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Austria's Prix Ars Electronica ? Call for Submissions
2007-12-19 15:52:00
The 22nd Prix Ars Electronica - International Competition for CyberArts is open for entries. Online Submission Deadline: March 7, 2008. Entries are organized by category: INTERACTIVE ART - dedicated to interactive works in all forms and formats, from installations to performances. At the top of the agenda is artistic quality in the development and design of the interaction as well as a harmonious dialog between the content level and the interaction level. Of particular interest is the sociopolitical relevance of the interaction as manifested by its innate potential to expand the scope of human action. ANIMATION / FILM / VX - recognizes excellence in independent work in the arts and sciences as well as in high-end commercial productions in the film, advertising and entertainment industries. In this category, artistic originality counts just as much as masterful technical achievement. DIGITAL SOUND & MUSIC - Contemporary digital sound productions from the broad spectrum of "...
More About: Austria , Call , Prix Ars Electronica , Missi

New York Philharmonic in Pyongyang: cultural diplomacy or state sponsored p
2007-12-18 04:56:00
Since the announcement Tuesday that the New York Philharmonic plans a 48 hr visit into the heart of North Korea , the world has been a buzz. Headlines praise and criticize the visit on February 26th, 2008 for both encouraging discourse between states and legitimizing the D.P.R.K.?s regime. This is not a first for cultural diplomacy; China, the Soviet Union and Iran have all had their methods of trying to befriend the North American powerhouse, but is the agenda behind them cultural, political or both? Cultural diplomacy: a gentler type of carrot It?s no secret that North Korea is a bothersome splinter impeding the far reaching grasp of the current Bush administration. As one of the founding members of the ?Axis of Evil?, North Korea has been less than forthcoming with U.S. plans for its denuclearization. The current Six-Party Talks (U.S., China, Russia, Japan, D.P.R.K and South Korea) have been attempting to deflate tensions between states and force a shutdown of D.P.R.K?s nuclear...
More About: United States , Asia , Sponsored

Follow spies in the skies with Terminal Air
2007-12-17 01:49:00
Artist, author and experimental geographer Trevor Paglen has created the ingenious project Terminal Air to spy on the spies. Developed in collaboration with the Institute for Applied Autonomy, the web-based work facilitates public visualization of flights known or suspected to be involved in the CIA's extraordinary rendition program. Eluding national and international law, this governmental scheme involves kidnapping and relocating suspected terrorists to undocumented "dark prisons" where they can be held, interrogated, and tortured indefinitely. Under the guise of national security, US agents use these covert tactics to sidestep habeas corpus and basic human rights. Terminal Air's flight-tracking software and database monitor specific CIA aircraft flights from 2001 to the present. Their daily routes are displayed in near real-time. Paglen and IAA have designed the flight viewer so that one can easily trace these extraordinary rendition routes around the globe. To expedite this en...
More About: United States , Spies

TankTV Seeking Submissions of Your 'Best Lists' for the Whole Wide World
2007-12-14 03:28:00
tank.tv is looking for lists! Top 100s, 50s, 1000s! Lists of people, animals, minerals, vegetables! Good lists, bad lists and mediocre lists.Lists of anything and everything. tank.tv is inviting submissions to its forthcoming show, The Whole World , curated by Ian White. The Whole World is a list of lists: a programme of artists' film and video and an interactive online exhibition. Both a formal device and a political strategy, film and video that deploys a list as part of its structure often does so with political intent: to subvert hierarchies, to undermine rationalism or to reveal contradiction. In contemporary culture the pop chart's Top 10 has been replaced by an ever-expanding craze for "Top 100s" of everything from Hollywood genres to celebrity gaffes. The Whole World attempts to wrestle back the initiative? The Whole World is situated somewhere between the absurd and obsessive enterprises of Flaubert's eponymous characters Bouvard and Pecuchet (they hopelessly collect and ...
More About: Europe , Britain , Wide

