A must see.
Courtesy Shepard Fairey
Shepard Fairey created this poster in support of Burmese dissident Aung San Suu Kyi. I loved his Obama image and am so glad he is using his influence and art to continue the dialogue.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Shepard Fairey takes on Aung San Suu Kyi
Burma is one of the most compelling, haunting, complex counties I have ever visited. The prolonged forced exile of Aung San Suu Kyi is beyond comprehension. If you are unfamiliar with the situation, I suggest renting the DVD, Beyond Rangoon. I watched it before I visited the country and the image of Aung San Suu Kyi facing the guns is the most dramatic and gripping demonstration of the power of peaceful protests.
A must see.
Courtesy Shepard Fairey
Shepard Fairey created this poster in support of Burmese dissident Aung San Suu Kyi. I loved his Obama image and am so glad he is using his influence and art to continue the dialogue.
A must see.
Courtesy Shepard Fairey
Shepard Fairey created this poster in support of Burmese dissident Aung San Suu Kyi. I loved his Obama image and am so glad he is using his influence and art to continue the dialogue.
Friday, June 26, 2009
Green Balloons World Over
in solidarity with supporters of freedom of speech in Iran, green balloons will be released today all over the world...
Thursday, June 25, 2009
White House Art
As I head off to DC I am reminded an article, Changing the Art on The White House Walls in the Wall Street Journal. I was intrigued and thrilled as it was another indication of how their choices and actions impact the rest of the world, in this case, the art world.
here are a few excerpts..by Amy Chozik and Kelly Crow
"The Obamas are sending ripples through the art world as they put the call out to museums, galleries and private collectors that they’d like to borrow modern art by African-American, Asian, Hispanic and female artists for the White House. In a sharp departure from the 19th-century still lifes, pastorals and portraits that dominate the White House’s public rooms, they are choosing bold, abstract art works.
National Gallery of Art, Washington
The Obamas have borrowed Ed Ruscha’s ‘I Think I’ll...’ (1983) from the National Gallery.
History of White House Art
The overhaul is an important event for the art market. The Obamas’ art choices could affect the market values of the works and artists they decide to display. Museums and collectors have been moving quickly to offer up works for inclusion in the iconic space.
Their choices also, inevitably, have political implications, and could serve as a savvy tool to drive the ongoing message of a more inclusive administration. The Clintons received political praise after they selected Simmie Knox, an African-American artist from Alabama, to paint their official portraits. The Bush administration garnered approval for acquiring “The Builders,” a painting by African-American artist Jacob Lawrence, but also some criticism for the picture, which depicts black men doing menial labor.
Last week the first family installed seven works on loan from the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington in the White House’s private residence, including “Sky Light” and “Watusi (Hard Edge),” a pair of blue and yellow abstracts by lesser-known African-American abstract artist Alma Thomas, acclaimed for her post-war paintings of geometric shapes in cheery colors.
Obamas Cast a Wider Net for Art
The Obamas are looking to update the storied White House art collection to include modern art and work by minorities and women. Washington reporters Amy Chozick and art reporter Kelly Crow explain.
The National Gallery of Art has loaned the family at least five works this year, including “Numerals, 0 through 9,” a lead relief sculpture by Jasper Johns, “Berkeley No. 52,” a splashy large-scale painting by Richard Diebenkorn, and a blood-red Edward Ruscha canvas featuring the words, “I think maybe I’ll…,” fitting for a president known for lengthy bouts of contemplation. The Jasper Johns sculpture was installed in the residence on Inauguration Day, along with modern works by Robert Rauschenberg and Louise Nevelson, also on loan from the National Gallery.
Collectors say the art picks by the Obamas will likely affect the artists’ market values—or at least raise their profiles. After George W. Bush displayed El Paso, Texas-born artist Tom Lea’s “Rio Grande,” a photorealistic view of a cactus set against gray clouds, in the Oval Office, the price of the artist’s paintings shot up roughly 300%, says Adair Margo, owner of an El Paso gallery that sells Mr. Lea’s work. (Mr. Lea passed away in 2001, which also boosted the value of his work.)
A White House spokeswoman says the Obamas enjoy all types of art but want to “round out the permanent collection” and “give new voices” to modern American artists of all races and backgrounds.
