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2020-09-29
Is This the End of Contemporary Art As We Know It?
Artist Liam Gillick and a writer for ArtReview, J.J. Charlesworth talk about the changes brought by the pandemic and the many ways that everything will most likely remain the same. Interestingly, they examine the beginning and end of “contemporary art” and the complex web of economic, social, political and cultural factors that are shifting and breaking down in different ways from our current crises. In the end, the feeling that art will survive but the idea that this particular period of art and the art world has reached its end is contemplated. -
2020-03-19
Museums, Curators, and Artists Find Innovative Solutions for Showing Art in a Pandemic
This Artsy article written in the beginning of the pandemic discusses the innovative ways that museums and art professionals used technology to maintain relevance and viewership during lockdown. -
2021-03-14
Alex Smith Oral History, 2021/03/14
Self-description: “I’m an artist, writer, musician, and an off-and-on again activist, lecturer, worshopshop leader. I’m coming out of Philadelphia. My work revolves around concepts relating to Afrofuturism; for lack of a better term: superheroes and the conceptual nature of superheroes and the idea of the vigilante and the people’s champions and heroes can walk among us. I use [aesthetics and the immersive ideas of] from science fiction, cyberpunk, solarpunk, biopunk, and Afrofurturism to empower people of color, queer people and to project us into the future and our ideas and culture into the future as well. I use different mediums to do that, my bands Solarized (a sort of noisy punk rock band) and Rainbow Crimes (indie rock, but a little crazier and noisier than many excursions into that). I have written a short story collection called ARKDUST. And I do collage work and soundscapes and curate events like Laser Life, which was a queer sci-fi reading that me and my friends in a collective that I’m in called Metropolarity put together. That’s my praxis right now: a little bit of everything. I view my work as if I’m creating for 18 or 19 or 20 year old Alex, who probably needed some queer Black sci-fi in his life. So, I’m projecting these aspects of myself back to the past to not just nourish my community, but to nourish myself.” Personal website: alexoteric.com Other biographical details: Vegetarian, experiences depression, Pew Center for the Arts Fellow, during COVID is the first time in his life he’s had Health Insurance. Some of our discussion touched on: Using art to project hope and remaining hopeful during the pandemic. Afrofuturism as a part of the fabric of activism, how it is imbedded in culture and impacts queer and POC culture. How Afrofuturism exceeds an “aesthetic revival” of representation of Black people in the future and the kind of work that needs to be done to ensure those futures. Deciding to cancel a show he was organizing in the early days of the pandemic to protect the presenters and audience members. The everydayness of people dying because they don’t have healthcare access or can’t afford medicine* outside of the times of COVID-19; racism, sexism, and transphobia in the healthcare system.Corporate interests and their influence on policy. The unreasonable imperative that artists take the pandemic as an opportunity for productivity when many are out of work. It is hard to make art without fuel and without food. Witnesses barriers in the healthcare while caring for his partner after a stroke 5 years ago, the importance of medical bureaucratic literacy in a “Kafka-esque system”. Excitement about getting the vaccine. The pandemic in geopolitical context. Isolation in practice: Safety precautions and research prior to traveling for a funeral. Hope for “science married with activism”. Scholars in the humanities and social sciences need to be more visible, speak in lay person’s terms, do advocacy, and get in the streets. “Nothing is safe unless it empowers.” Other cultural references: Netflix, Zombie Movies, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Oprah’s interview with Meghan Markle and Prince Harry, Black Panther, Teenage Bounty Hunter, Elon Musk, GoFundMe. A specific reference is made to the need for his sister’s sickle cell anemia medicine in this interview. She dies a few months later. The GoFundMe to cover funeral expenses can be found here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/memorial-fund-for-elizabeth-graham?utm_campaign=p_cp_url&utm_medium=os&utm_source=customer -
2020-11-11
Pandemic Street Art: I VOTE
On November 11, 2020, my middle child and I went for an art walk in midtown Sacramento to celebrate her birthday. Amongst the murals, many of which were put up during Wide Open Walls events of the past few years, we came across a new collection on the WEAVE building. The mural collection commemorates 100 years of the 19th amendment. WEAVE (Women Escaping a Violent Environment) is "the primary provider of crisis intervention services for survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault in Sacramento County." The artist of these murals is Maren Conrad, a Sacramento artist. She put these up during the pandemic, in October 2020. -
2021-04-10
Black Lives Matter, Artist and Craftsman Supply in San Diego
It's still pretty rare that we go anywhere other than a grocery store or the occasional gas station, but it was necessary to re-up on art supplies (green pen, eraser pencil, sketch books, and the like). At one of our favorite supply stores, the Artist & Craftsman Supply in the Hillcrest neighborhood of San Diego, we found the goods. There were limited customers, all with masks. The plexiglass in front of the register kept employee-artists and customer-artists that much safer, as did the gallon-sized dispenser of hand sanitizer. As we left speedily, we noticed several "Black Lives Matter" signs posted in the windows. -