Cartooning for Human Rights brings humour to the UN
2007-12-11 18:25:00
The United Nations rarely has a sense of humour, but yesterday, to mark the sixtieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the coinciding Human Rights Day, the UN opened the tightly sealed doors of its headquarters to the public, offering an exhibit of editorial cartoons entitled Sketching Human Rights. The show appears in the Visitors? Gallery and will last until mid-January before beginning its worldwide tour, with stops in Jerusalem, Berlin, Wellington and Istanbul. This exhibit was launched concurrently in Rome, as the UN-backed touring show Cartooning for Human Rights, a spin-off of the year-long tour Cartooning for Peace. As a project founded by Jean Plantu, one of France?s foremost editorial cartoonists, these shows have become a movement of sorts, reacting to the anger and riots that stemmed from the editorial cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad early in 2006. "There has to be a response to the condemnations launched by some Imams, but it had to be done ...
More About: United States , Humour , Iran , Israel , Turkey

Class war and ethnic conflict: the lessons of Saturday Night Fever
2007-12-11 17:49:00
It has been decades since John Travolta first blessed our cinema screens with his tight, white, polyester pants. Saturday Night Fever celebrates its thirtieth anniversary this month, and while the leisure suits may be passe, the film's politics are as relevant as ever. In an article for the Washington Post, Bruce J. Schulman discusses how little has changed since the days when Travolta's Tony Manero worked a dead-end job and daydreamed of dancing. It seems we still have much to learn from the dark days of disco. "Lapels aside, the film seems strangely prescient—a road map to the income inequality, the ethnic and racial politics, and the lure of celebrity that we see today. Culturally speaking, the '70s are back. As we grapple with soaring gasoline prices, tune in to "Dancing With the Stars" and work through a new kind of national malaise, we would do well to heed the cautionary lessons of the young man in polyester."
More About: United States , Conflict , Ethnic

New Comic "Extraction!" Takes on Canadian Mining Companies
2007-12-05 05:49:00
Cumulus Press has published a 128 page comic book/graphic novel that combines investigative journalism, comic art, and the politics of mining and resistance to mining. Extraction! is divided up into four stories and four extracted elements of the earth. Whether its gold in Guatemala or oil in Canada (Alberta to be specific), this book delivers some excellent critical analysis of plundering while offering up some excellent art-driven narratives. The book was inspired by other political comix producers such as Joe Sacco, and of course the ongoing malfeasance of Canadian mining companies who continue to ignore domestic populations the world over as they dig and strip the earth for precious stones, industry staples and fuel. Four journalists teamed up with four artists to dig up the dirt (excuse the pun) on the activities of some of these companies and the result is a great bed-time read. To find out more or to purchase (for $20), visit the cumulus press site.
More About: Comic , Companies , Mining , North America

Bethlehem banks on Banksy to boost tourism
2007-12-04 00:55:00
In a creative bid to boost Bethlehem's sagging economy, Banks y has brought his seasonal "Santa's Ghetto" exhibition to this Palestinian town that has seen few tourists in recent years. The infamous stencil artist joined several others in creating over a dozen works on the concrete wall surrounding the town, turning a hated symbol of Israeli occupation into an massive open air art gallery. Another dozen or so works are on display in a former chicken shop in Manger Square. In more peaceful years more than 100,000 tourists would pour into Bethlehem during the holidays. Last year the town saw a mere tenth of the traffic. Having visited Bethlehem in December a few years back I can personally attest to the recent drought of visitors. With over 70 percent of the workforce depending on tourism, signs of a wounded economy are everywhere. ?You wouldn?t worry about Christmas becoming too commercial in Bethlehem ? they couldn?t afford it. There?s more festive lights in the window of your ...
More About: Middle East , Tourism , Palestine , Banksy

