This event is free but ticketed. Event time and ticketing details will be announced soon.
Following the screening, the artist will present an artist talk and Q&A session.
Ancient Beacons Long for Notice is a film by artist Dario Robleto that uses NASA’s Golden Records to explore the challenge of representing humanity through a single object. Launched aboard the Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 spacecraft in 1977, the records showcased Earth’s life and cultures to present humanity’s best face forward. Robleto’s film, which premiered at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., in 2025, questions our moral obligation to fully account for our actions to all living beings within and beyond Earth.
Robleto is visiting Notre Dame in connection with the “Coexistence and Eco-futurism through Art” visiting artist series. “Coexistence and Eco-futurism through Art” emphasizes harmony across diversity and considers the role of collective action in environmentally conscious thought. Led by Cecilia Kim, assistant professor in Notre Dame’s Department of Film, Television, and Theatre, the project brings internationally acclaimed artists to Notre Dame for a series of public talks, screenings, exhibitions, and workshops exploring coexistence and eco-futurism through their diverse media.
Learn more about the series here
About the Artist
Dario Robleto (b. San Antonio, Texas, 1972) is an American artist, researcher, writer, and filmmaker based in Houston, Texas. His work has been exhibited widely and is held in prominent collections, including the Whitney Museum of American Art and the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. His work has been profiled in numerous publications and media outlets, including Radiolab, Krista Tippett's On Being, and the New York Times. Robleto has been a visiting artist, researcher, and lecturer at a range of cultural and scientific institutions, including the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and the Center for the Advancement and Study of Visual Art at the National Gallery. From 2018-2023, he served as Artist-at-Large at Northwestern University's McCormick School of Engineering and the Block Museum of Art. In 2016, he was appointed Texas State 3-D Artist Laureate, and in 2025, Robleto was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Middlebury College. His first book, The Heartbeat at the Edge of the Solar System: The Golden Record and Our Search for Connection, co-authored with Harvard art historian Jennifer Roberts, will be published by Scribner, a division of Simon & Schuster.
About the Venue
The Browning Cinema is a state-of-the-art THX-certified cinematheque presenting a unique program of international, independent and documentary film at Notre Dame’s DeBartolo Performing Arts Center (DPAC). DPAC is located on the south side of the University of Notre Dame campus and directly north of Eddy Street Commons. Free parking is available daily after 4:00 pm in the Stayer Center parking lot, just north of the center. Patrons may now receive free event parking at the Eddy Street Commons Parking Garage by bringing your event tickets and parking ticket to the DPAC Ticket Office to receive a pre-paid parking voucher.
An accessible lot for disabled patrons is available immediately adjacent to the center; a valid hangtag or license plate is required. There is a ten-minute parking zone on the north drive of the center for ticket pick-up; during inclement weather you are welcome to drop off guests in this area and proceed to parking.
Visit DPAC’s website for more information on ticketing, travel and parking, and accessibility details. The Ticket Office will work with you to create a comfortable and enjoyable experience; please contact the Ticket Office at (574) 631-2800 with any questions.
Funding & Support
This project is made possible with funding from the Franco Family Institute for Liberal Arts and the Public Good. Venue and staffing supported provided by the DeBartolo Performing Arts Center.
Ancient Beacons Long for Notice is a partner program of the 2027 Notre Dame Arts Biennial and is supported with funding from the Notre Dame Arts Initiative.
Image: Still image from Ancient Beacons Long for Notice (2024), Directed by Dario Robleto. Image courtesy of the artist.