The Estate of Richard Diebenkorn
The Obamas have borrowed Richard Diebenkorn’s abstract ‘Berkeley No. 52.’
The changes in White House art come as the Obama administration seeks to boost arts funding. Mr. Obama included $50 million in his economic stimulus package for the National Endowment for the Arts and on Monday Mrs. Obama delivered remarks at the reopening of the American wing of the Metropolitan Museum of Art."
here are a few excerpts..by Amy Chozik and Kelly Crow
"The Obamas are sending ripples through the art world as they put the call out to museums, galleries and private collectors that they’d like to borrow modern art by African-American, Asian, Hispanic and female artists for the White House. In a sharp departure from the 19th-century still lifes, pastorals and portraits that dominate the White House’s public rooms, they are choosing bold, abstract art works.
National Gallery of Art, Washington
The Obamas have borrowed Ed Ruscha’s ‘I Think I’ll...’ (1983) from the National Gallery.
History of White House Art
The overhaul is an important event for the art market. The Obamas’ art choices could affect the market values of the works and artists they decide to display. Museums and collectors have been moving quickly to offer up works for inclusion in the iconic space.
Their choices also, inevitably, have political implications, and could serve as a savvy tool to drive the ongoing message of a more inclusive administration. The Clintons received political praise after they selected Simmie Knox, an African-American artist from Alabama, to paint their official portraits. The Bush administration garnered approval for acquiring “The Builders,” a painting by African-American artist Jacob Lawrence, but also some criticism for the picture, which depicts black men doing menial labor.
Last week the first family installed seven works on loan from the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington in the White House’s private residence, including “Sky Light” and “Watusi (Hard Edge),” a pair of blue and yellow abstracts by lesser-known African-American abstract artist Alma Thomas, acclaimed for her post-war paintings of geometric shapes in cheery colors.
Obamas Cast a Wider Net for Art
The Obamas are looking to update the storied White House art collection to include modern art and work by minorities and women. Washington reporters Amy Chozick and art reporter Kelly Crow explain.
The National Gallery of Art has loaned the family at least five works this year, including “Numerals, 0 through 9,” a lead relief sculpture by Jasper Johns, “Berkeley No. 52,” a splashy large-scale painting by Richard Diebenkorn, and a blood-red Edward Ruscha canvas featuring the words, “I think maybe I’ll…,” fitting for a president known for lengthy bouts of contemplation. The Jasper Johns sculpture was installed in the residence on Inauguration Day, along with modern works by Robert Rauschenberg and Louise Nevelson, also on loan from the National Gallery.
Collectors say the art picks by the Obamas will likely affect the artists’ market values—or at least raise their profiles. After George W. Bush displayed El Paso, Texas-born artist Tom Lea’s “Rio Grande,” a photorealistic view of a cactus set against gray clouds, in the Oval Office, the price of the artist’s paintings shot up roughly 300%, says Adair Margo, owner of an El Paso gallery that sells Mr. Lea’s work. (Mr. Lea passed away in 2001, which also boosted the value of his work.)
A White House spokeswoman says the Obamas enjoy all types of art but want to “round out the permanent collection” and “give new voices” to modern American artists of all races and backgrounds.
The Estate of Richard Diebenkorn
The Obamas have borrowed Richard Diebenkorn’s abstract ‘Berkeley No. 52.’
The changes in White House art come as the Obama administration seeks to boost arts funding. Mr. Obama included $50 million in his economic stimulus package for the National Endowment for the Arts and on Monday Mrs. Obama delivered remarks at the reopening of the American wing of the Metropolitan Museum of Art."
Sunday, June 21, 2009
When a chair is not just a chair
I woke up yesterday morning with this image in my head.
I had not seen Diane Cummins's work for over 8 years and have no idea why the image was there floating in my unconscious but decided to search for it. I was happy to find her work online and with her permission, am sharing this very evocative, wonderful series.
In Diane's own words on Light to Dark Places
"The photographs in this series were taken between the day's last and first light. They correspond to a period of self-examination, mind to soul, undertaken during a sequence of losses which required learning to let go. Also reflected in the series is the concept of "power of place." The few acres surrounding my house, which served as a setting, contributed equally as an inspirational force. A humble farmstead gone wild and wooded, it had always been a sacred place to me. The land had become so familliar I knew my way through its tangle of trees and briars in total darkness.
