Untitled, 2008

I love this! It’s special. I always forget how much I can...

Fri, 05 Mar 2010 23:05:00 -0500

I love this! It’s special. I always forget how much I can enjoy good dance performances. If you are pressed for time or feeling impatient maybe skip ahead to the 11-minute mark. Mostly you are just missing the director of Step It Up 2: The Streets talking (don’t let that dissuade you) and solo spots for some of the dancers. But watch the latter part for sure! So good!

The LXD: In the Internet age, dance evolves … (via TEDtalksDirector)

ready set go

Fri, 05 Mar 2010 20:01:00 -0500

this made me laugh. it is right up there with netflix categories that don’t exist. “1980’s cult films featuring female leads with dubious moral agendas”/”critically acclaimed horror films with fiercely nationalistic bents”/ “cerebral showbiz dramedys”

bluefugate:

secondbalcony:

I have this fantasy of writing essays that explain phenomena that don’t exist:

”Why Hipsters Love ‘Friends’”

“The Right-Wing Turn in Culture Studies”

“Why Same-Sex Siblings Go After the Same Mates: an Evolutionary Perspective”

“Post-Yuppie Culture and the Rise of Upscale Water Parks”

“Play That Funky Music, Gringo: How Mariachi Bands Became a Brooklyn Trend”

hydeordie: The Standard Hotel and Creative Time have decided...

Fri, 05 Mar 2010 17:40:01 -0500

hydeordie:

The Standard Hotel and Creative Time have decided to change the way we view art, literally. Starting tonight they are introducing a crazy cool video exhibit that’s like a legal ecstasy trip. All four hotels in New York, Hollywood, Downtown LA and Miami will have in-room StandART channels streaming the works of 10 international artists.

via…

Just last weekend, after watching “A Serious Man”...

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 20:21:00 -0500

Just last weekend, after watching “A Serious Man” with my dad, I was trying to explain to him the ways in which I perceived myself as “different” as a kid (besides being Jewish). It felt really important to emphasize the sandwiches in my school lunch as an illustration. Pepperidge Farm bread and Crazy Richard’s peanut butter, when everybody else had Fluffernutter—I’ve always thought that really summed up my childhood experience.

And yes, I was really upset about the bread. And yes, I can draw out that narrative well into my adult years to explain a lot of seemingly unrelated things, like dating someone who was so clearly very wrong for me (his mother provided him with Little Debbie snack cakes, which he graciously passed on to me during study dates). Stories like this probably terrify future parents, and they also probably should. For the record, I turned out okay in spite of (and maybe even because of) the bread.

molls:

While I’m on the topic of childhood sandwich memories, I thought I’d ask my readers if any of them grew up only eating this kind of bread and constantly wondering, “Why can’t we have cool bread like everyone else at school?”

And I know I’m going to be getting a passive-aggressive call from Seana about bringing this up. She’s going to say something like, “Were you really upset about the bread?” and I’m going to be all, “No, mom. I’m not still upset about the bread, I’m just saying that I wish you had bought Wonder Bread like everyone else’s mom.” Then she’ll end the call by saying something about how everyone else’s mom didn’t care about nutrition the way she did.

Mom, the bread was fine. It’s just, whatever… you know.

karaj: that would be lucy lippard and nancy spero (via...

Wed, 24 Feb 2010 22:13:53 -0500

karaj:

that would be lucy lippard and nancy spero

(via stayupgirl: natashavc: ! )

Nina Katchadourian Clever. I smell a future 20x200 edition. (via...

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 22:29:00 -0500

Nina Katchadourian

Clever. I smell a future 20x200 edition.

(via Choire)

Art Fag City » Recession Hits Pearl Paint, Stores Close

Sun, 21 Feb 2010 17:38:00 -0500

Art Fag City » Recession Hits Pearl Paint, Stores Close:

This is sad—and maybe also speaks to the fact that so few artists can afford to live in New York that places like Pearl can’t even stay in business. The new Michael’s in my neighborhood was doing gangbusters over the holidays. I hope it sticks around. Maybe with Pearl losing ground it will add a few more “arts” to all its “crafts”.

neighborhoodr-upperwestside: adriennes: A perk of working late...

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 21:51:18 -0500

neighborhoodr-upperwestside:

adriennes:

A perk of working late tonight at Lincoln Center: GIFing the fabulous view from my bosses’ office

jenbekmanprojects: In One Ear, Out the Other by San...

Mon, 01 Feb 2010 12:32:00 -0500

jenbekmanprojects:

In One Ear, Out the Other by San Francisco-based painter Jessica Snow.