Pakistani Political Artist Harassed by Military / New Group Show Opens in L
2007-12-03 15:51:00
Figurative Pakistan is a group show opening at the Aicon Gallery in London, UK featuring four prominent Pakistani artists, Ijaz ul Hassan, Naiza Khan, Sana Arjumand, and Ahmed Ali Manganhar. Ijaz ul Hassan is a long-time activist and dissident who came to prominence as a political artist in the 1970s when he was jailed for his public condemnation of martial law under General Zia-ul-Haq. Hassan was arrested, held in solitary confinement for four weeks and endured threats to his life and to the lives of his family and friends. Hassan's artwork was deemed so dangerous that is was removed from galleries and refused entrance into group exhibitions after his release from jail. During the worst of the political repression under General Zia-ul-Haq, Hassan painted messages on handbills and posters and distributed them by hand. Even today some of his paintings remain “classified�, although many have been declassified, some of which were shown in a recent retrospective at the Canvas Ga...
More About: Military , Political , Artist , Show

Pivot Journal: 2nd Call for Submissions!
2007-11-30 00:07:00
Calling all graduate student artists and academics... Pivot Journal is calling out for your work! A centre point. A counter point. Pivot provides the space from which to respond to the shared and divided scholarly territories of visual culture. Concordia's new peer-reviewed graduate academic interdisciplinary journal brings together the Departments of Art History, Studio Arts and Communication Studies in a forum for graduate scholarship working towards the exploration of relationships among diverse forms of art practice and production, as well as among art historical scholarship, visual studies, theory, and criticism. Currently Pivot is an online journal with a small print run. Pivot accepts submissions from graduate students across many disciplines within Canada and internationally. As a journal of visual culture recognizing art production as a site for scholarly exploration, Pivot accepts content in the form of academic papers, artist project descriptions, short texts by a...
More About: Call , Missi

Aboriginal Activist Causing Stir in New Zealand ? Police Arresting Artists
2007-11-29 05:29:00
It seems just a phone call from this fellow is enough to get your flat ransacked by the police. At least two New Zealand artists have experienced state intimidation, confiscation of their property, and criminal charges for their association with Tuhoe and Maori activist Tame Iti. In a coordinated series of raids in October, Tame Iti and 16 others were arrested and detained by state agents. Ite has come to the attention of state authorities as a high-profile advocate for an independent Maori state. He gained notoriety for baring his butt at public officials at the Waitangi Tribunal, the official treaty resolution process in New Zealand, and for shot-gunning a New Zealand flag. Ite travels in many circles, counting among his acquaintances wealthy art patron Jenny Gibbs and millionaire car-dealer John Murphy, while also co-hosting a television program for emotionally distraught Maori boys on Maori TV, and running sessions for adults with drug and alcohol problems through the Tuhoe...
More About: Police , Artists , First Nations

Wal-Mart the Musical: Coming to a Town Near You?
2007-11-27 06:03:00
Walmartopia, the Off-Broadway musical that targets the happy yellow face, has been playing in NYC since the end of September. As the good reviews keep coming in on this political comedy for the stage, I wonder, will it take off? This is a challenge to any theatre directors out there - bring the Big Box farce off Off-Broadway, way off, to other cities and towns. This topic is way more universal than Miss Saigon, so lets see some franchising! Jeremy Thal of the Indypendent had this to say: The campy absurdity of the musical only works because our present reality is so bleak. The lyrics of many of these songs could be used by the Bush attachés to promote their next surge in Iraq or an invasion of Iran. Musical theater is disarming and audience friendly, but the message in Walmartopia rings through as serious and urgent. Rohn?s songs have a home-grown sound, true to Walmartopia roots in community theater. Expertly arranged by August Eriksmoen and sung by a skilled cast, the songs are...
More About: New York , Mart , Wal-Mart , Town

Lifetime Achievement Award for Political Artist Vibiana Aparicio-Chamberlin
2007-11-26 15:29:00
Long-time activist artist Vibiana Aparicio-Chamberlin was given a life-time achievement award by the city of Los Angeles last week. Aparicio-Chamberlin started her career in the 1970s doing street theater in East LA, and has spent most of her life teaching and continuing to use art to address social injustice. She is a painter, print-maker and mural artist. Most recently, Aparicio-Chamberlin has focused her attention on the immigrant community in the US. In February, she conducted workshops for immigrant children, many who live in trailer camps, introducing them to the works of Frida Kahlo and Matisse. In late August, Aparicio-Chamberlin joined other activists in a march in support of Elvira Arellano, an illegal immigrant with an 8 year old (US born) son who was recently arrested by immigration officials. She also recently coordinated an art auction for conscientious objector Augustin Aguayo, a US Army paramedic who refused a second deployment to Iraq. At the awards ceremony...
More About: United States , Political , Artist , Achievement , Lifetime

