Jonathan Alpeyrie shares 210 diverse veteran faces
by Amanda McCuaig on May 8, 2012
The aged faces of men of many nations look into Jonathan Alpeyrie’s lens for his collection of 210 photographic portraits of men who fought in WWII. The goal behind his project, World War II Veterans, on display until May 12, 2012 at Anastasia Photo in New York City, was to reunite as many veterans as possible from most nationalities involved in WWII, and he managed to capture veterans from 61 nations in total. They sit placated, wearing kilts or big Russian hats, holding medals and photos of their wedding days. They represent the countries that fought on opposing sides during the war.
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Curator Artus Zmijewski creates exhibition of activist art
by Michael Lithgow on May 7, 2012
When you go to the website for Berlin’s 7th Biennale, you encounter a stream of changing photographs from occupy and protest movements from around the world — Venezia, Toronto, Florence, Malacky, Athens and on and on. It is emblematic of curator Artur Zmijewski’s approach the largest art exhibition in Germany, which opened on April 27.
In the forward to Forget Fear, the accompanying publication of the Berlin’s 7th Biennale, Zmijewski explains that “Art needs to be reinvented, but not as some crafty option to aesthecize human problems of the impoverished majority. What we need is more art that offers its tools, time and resources to solve the economic problems of the impoverished majority. For the actual limit to the possibilities of left-meaning art is effective engagement with material issues: unemployment, impoverishment, poverty.”
Zmijewski wants to transform the art of impotence and individualist survival, which is how he describes contemporary art markets and the institutionalized art world of galleries and curatorial careers, into art that is “genuinely transformative and formative”, art that “practices politics”, and art that is “real action in the real world and [that bids] a final farewell to the illusion of artistic immunity”.
Over the coming weeks, Art Threat will be profiling some of the artists and their contributions to the 7th Berlin Biennale (which runs until July 1), and some of the events that will be happening in Berlin in the coming months. In today’s report, quick look at two upcoming events: a workshop for using art in political protest, and a performance installation that features interviews with 16 economists, historians, thinkers from around the world speaking on viable economic alternatives to capitalism.
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Roots to Resistance project shares stories of courage
by Michael Lithgow on April 30, 2012
Natalia Estemirova
Twelve women. Twelve stories of political courage. Twelve portraits. The Roots to Resistance project is spreading word about the groundbreaking work of twelve women who have dedicated their lives to fighting for social justice.
Denise Beaudet is the artist behind the portraits. Postcards of these images and small posters are available free for the asking and are being sent around the world. The goal of the project is to inspire by sharing these women’s heroic struggles against corruption, exploitation and oppression.
The portraits include Aung San Suu Kyi, Wangari Maathai, Vandana Shiva, Rebecca Gomperts, Natalia Estemirova, Malalai Joya, Chouchou Namegabe, Zapatista Women, Maria Gunnoe, Yvonne Margarula, Dita Indah Sari, Marina Silva.
The Roots projects is raising money through Kickstarter for the next phase of the project. The fundraising campaign runs to May 5th.
I caught up with Beaudet to ask her a few questions about her work and about the project … Click to continue »
Interview with Bryan Newson of Vancouver's Public Art Program
by Anne Cottingham on April 25, 2012
Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas ‘Abundance Fenced’
Bryan Newson is the Manager of the City of Vancouver’s Public Art Program. He and his staff have been responsible for bringing you everything from Ken Lum’s Monument for East Vancouver to Rodney Graham’s Aerodynamic Forms in Space, and hundreds more. I met with Bryan a few weeks ago to discuss how he got involved in the creation of the program, what it does, and where it’s headed in the face of budget cutbacks.
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Artwork of illustrator Zina Saunders
by Amanda McCuaig on April 17, 2012
When I found Zina Saunders’ [pronounced Zai-nah] animations on Mothers Jones a couple weeks ago I knew I’d have to ask her for a chat. We got on the phone last week and by the time I was off I was texting my friends that she was one of the best interviews I’d had. Firey, bold, and straight-forward, Zina’s personality emboldens not just her animations, but her gorgeous portraits as well. Her work is straight-to-the-point, no-bullshit humour dripping with sarcasm.
To her, humour isn’t just a tool for spreading a message, it’s also the best way to pull the rug out from someone and reduce their credibility. She’s a fantastic testament to artists who have created a way to speak out while still being known for great, technically sound work.
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The United States is doing it’s best to feed the world … or at least that’s what they’d like you to believe. US Food Aid may be more effective as a subsidy to domestic producers, agribusiness and shipping companies than it is at alleviating hunger in the poorest parts of the world.
Oxfam America staffers Jessica Erickson and Anna Kramer have put together the below infographic illustrating where all that money goes, and how it could go much, much further with a few changes to policy and operational procedures.
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Artists winks at Chinese authorities with a Big Brother flourish
by Michael Lithgow on April 4, 2012
Artist Ai Wei Wei has installed live webcams in his home so that authorities – and worried supporters – can keep track of his day-to-day whereabouts and welfare. Feeling hemmed in by increasingly invasive state surveillance – being followed day-to-day, round-the-clock surveillance on his home, searches of his studio, phone taps, opening his mail — Wei Wei decided to go the extra step and demonstrate that he has no secrets, despite the Chinese government’s persistent paranoia.
Wei Wei was detained last April for 81 days amid Chinese fears of political dissidence in the wake of Arab Spring uprisings. He was charged with tax evasion, a charge supporters say was politically motivated. His fines were paid by friends and supporters. Perhaps most controversially, he questioned the government’s role in poor construction standards after the 2008 Sichuan earthquake killed more than 5,000 schoolchildren because buildings collapsed. In November last year, officials demolished his studio in Shanghai.
Thanks to The Guardian for the original coverage.
Mother Jones’ illustrator Zina Saunders takes on the GOP’s oppressive and backwards stance on women in her illustrated political cartoon this week, in which you are invited to step right up and watch the greatest circus on earth – the 2012 Republican presidential campaign. Watch it over at Mother Jones’.
A bricolage of (some of) last weeks news stories
by Michael Lithgow on April 2, 2012
Nairobi graffiti by artists Uhuru B, Swift, Smokilah and Bankslave
Kenyan graffiti artists are painting the walls of Nairobi with reminders of government corruption. Executions are up in the Middle East – in Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq and Yemen – as governments there continue their efforts to quell political turmoil. Malaysia is introducing a minimum wage for the first time, and experts warn that the fight against antibiotic resistant strains of tuberculosis has been lost.
Thousands of indigenous farmers marched in Guatemala City demanding land reform. Cambodian filmmaker Thet Sambath is being harassed and intimidated for claims made in his latest documentary that the Killing Fields were a result of Khmer Rouge party infighting. The Spanish Government has announced large-scale oil drilling near the Canary Islands. The costs of the London 2012 Olympics are now estimated at 450% higher than when the bid was won (including security costs to exceed $1 billion).
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An endlessly fascinating warning against the temptation of war
by Michael Lithgow on March 20, 2012
For those who haven’t seen it, Big Bang Big Boom (2010) is yet another fabulous animated graffiti parable from the Blu art collective. Their work is endlessly fascinating — animated creatures sliding seamlessly from walls, through sand, along pipes and under bridges into stop-motion interaction with beach garbage and industrial debris. A mesmerizing allegory for the stupidity of creatures risen from the mud and muck of earth unable to resist the temptation to destroy each other and the whole planet. It is beautiful, creepy, and dizzyingly inventive. Enjoy.