I tried to bring each picture to visual form as it first appeared in my mind. Its look determined the place and means of its production. Most exposures began at dusk. The shutter was locked open for the film to expose in the quickly failing light. When it was totally dark and with the shutter remaining open, I walked into the scene to light certain areas with a flashlight or partial flash. Exposures were long, extending over several hours.
One image influenced the next. Each photograph continues to reveal new levels of meaning, especially as it connects to another photograph. As the completed images fell into sequence, it becomes clear that many initial interpretations were far from the mark. Most surprising were the happy accidents, when a slip or a miscalculation actually added an important element. No longer does that really seem surprising."
I had not seen Diane Cummins's work for over 8 years and have no idea why the image was there floating in my unconscious but decided to search for it. I was happy to find her work online and with her permission, am sharing this very evocative, wonderful series.
In Diane's own words on Light to Dark Places
"The photographs in this series were taken between the day's last and first light. They correspond to a period of self-examination, mind to soul, undertaken during a sequence of losses which required learning to let go. Also reflected in the series is the concept of "power of place." The few acres surrounding my house, which served as a setting, contributed equally as an inspirational force. A humble farmstead gone wild and wooded, it had always been a sacred place to me. The land had become so familliar I knew my way through its tangle of trees and briars in total darkness.
I tried to bring each picture to visual form as it first appeared in my mind. Its look determined the place and means of its production. Most exposures began at dusk. The shutter was locked open for the film to expose in the quickly failing light. When it was totally dark and with the shutter remaining open, I walked into the scene to light certain areas with a flashlight or partial flash. Exposures were long, extending over several hours.
One image influenced the next. Each photograph continues to reveal new levels of meaning, especially as it connects to another photograph. As the completed images fell into sequence, it becomes clear that many initial interpretations were far from the mark. Most surprising were the happy accidents, when a slip or a miscalculation actually added an important element. No longer does that really seem surprising."
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Recycle the Raindrops
After yesterdays torrential rains, I thought it appropriate to introduce a new project that is underway in Chicago, Recycle the Raindrops.
Did you know that if a large bucket equals all the seawater on Earth, than a coffee cup would equal frozen unfiltered glacier water so only a teaspoon is left for drinking water. Of that fresh water available on the entire earth, 20% of it is contained in the Great Lakes. Much of the world is currently forced to deal with the dwindling supply of fresh water.
"Recycle The Raindrops" Water Barrel program was launched this week in Chicago at the opening of The Field Museum's blockbuster Water Show.
If you are interested in getting involved with the rain barrels project, email crpr22@aol.com.
Did you know that if a large bucket equals all the seawater on Earth, than a coffee cup would equal frozen unfiltered glacier water so only a teaspoon is left for drinking water. Of that fresh water available on the entire earth, 20% of it is contained in the Great Lakes. Much of the world is currently forced to deal with the dwindling supply of fresh water.
"Recycle The Raindrops" Water Barrel program was launched this week in Chicago at the opening of The Field Museum's blockbuster Water Show.
If you are interested in getting involved with the rain barrels project, email crpr22@aol.com.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Frank Yamrus on Bottled Water
One of the things I like best about blogging is being able to share other photographer's work. Frank Yamrus is based in San Francisco and has produced many stunning portfolios, including Rapture (check it out on his site). His latest work, Rune Lagu, discusses the bottled water industry.
Here is what he has to say...
"This series of typological photographs documents the plastic bottles that house our drinking water, an index of semiotics and perhaps an archive of evidence in a looming ecological crisis. In 2006, the global bottled water industry reached $50 billion with over 3,000 brands of bottled water worldwide, 180 in the United States. Just thirty years ago commercially produced bottled water barely existed in the United States – today, Americans are the leading consumers of bottled water at 32 billion liters per year.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, one in five Americans drinks only bottled water. In a July 2007 article in Fastcompany.com, Charles Fishman theorizes: “Bottled has become the indispensable prop in our lives and culture… . [T]he food phenomenon of our times… . A chilled plastic bottle of water in the convenience-store cooler is the perfect symbol of this moment in American commerce and culture. It acknowledges our demand for instant gratification, our vanity, our token concern for health.”