Revenge is a Dish Best Served By Email: How To Get Someone Spammed to Death
2007-11-24 00:08:00
Ever wondered if villains get their inboxes filled with spam, too? Now you can play a hand in your favourite villain's e-fate. PleaseSpam.Us promises to put the emails of the most popularly unpopular people in a prominent place on their website (i.e. homepage) specifically designed to attract spambots. Here's the democratic catch. Not just any email will get posted. It must receive enough votes from the general public before the webmaster will make the email address spambot bait. PleaseSpam.Us is yet another clever intervention by Johnah Brucker-Cohen who works out of Eyebeam Gallery in New York. The intention, according to artist Brucker-Cohen, is to critically re-examine the proliferation of electronic communications systems such as email as well as to question the advent of collaborative filtering (used by sites like DIGG and all of the "DIGG copycat sites" and "Reputation Systems" (as found on many commercial and community oriented sites). The ultimate intention with ...
More About: United States , Email , Death , Revenge , Dish

Laika: a graphic novel of the first dog in space
2007-11-20 16:53:00
I've always had a soft spot for Laika , the first dog in space, who tragically died upon the Sputnik II shortly after takeoff. I wanted to name my current pooch after the canine cosmonaut, but lost the naming battle with my partner. I can finally live out my space dog dreams through a beautifully illustrated biography of the most famous dog in the former Soviet Union . Laika, a graphic novel by Nick Abadzis, recounts the life of this furry victim of the Soviet space race. Based upon historical fact with flourishes of fiction, Laika's colourful characters bring life to a dark period of Soviet history. And for those with a cartoon dog fetish, Laika reminds BoingBoing's Cory Doctorow of the famed Tin Tin, a similarity that "nicely complements the subject matter, contributing much to the sweetness of the story, and serving as counterpoint to the exhaustive research."
More About: Space , Russia , Graphic

Laika: a graphic novel of the first dog in space
2007-11-20 16:53:00
I've always had a soft spot for Laika , the first dog in space, who tragically died upon the Sputnik II shortly after takeoff. I wanted to name my current pooch after the canine cosmonaut, but lost the naming battle with my partner. I can finally live out my space dog dreams through a beautifully illustrated biography of the most famous dog in the former Soviet Union . Laika, a graphic novel by Nick Abadzis, recounts the life of this furry victim of the Soviet space race. Based upon historical fact with flourishes of fiction, Laika's colourful characters bring life to a dark period of Soviet history. And for those with a cartoon dog fetish, Laika reminds BoingBoing's Cory Doctorow of the famed Tin Tin, a similarity that "nicely complements the subject matter, contributing much to the sweetness of the story, and serving as counterpoint to the exhaustive research."
More About: Space , Russia , Graphic

Image + Nation celebrates and reflects as it turns 20.
2007-11-14 23:48:00
Image + Nation , the week-long queer/glbt film fest in Montréal is celebrating 20 years of providing queers with something to get excited about as the days get shorter, colder. 20 Years: that's a long time... and opportunity to reflect back... to think ahead. This Friday, Activist-Academics, Trish Salah and Marc Lafrance will facilitate a workshop/conference panel "Gender/Transgender Dynamics: Then and Now". Featuring Julianne Pidduck (Canada), Kam Wai Kui (Netherlands), Chris Straayer (USA), and Paul Vek Lewis (Autralia). the panel will discuss issues of community, cinematic representations, and notions of performativity. Proving to be an interesting panel, i+n combines workshop and film to engage activists, filmmakers, queers, artists and filmgoers in a conversation about the community's evolution over the last two decades. In its "Gender Trouble" programming, i+n will feature the following films: Black Men and Me by Michéle Clarke, Dedicated to Rebelsexuals by Anita Schoepp, G...
More About: Image

