I had the feeling that Michael Stickrod is somewhat of a 21st century neo-Romanticist when I saw his assemblages. A dusty postcard, a half-torn hotel letterhead scribbled with messages, a used pencil from his mother, handmade knives from his father, Michael saves everything that has personal value. These personal mementos quietly meld into his palette for producing work that’s full of vivid narratives. Before I got to know Michael personally, I was curiously drawn to his assemblages showing at the group show Untitled at NP Gallery. His story is particularly strong because each object – though casually pinned on the cork board – had gone through many places and cycles of time. The way the artist chose to light these artifacts using a single warm lamp almost feels as if we’re looking through his eyes. Yet these clues are not enough, many pieces of the puzzle are still missing. Continue Reading More »
Following Kathrin Rhomberg, who was the curator for the 6th Berlin Biennale, KW Institute for Contemporary Art just announced the news that Artur Żmijewski will be curator for the upcoming 7th Biennale. Looking forward to 2012. Previous curators include: Klaus Biesenbach with Nancy Spector and Hans Ulrich Obrist (1st Berlin Biennale), Saskia Bos (2nd Berlin Biennale), Ute Meta Bauer (3rd Berlin Biennale), Maurizio Cattelan, Massimiliano Gioni, and Ali Subotnick (4th Berlin Biennale), Adam Szymczyk and Elena Filipovic (5th Berlin Biennale), and Kathrin Rhomberg (6th Berlin Biennale).
This weekend, Dumbo, Brooklyn is going to be high on art. In its 14th installment, the Dumbo Arts Festival has expanded its line-up of programming to include family programs, new media arts, theatre, literary arts, music workshops, and even kite-flying! (free kites offered by the Kite Flying Society at Galapagos). The artists involved range from local talents to special visiting artists. Happening at the same time is Capture Brooklyn: A Juried Photo Exhibition by the New York Photo Festival. Hosted by Powerhouse Arena, it’ll be a massive gathering of up-and-coming photographers with tons of indie photo books out for sale.
I recommend downloading the Festival’s map and program prior to trekking out to the waterfront.
It is inevitable that the New Museum would launch its own branded edibles. Last week, I was fortunate to be invited to the preview of their freshly launched New Museum Cookie made by City Bakery’s owner Maury Rubin. Not only is the Birdbath Cafe stocked up with deliciously baked goodies, it seems that the New Museum is taking a huge step into forward-thinking sustainable practices. Their environmentally conscious effort is evident in working with City Bakery’s acclaimed Maury Rubin with his Build a Green Bakery initiative, and Uhuru Furniture designers who “believes that each piece conceived, designed, and produced should add to some greater good for the world.” I had a chat with Maria Cristina Rueda from Uhuru, and she explained that their furniture is handmade in Red Hook with a huge awareness for the environment especially when they produce for special events. I was more than impressed by that statement since I produce events and understand how materials always get wasted. The trunk stools that we were sitting on were beautifully simple, humbly original, and most importantly minimally functional. At the end of our conversation we both agreed that we can only take realistic steps towards shifting into a “green” mindset, this is New York City after-all, and not the hippy West Coast.
Next Tuesday, Sept. 21, I curated a one-night performance event to happen at the new multi-media culture space Culturefix, located close to the brim of the Lower East Side. The show entitled Happy Oasis is an interesting blend of Hi/Lo Fi instrumentals and electronics with live projections, featuring experimental noisicianlink (Thessia Machado), electronic composer Ezekiel Honig collaborating with visualist Joshue Ott (superDraw), and sound/visual artist Mikhail Iliatov. The percussionist Hyun Moraes opens the show with an intense shamanic beating of a taiko drum. I’m really curious to see performance artists Kristin Reger and Martha Moszczynski (part avant-garde, part punk) collaborating for the first time to do an entrancing act with attributes to Middle Eastern women. If you have an iPhone or iPad, please bring it for a real-time interactive audio/visual experience. Complete details at opalnest.com
The name Cinema 16 might not be new to a past generation of underground cinema fans, but in this day and age “when film has been reduced to the tiny screens of our laptops and ipods,” the revival of C/16 is a welcoming refuge. Molly Surno, a good friend of mine, is an LA native who moved to NY and was disappointed by the “lack of experimental films shown in enchanted spaces”, so she created the new C/16. She was inspired by the original founders – of the cult film era – Amos and Marcia Vogel, and Maya Deren. Surno’s vision goes a bit further than screening experimental shorts, she enjoys collaborating with musicians and with the local community. The programs get even more interesting as it anticipates a different musical score composed by her chosen bands within a short amount of time. Each program becomes a unique experience not unlike an orchestrated concerto on a small scale. And those local food vendors offering homemade fares along the side are not to be missed. Looking forward to the next screening, which will be in November and this time it’ll be scored by Soft Circle.
There is something very mystical and transcendent about the work of multi-media artist Xaviera Simmons. I was introduced to her work by Ben Tischer at Invisible-Exports Gallery as part of the Lush Life exhibition, and was particularly drawn to her Owl Xerox print. But when I saw a photograph taken by Simmons of herself standing next to another woman both wearing masks perched in stillness, I became even more curious to know who this artist is. The owl is an ancient animal with symbolic associations including wisdom, foresight, messenger of secrets, as well as companions to seers and mystics, and mystery. Simmons surely exudes a plethora of mystery in her work. With a background in photography, Simmons has no desire to stick to just one medium. Continue Reading More »
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