Considering that there is no evidence that bottled water is healthier than tap water; that 40% of bottled water comes from the tap; that 17 million barrels of oil are required to produce the plastic bottles used in the United States in one year; that 86% of plastic water bottles used in the United States become garbage or litter; its success seems illogical and unlikely. Recently, in the developed world, bottled water consumers are the folks most concerned with the very environmental and social issues associated with bottled water and sales growth has not stopped but is stalling. Perhaps a new awareness has pushed the bottled water industry to Mr. Gladwell’s epidemiological “Tipping Point?”
I am certain that tipping point will be reached sooner thanks to Frank's photographic essay.
Here is what he has to say...
"This series of typological photographs documents the plastic bottles that house our drinking water, an index of semiotics and perhaps an archive of evidence in a looming ecological crisis. In 2006, the global bottled water industry reached $50 billion with over 3,000 brands of bottled water worldwide, 180 in the United States. Just thirty years ago commercially produced bottled water barely existed in the United States – today, Americans are the leading consumers of bottled water at 32 billion liters per year.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, one in five Americans drinks only bottled water. In a July 2007 article in Fastcompany.com, Charles Fishman theorizes: “Bottled has become the indispensable prop in our lives and culture… . [T]he food phenomenon of our times… . A chilled plastic bottle of water in the convenience-store cooler is the perfect symbol of this moment in American commerce and culture. It acknowledges our demand for instant gratification, our vanity, our token concern for health.”
Considering that there is no evidence that bottled water is healthier than tap water; that 40% of bottled water comes from the tap; that 17 million barrels of oil are required to produce the plastic bottles used in the United States in one year; that 86% of plastic water bottles used in the United States become garbage or litter; its success seems illogical and unlikely. Recently, in the developed world, bottled water consumers are the folks most concerned with the very environmental and social issues associated with bottled water and sales growth has not stopped but is stalling. Perhaps a new awareness has pushed the bottled water industry to Mr. Gladwell’s epidemiological “Tipping Point?”
I am certain that tipping point will be reached sooner thanks to Frank's photographic essay.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Clay Shirky on Twitter and Iran on TED
"This is it. This is the big one." NYU Professor Clay Shirky
TED Blog: Q&A with Clay Shirky on Twitter and Iran
16 June 2009
Q&A with Clay Shirky on Twitter and Iran on TED
NYU professor Clay Shirky gave a fantastic talk on new media during our TED@State event earlier this month. He revealed how cellphones, the web, Facebook and Twitter had changed the rules of the game, allowing ordinary citizens extraordinary new powers to impact real-world events. As protests in Iran exploded over the weekend, we decided to rush out his talk, because it could hardly be more relevant. I caught up with Clay this afternoon to get his take on the significance of what is happening. HIs excitement was palpable.
What do you make of what's going on in Iran right now.
I'm always a little reticent to draw lessons from things still unfolding, but it seems pretty clear that ... this is it. The big one. This is the first revolution that has been catapulted onto a global stage and transformed by social media. I've been thinking a lot about the Chicago demonstrations of 1968 where they chanted "the whole world is watching." Really, that wasn't true then. But this time it's true ... and people throughout the world are not only listening but responding. They're engaging with individual participants, they're passing on their messages to their friends, and they're even providing detailed instructions to enable web proxies allowing Internet access that the authorities can't immediately censor. That kind of participation is reallly extraordinary.
Which services have caused the greatest impact? Blogs? Facebook? Twitter?
It's Twitter. One thing that Evan (Williams) and Biz (Stone) did absolutely right is that they made Twitter so simple and so open that it's easier to integrate and harder to control than any other tool. At the time, I'm sure it wasn't conceived as anything other than a smart engineering choice. But it's had global consequences. Twitter is shareable and open and participatory in a way that Facebook's model prevents. So far, despite a massive effort, the authorities have found no way to shut it down, and now there are literally thousands of people aorund the world who've made it their business to help keep it open.
Do you get a sense that it's almost as if the world is figuring out live how to use Twitter in these circumstances? Some dissidents were using named accounts for a while, and there's been a raging debate in the community about how best to help them.
