The Diverse Discourse Lecture and Studio Visit Series brings national curators, artistic directors and critics to Houston to present public lectures and conduct studio visits with selected Houston-area artists, performers and writers.Diverse Discourse provides a significant opportunity for area artists in all disciplines to have their work reviewed by a variety of distinguished arts professionals, fostering a cultural exchange across the nation between artists and cultural producers.

Naomi Beckwith is currently the Marilyn and Larry Field's Curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago. She focuses on conceptual practices in contemporary art. Her master's thesis on Adrian Piper and Carrie Mae Weems earned distinction from the Courtauld Institute of Art in London. Prior to joining the MCA, Beckwith was associate curator at The Studio Museum in Harlem. She previously was a project coordinator for BAMart at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, a Helena Rubenstein Critical Studies Fellow at the Whitney Museum Independent Study Program, and the Whitney Lauder Curatorial Fellow at the Institute of Contemporary Art, University of Pennsylvania.