Image + Nation celebrates and reflects as it turns 20.
2007-11-14 23:48:00
Image + Nation , the week-long queer/glbt film fest in Montr??al is celebrating 20 years of providing queers with something to get excited about as the days get shorter, colder. 20 Years: that's a long time... and opportunity to reflect back... to think ahead. This Friday, Activist-Academics, Trish Salah and Marc Lafrance will facilitate a workshop/conference panel "Gender/Transgender Dynamics: Then and Now". Featuring Julianne Pidduck (Canada), Kam Wai Kui (Netherlands), Chris Straayer (USA), and Paul Vek Lewis (Autralia). the panel will discuss issues of community, cinematic representations, and notions of performativity. Proving to be an interesting panel, i+n combines workshop and film to engage activists, filmmakers, queers, artists and filmgoers in a conversation about the community's evolution over the last two decades. In its "Gender Trouble" programming, i+n will feature the following films: Black Men and Me by Mich??le Clarke, Dedicated to Rebelsexuals by Anita Schoepp,...
More About: Image

America's War Against Democracy: A Story Whose Time Is Long Overdue
2007-11-13 17:06:00
The War On Democracy is the 58th (or so) documentary made by filmmaker John Pilger, and is his first feature length made for cinematic release. Piltger has been a TV director/producer since 1958, and has built a reputation and following for his investigative journalism into some of the world???s most difficult human problems. The War On Democracy is a history lesson tied to the present by Pilger???s bounding interest in the political potential of poor communities to transform national politics. His geographic scope in this film is the so-called ???backyard??? of the United States: Latin America . And this shy bit of Orientalism (in calling a continent with 20 or so counties, more than half a billion people, a combined GDP of 2 trillion, and hundreds if not thousands of cultures far older than the American Republic a ???backyard???) goes to the heart of this compelling indictment of American foreign policy. America has been at war against democracy in the region seemingly since ...
More About: Story , Bolivia , Time , Chile

America's War Against Democracy: A Story Whose Time Is Long Overdue
2007-11-13 17:06:00
The War On Democracy is the 58th (or so) documentary made by filmmaker John Pilger, and is his first feature length made for cinematic release. Piltger has been a TV director/producer since 1958, and has built a reputation and following for his investigative journalism into some of the world?s most difficult human problems. The War On Democracy is a history lesson tied to the present by Pilger?s bounding interest in the political potential of poor communities to transform national politics. His geographic scope in this film is the so-called ?backyard? of the United States: Latin America . And this shy bit of Orientalism (in calling a continent with 20 or so counties, more than half a billion people, a combined GDP of 2 trillion, and hundreds if not thousands of cultures far older than the American Republic a ?backyard?) goes to the heart of this compelling indictment of American foreign policy. America has been at war against democracy in the region seemingly since America bega...
More About: Story , Bolivia , Time , Chile

Homosexual Baby Ad Triggers Reaction in Italy
2007-11-12 15:18:00
An ad designed by Canadian agency Émergence and originally used in Quebec is causing an uproar in Italy . The ad (pictured at right) shows a baby with a hospital bracelet reading "homosexual." The regional government in Tuscany has recently put the ad up on billboards in a region-wide campaign to end homophobia. The ad has sparked criticism from the conservative community and the LGBT community, with some arguing that it may communicate that homosexuality is a disease. One thing is certain - Émergence has stirred public interest, and it's not the first time. From le Fondation Émergence (translated from the french): The next question will be asked: is homosexuality innate or acquired? So far, science has been unable to answer this question in the affirmative or consensual. However, there is consensus on one fact: one does not choose their sexual orientation, which has inspired the theme of the campaign. Read an article on this ad at gay.com.
More About: Europe , Baby , Triggers