Ever since Jen Bekman & co. have stepped up their Tumblr activity, it’s taken so much self control not to just buy up everything. My tumblr dashboard has become a constant reminder of all the prints that I love and want and they’re so affordable and so easy to purchase, I really have to go to battle with myself and remind me that $20 adds up after awhile and there’s only so much space on my walls.

I am the proud owner of the colorful piece shown above by Jessica Snow—it’s hanging in my living room next to another 20x200 edition:

Space and Illusion by Carrie Marill

6/6 parts of a French documentary on Judith Butler on YouTube....

Wed, 13 Jan 2010 09:12:00 -0500

6/6 parts of a French documentary on Judith Butler on YouTube. If, like me, you’ve forgotten all of your college French, don’t worry, it’s mostly Judy talking in her native tongue with Francais subtitles. Or is it Francaise subtitles? There is a JB gender joke in there somewhere. I can’t tell you how uncomfortable and embarrassed I got around the 5:50 mark. Also, I am going to be up all night watching this now.

karaj:

i didnt think i could love judith butler any more, but now that i know she is a jew from cleveland, which is kind of like being a jew from buffalo, i feel even more bonded than i did when i wrote my gender-trouble-heavy thesis in 1997.

so thanks to ada for finding this. my favorite part is when she says, “ive never found a place I don’t think ill ever find a place. if my thinking about this is productive at all…it is because I am always slightly disidentified from any given position. i don’t belong in any established category. but im not someone who happily transcends them all. im not in favor of happy transcendence.”

i also like it when she says that the berkeley kids celebrating no pants day are “not so revolutionary.” so true.

Los Angeles Museum Taps Dealer as Director - NYTimes.com

Tue, 12 Jan 2010 10:17:00 -0500

Los Angeles Museum Taps Dealer as Director - NYTimes.com:

This whole move (and the attendant hubbub) is sort of not so different from when Rocco Landesman was appointed the chairman of the NEA, right?

At some point this blog was in danger of becoming a Sea of Shoes...

Wed, 06 Jan 2010 15:42:00 -0500

At some point this blog was in danger of becoming a Sea of Shoes fanblog, and, once alerted to the fact, I attempted to correct for it. Now it’s in danger of becoming a Luxirare fanblog, but I can’t stop. I need to tell you that I was wrong about what I said before, about Luxirare being about fashion and food. Because now it’s also about crayons.

laurao:

Crayon | Luxirare

Beautiful photos and semi-followable tutorial on making edible (and working!) crayons.

"To decorate, you can also use Edible gold leaf. This is more expensive than the gold dust. Whichever..."

Mon, 28 Dec 2009 10:32:00 -0500

“To decorate, you can also use Edible gold leaf. This is more expensive than the gold dust. Whichever is fine.”

- Egg Nog | Luxirare

I don’t even know what to do with this girl and her blog (via Jane Aldridge, of course). So many questions! Who is she? Where does she get the resources? I keep finding myself drawn to these really obsessive, precise artists like her; it’s one of the things that made that Saatchi Gallery show of new art from China so good. I find it sort of hilarious but endearing that she treats it almost as if it were a DIY instructional blog, like the typical reader might be trying to mimic these absurd masterpieces on their day off. This is not so much a food blog or fashion blog as it is art, presented in the format of a blog. Art that centers on food and fashion. But, whatever. This is the type of thing that will eventually replace fashion magazines, right? Please let this be the type of thing that will eventually replace fashion magazines. For a fun time, check out her fresh mozzarella video.

This is Spinal Tap Tracey Emin. meltzer: Tracey Emin is so next...

Mon, 21 Dec 2009 11:06:00 -0500

This is ~~Spinal Tap~~ Tracey Emin.

meltzer:

Tracey Emin is so next level.

Land of the Living : Sam Shepard, The New Yorker

Sun, 20 Dec 2009 20:52:00 -0500

Land of the Living : Sam Shepard, The New Yorker:

This story just walloped my heart in a matter of six pages. Someone should make a short film out of it. Someone who wants to make people cry.

Museum attendance rises as the economy tumbles

Fri, 11 Dec 2009 15:27:00 -0500

Museum attendance rises as the economy tumbles:

…And then there’s this:

NEA report shows declining attendance in arts events nationwide

also, re: movie ticket prices being less than museum entry prices: someone please tell NY museums about this novel idea

hydeordie:

It may be because of the relative bargain of a museum ticket, an increased popular interest in contemporary art, or just a rainy summer, but admissions at the majority of art museums in the US have been holding steady through the recession—and many are dramatically on the rise. A survey by The Art Newspaper of 20 museums across the country found that two-thirds have experienced a clear increase in visitor numbers over the past three years.