2020-07-13
From sketch to reality
Artist Misha Japanwala uses plaster as an artform. Here they made a plaster mold of their face and encourages people to wear a mask. Misha said this in their post: From sketch to reality 😷 (+ the unglamorous process where I look like Hannibal Lecter 😭) and please, wear a mask -
2020-03-16
Love in The Time of Corona: Pobel
Our headline comes from adapting the title of a novel by the Nobel prize-winning Colombian author Gabriel García Márquez, replacing the infectious Corona for the infectious Cholera. In his love-triangle story, he speaks of the lessons learned from a particular woman, but he may as well have been speaking about the now-global crisis we humans are facing: “(she) stood him on his head, tossed him up and threw him down, made him as good as new, shattered all his virtuous theories, and taught him the only thing he had to learn about love: that nobody teaches life anything.” -
2021-01-14
Venezuela's Pandemic Street Art
A Caracas, Venezuela artist is using his graffiti skills to cheer people up during COVID-19. Wolfgang Salazar has gained popularity for his spray-painted murals of Venezuelan heroes and regular people. -
2021-03-21
Banksy’s ‘Game Changer’ Canvas sells for a record £16.7m in aid of NHS charities, 2021
Banksy will donate the hammer price of £14.4m to help support health organisations and charities across the UK that enhance the NHS’s care and treatment. Christie’s Auction House will “donate a significant portion of the Buyer’s Premium to these causes” too. The Game Changer canvas first appeared in May 2020 at the University Hospital Southampton as a thank you to all the staff and NHS workers across the country during the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. The black and white artwork shows a little boy playing with a superhero nurse whilst Batman and Spiderman’s usual heroes are now in the trash. A reproduction of Game Changer will remain on view at University Hospital Southampton hospital. -
2020-05
Pandemic Street Art: Amanda Newman mural of Ai Fen
Artist Amanda Newman created a mural of senior Doctor Ai Fen if the Wuhan Central Hospital. The image is on a pillar of a railway overpass in Urquhart Street, Northcote. Newman chose the doctor as her subject because she was silenced, reprimanded, and accused of spreading rumors during the beginning stages of the COVID-19 outbreak in December 2019. -
2021-04-01
My International Affairs Brings The Past to Life During Pandemic Confinement
Last year 2020, during the first confinement I wanted to embody black women in old paintings and photographies. And here is a sample of what it was. It had something oh so uplifting for myself to be able to do that. I think I am now ready for the 2021 confinement edition. . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . #Betweenartandquarantine #Tussenkunstenquarantaine #Gettychallenge @Tussenkunstenquarantaine #Covidclassics #Artenquarantaine #Gettymuseumchallenge #17centuryfashion #17thcentury #BlackVictorian #Africanhistory #Vintagefashion #blm #afroeuropeanhistory #Periodfashion #Histoire #laviedesnoirscompte #Periodwoman #Sothebys #oldEurope #Vintagefashion #Celebrateblack #afroparisian #Blackparisian #Blackgirlmagic #afroeuropean #secretsdhistoire . #Gettymuseumchallenge #blackwomenofthepast #Edwardian -
2021-03-12
Preparing to protest
From Drew Arrieta: Visual Black Justice (@visualblackjustice) is a black-woman led org blending art and social justice. In preparation for the trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, they collected mirrors to display messages of solidarity and accountability outside the courthouse. -
2020-04-20
Street Art - commentary from the artists
This article quotes several street artists about how the pandemic has impacted their art and their messages. The direct quotes amplify their messages, although the street art speaks volumes in its public arena. -
2020-05-23
Street Art - honoring frontline workers
This article talks about street art around the world responding to the pandemic with satire, humor, political commentary, observation and expression. What stands out most with this article is the video interview of a street artist while he is completing a piece of art honoring frontline workers. -
2020-12-15
Jackson Brockenbrough
Jackson Brockenbrough, Jdagiver Production, explained in a verbal interview that as a direct result of COVID his inspirational has been effected. Lack of city life has made it more difficult for him to tap into his creativity. The dullness within the current state of the world translates into his work as many artist are effected by the their life and surroundings as a source of inspiration. Jackson continued explaining that even though this time is more difficult to produce music, he has a responsibility as a producer during COVID. For example the world utilizes music as an outlet to express and feel emotions of such as emotions of fear and frustration that COVID induces.Jacksons has also been faced with the difficulty of individuals being unable to contribute to sessions like they did prior to job restrictions because of COVID. Jackson’s story explains how an entrepreneur faces not only individuals struggling, and competition but also effected by the economic state of his consumers too. -
2020-11-17
Bandcamp Offers Artists A New Paid Livestream Platform
Bandcamp, the popular indie music streaming platform, has offered musicians a new revenue stream to replace in-person live shows. Fans can buy a ticket to access the show and purchase merchandise at the "virtual merch table". As the music industry has been turned upside down due to the end of touring and live shows, this offers another way to supplement the income of artists.