Homosexual Baby Ad Triggers Reaction in Italy
2007-11-12 15:18:00
An ad designed by Canadian agency ??mergence and originally used in Quebec is causing an uproar in Italy . The ad (pictured at right) shows a baby with a hospital bracelet reading "homosexual." The regional government in Tuscany has recently put the ad up on billboards in a region-wide campaign to end homophobia. The ad has sparked criticism from the conservative community and the LGBT community, with some arguing that it may communicate that homosexuality is a disease. One thing is certain - ??mergence has stirred public interest, and it's not the first time. From le Fondation ??mergence (translated from the french): The next question will be asked: is homosexuality innate or acquired? So far, science has been unable to answer this question in the affirmative or consensual. However, there is consensus on one fact: one does not choose their sexual orientation, which has inspired the theme of the campaign. Read an article on this ad at gay.com.
More About: Europe , Baby , Triggers

Abidin Travels: Book a Holiday to Remember
2007-11-08 21:52:00
Adel Abidin, an artist who left Baghdad for Helsinki in 2000, has created Abidin Travels, a satirical travel agency to promote vacation trips to his hometown. This artwork functions as both a website that locates flights and an installation. You can enter the mock agency to find brochures and advertisements absurdly combining horrific images of today's Iraq with typical commercial sales slogans. Book a flight and get details on hotels, rental cars and tours of Baghdad through Abidin Travels. Keep in mind you will probably only need a one-way ticket, as you may not be returning. Your tour will be full of surprises, maybe an explosion here or there, but "all the beautiful places that you might have read about have either been destroyed or looted. There really are no sights left." This information and other harrowing vacationing tips can be found at abidintravels.com. Abidin Travels is on view in the Nordic Pavilion of the Venice Biennale through November 21. This and other works cov...
More About: Europe , Middle East , Finland , Holiday

Abidin Travels: Book a Holiday to Remember
2007-11-08 21:52:00
Adel Abidin, an artist who left Baghdad for Helsinki in 2000, has created Abidin Travels, a satirical travel agency to promote vacation trips to his hometown. This artwork functions as both a website that locates flights and an installation. You can enter the mock agency to find brochures and advertisements absurdly combining horrific images of today's Iraq with typical commercial sales slogans. Book a flight and get details on hotels, rental cars and tours of Baghdad through Abidin Travels. Keep in mind you will probably only need a one-way ticket, as you may not be returning. Your tour will be full of surprises, maybe an explosion here or there, but "all the beautiful places that you might have read about have either been destroyed or looted. There really are no sights left." This information and other harrowing vacationing tips can be found at abidintravels.com. Abidin Travels is on view in the Nordic Pavilion of the Venice Biennale through November 21. This and other works cov...
More About: Europe , Middle East , Finland , Holiday

Broken Boundaries: An Interview with VAL Desjardins
2007-11-08 15:35:00
VAL Desjardins is Montréal-based photographer and a video artist who uses performance as a way to express her ideas about gender and queer sexualities. I was able to attend her Coming Home show, after she'd been away for years in New York , finessing her photography and becoming evermore involved in performance art. [Interview by Mél Hogan for Art Threat] AT: You are an artist who appears as much in front as behind the camera--can you talk a bit about what those different positions offer? VAL: Breaking down the boundaries that have traditionally existed between the camera/artist and the subject has been pivotal in my work. Being able to move between the back of the camera where I plan images and engaging my body in performance for the camera allows me the freedom necessary to express my ideas and include myself as a source of exploration. I love creating images but also feel a strong need to be seen, therefore I need the dance between the two positions to be extremely fluid and ope...
More About: Quebec , Canada , Broken

Broken Boundaries: An Interview with VAL Desjardins
2007-11-08 15:35:00
VAL Desjardins is Montr??al-based photographer and a video artist who uses performance as a way to express her ideas about gender and queer sexualities. I was able to attend her Coming Home show, after she'd been away for years in New York , finessing her photography and becoming evermore involved in performance art. [Interview by M??l Hogan for Art Threat] AT: You are an artist who appears as much in front as behind the camera--can you talk a bit about what those different positions offer? VAL: Breaking down the boundaries that have traditionally existed between the camera/artist and the subject has been pivotal in my work. Being able to move between the back of the camera where I plan images and engaging my body in performance for the camera allows me the freedom necessary to express my ideas and include myself as a source of exploration. I love creating images but also feel a strong need to be seen, therefore I need the dance between the two positions to be extremely fluid and o...
More About: Quebec , Canada , Broken

