user interaction (e.g. coloring book, connect the dots, word games). A critical essay on "The Carnival of Dissent" and a literary/memoir piece about the carnival experience will be included.