The trend holds for institutions with free and paid admissions alike, and institutions that show contemporary art have seen the most clear-cut increase. New York’s Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), one of the nation’s most expensive museums at $20 per ticket, had the best year in its 80-year history, bringing in 2.8 million visitors between 2008 and 2009. The size of its membership rose to a record 120,000. The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum’s Frank Lloyd Wright retrospective was its best-attended show yet, attracting 372,000 people. The New York museum has also broken its 2008 attendance record of just over one million.

I’m not surprised by this, museum tickets are often less than a movie ticket and popcorn and can be much more stimulating, but this is exciting news isn’t it? People spending their money on more “quality”* experiences, where one could go off in solitude and think or with friends and start lively discussions about what they are experiencing, is a lovely trend.

*Just my opinion.

Also There Would Be No Out-Of-Office-Auto-Replies

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 20:45:56 -0500

does this work speak to you, tess?

tesslynch:

I was in a rare mood just now. You know: blood sugar; all food is unattractive; you can’t find your handful of quarters for the meters; there is a DirecTV van in the parking spot you use in front of your house; you get a losing lottery ticket; you receive an email for an event and you’re, like, personally offended that you are getting spammed. The last one was particularly aggravating since today I received at least seventy five percent bad email.

The power of email has not yet been described accurately by media. Do we even know how to characterize our relationship to email? Unlike the phone, which delivers its messages less frequently and almost always to just you, personally, emails are constantly hitting you with information: general, trivial, unpleasant, funny (usually not). You get news, bills, forwards, spam, spam poetry, gossip (general), gossip (personal). Important stuff, less-important-than-dust stuff. It’s so stressful to sort through it sometimes. Often it feels like it is totally without reward. When you eliminate the spam with a spam folder, and then gradually decide that almost everything not to you personally from a human being should go in the spam folder as well, do you miss it? You still have to check it all the time. I go back and forth: sometimes I check my phone and see that there is a sale on lobster at Legal Seafoods online. I put it in spam. Then months later I look in my spam and I think, oh, how sad. I do like Legal Seafoods.

Since email is often boring, undramatic to portray in art (a person staring into a computer. When will this ever convey the drama that happens here in life? When will I watch a movie and see someone check an email and care? It has not happened yet for me, even though it has for many of my favorite critics), and constantly gettin’ at you, it doesn’t have that punch-to-the-gut as a phone call would. Information over the phone gives you the opportunity to emote right back. There is no time to think! Feelings are in real time. With email, the delay takes the buzz away from your reaction, and the feeling of always having to get back to someone about something from days ago is oppressive. It’s a numb, dreary sensation, getting back to the emails.

At the same time, I hate talking on the phone and it’s great to be able to muse on this or that, when emailing, and think “this person will read this at their leisure. If they have nothing to say right now, they’ll say something later.” It’s nice to send an email, isn’t it? Ahhh. You can take your time with it, too. You can use a complicated metaphor and go back and delete it and nobody will ever know. Best of all, you’ve had a quiet conversation with yourself, essentially. You took a monologue. Even a small email is perfectly encapsulated because it’s an entire thought surrounded by silence. It requires full attention to understand. You can also smoke, or eat a burger, or sit in your underpants as you converse via email — nobody can hear you chew, or interrupt you to say, “Are you in your underpants? I got that feeling. Like you were.”

In a perfect world, people would have no jobs other than to respond promptly and emotionally to their emails. Every single one. Spam would be sent by people who would read these responses and be affected by them. Our movies would change: every relationship would have an email component, and when people sat down at the computer, you would expect a real shitstorm, with crying. Our novels would have big chunks of email exchanges, bam-bam-bam, back and forth, and it wouldn’t be clunky and ruin the book for me, it would be well-executed and make sense and be tense and exciting. Either our whole email system has to change, or our art can never reference emails, ever again. This is the rule I’m making right now.

Kinda like Saatchi Online, but for Playwrights

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 13:32:26 -0500

Kinda like Saatchi Online, but for Playwrights

For Online Art Gallery 20×200, An Unlikely Investor

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 15:30:20 -0400

For Online Art Gallery 20×200, An Unlikely Investor :

Congratulations, Ms. Bekman & co! Very inspiring.

Combating Sex Trafficking, With Or Without Ashton...

Wed, 02 Sep 2009 11:36:06 -0400

Combating Sex Trafficking, With Or Without Ashton Kutcher’s Help - Top - Jezebel

Friend and colleague Alissa Moore is profiled in Jezebel! I’m so proud of her and the ridiculous amount of energy and commitment she maintains.