CONFRONTation Art Exhibit Opens in Washington DC
2007-11-07 15:46:00
Three floors of artwork exploring connected themes around protest and confrontation are on exhibit at Washington 's Katzen Art Centre. From DCist: In an audacious presentation of political and protest art, the Katzen Arts Center???s Art of CONFRONTation showcases three separate exhibitions that share a confident outspokenness. Whether it???s the poignant reenactments of torture of Abu Ghraib by Fernando Botero, or the surreal depictions of the city-dominated human condition by Irving Norman in Dark Metropolis, or the multifaceted collection of some of the 1970s most important feminist art in Claiming Space, these works are united by a passionate and irrepressible yearning to speak and be heard. Despite their similarities, each exhibit has its own floor in the Katzen Arts Center???whose curved walls and pointed hallways make it a perfect venue for such a dynamic collection???so viewers are able to see each one independent of the others. Read the whole article here. Visit the Cent...
More About: United States , North America , Global

CONFRONTation Art Exhibit Opens in Washington DC
2007-11-07 15:46:00
Three floors of artwork exploring connected themes around protest and confrontation are on exhibit at Washington 's Katzen Art Centre. From DCist: In an audacious presentation of political and protest art, the Katzen Arts Center?s Art of CONFRONTation showcases three separate exhibitions that share a confident outspokenness. Whether it?s the poignant reenactments of torture of Abu Ghraib by Fernando Botero, or the surreal depictions of the city-dominated human condition by Irving Norman in Dark Metropolis, or the multifaceted collection of some of the 1970s most important feminist art in Claiming Space, these works are united by a passionate and irrepressible yearning to speak and be heard. Despite their similarities, each exhibit has its own floor in the Katzen Arts Center?whose curved walls and pointed hallways make it a perfect venue for such a dynamic collection?so viewers are able to see each one independent of the others. Read the whole article here. Visit the Centre's we...
More About: United States , North America , Global

All Your Heroes Will Wear Your Shitty Shoes: Rolling Stone Turns 40
2007-11-07 06:51:00
Rolling Stone Magazine has determined the future, and it is bleak my friends. Yes, we may be used to the patriarchal drivel emanating from the pages of a magazine clinging to a post 40-has-been epoch, so much that we should not be surprised when they print a cover that promotes the underpinnings of patriarchy so conspicuously. But the guys who run Rolling Stone Magazine do not give a shit about this critique: they are still, stupidly, myopically, listening to their advertisers. They are, alas, still jerking off to their air guitars while feeling purpose in what they do: the promotion of corporate music culture that truncates the white male over the Others. Rolling Stone, you have grown up, and you have displayed your culture badge to us all: the visionaries of your future, are, wait for it, all MEN and ALL WHITE. Reality check? You bet, with performances like this your days are numbered, and some of us can?t wait until the count is up. Take one second and examine THE 40th ANNIVERSAR...
More About: Europe , Heroes , Shoes , United Kingdom , North America

All Your Heroes Will Wear Your Shitty Shoes: Rolling Stone Turns 40
2007-11-07 06:51:00
Rolling Stone Magazine has determined the future, and it is bleak my friends. Yes, we may be used to the patriarchal drivel emanating from the pages of a magazine clinging to a post 40-has-been epoch, so much that we should not be surprised when they print a cover that promotes the underpinnings of patriarchy so conspicuously. But the guys who run Rolling Stone Magazine do not give a shit about this critique: they are still, stupidly, myopically, listening to their advertisers. They are, alas, still jerking off to their air guitars while feeling purpose in what they do: the promotion of corporate music culture that truncates the white male over the Others. Rolling Stone, you have grown up, and you have displayed your culture badge to us all: the visionaries of your future, are, wait for it, all MEN and ALL WHITE. Reality check? You bet, with performances like this your days are numbered, and some of us can???t wait until the count is up. Take one second and examine THE 40th ANNIVERS...
More About: Europe , Heroes , Shoes , United Kingdom , North America