Yes, there's an enormous reckoning to be had about what works and what doesn't. There have been disagreements over whether it was dangerous to use hashtags like #Iranelection, and there was a period in which people were openly tweeting the IP addresses of web proxies for people to switch to, not realizing that the authorities would soon shut these down. It's incredibly messy, and the definitive rules of the game have yet to be written. So yes, we're seeing the medium invent itself in real time.
Talk some more about the sense of participation on Twitter. It seems to me that that has spurred an entirely deeper level of emotional connection with these events.
Absolutely. I've been saying this for a while -- as a medium gets faster, it gets more emotional. We feel faster than we think. But Twitter is also just a much more personal medium. Reading personal messages from individuals on the ground prompts a whole other sense of involvement. We're seeing everyone desperate to do something to show solidarity like wear green -- and suddenly the community figures out that it can actually offer secure web proxies, or persuade Twitter to delay an engineering upgrade -- we can help keep the medium open.
When I see John Perry Barlow setting himself up as a router, he's not performing these services as a journalist. He's engaged. Traditional media operates as source of inofrmation not as a means of coordination. It can't do more than make us sympathize. Twitter makes us empathize. It makes us part of it. Even if it's just retweeting, you're aiding the goal that dissidents have always sought: the awareness that the ouside world is paying attention is really valuable.
Of course the downside of this emotional engagement is that while this is happening, I feel like I can't in good consicence tweet about anything else!
There was fury on Twitter against CNN for not adequately covering the situation. Was that justified?
In a way it wasn't. I'm sure that for the majority of the country, events in Iran are not of grave interest, even if those desperate for CNN's Iran info couldn't get access to it. That push model of one message for all is an incredibly crappy way of linking supply and demand.
CNN has the same problem this decade that Time magazine had last decade. They simultaneously want to appeal to middle America and leading influencers. Reaching multiple audiences is increasingly difficult. The people who are hungry for info on events of global significance are used to instinctively switching on CNN. But they are realizng that that reflex doesn't serve them very well anymore, and that can't be good for CNN.
Do you get the sense that these new media tools are helping build a global community, forged more by technology and a desire for connection, than by traditional political or religious divides?
You can see it clearly in what's happening right now. And it cuts both ways. The guy we're rallying around, Mousavi, is no liberal reformer. But the principle of freedom of speech and fair elections and the desire for reform trump that.
So how does this play out?
It's complex. The Ahmadinejad supporters are going to use the fact of English-speaking and American participation to try to damn the dissidents. But whatever happens from here, the dissidents have seen that large numbers of American people, supposedly part of "the great Satan," are actually supporters. Someone tweeted from Tehran today that "the American media may not care, but the American people do." That's a sea-change.
TED Blog: Q&A with Clay Shirky on Twitter and Iran
16 June 2009
Q&A with Clay Shirky on Twitter and Iran on TED
NYU professor Clay Shirky gave a fantastic talk on new media during our TED@State event earlier this month. He revealed how cellphones, the web, Facebook and Twitter had changed the rules of the game, allowing ordinary citizens extraordinary new powers to impact real-world events. As protests in Iran exploded over the weekend, we decided to rush out his talk, because it could hardly be more relevant. I caught up with Clay this afternoon to get his take on the significance of what is happening. HIs excitement was palpable.
What do you make of what's going on in Iran right now.
I'm always a little reticent to draw lessons from things still unfolding, but it seems pretty clear that ... this is it. The big one. This is the first revolution that has been catapulted onto a global stage and transformed by social media. I've been thinking a lot about the Chicago demonstrations of 1968 where they chanted "the whole world is watching." Really, that wasn't true then. But this time it's true ... and people throughout the world are not only listening but responding. They're engaging with individual participants, they're passing on their messages to their friends, and they're even providing detailed instructions to enable web proxies allowing Internet access that the authorities can't immediately censor. That kind of participation is reallly extraordinary.
Which services have caused the greatest impact? Blogs? Facebook? Twitter?
It's Twitter. One thing that Evan (Williams) and Biz (Stone) did absolutely right is that they made Twitter so simple and so open that it's easier to integrate and harder to control than any other tool. At the time, I'm sure it wasn't conceived as anything other than a smart engineering choice. But it's had global consequences. Twitter is shareable and open and participatory in a way that Facebook's model prevents. So far, despite a massive effort, the authorities have found no way to shut it down, and now there are literally thousands of people aorund the world who've made it their business to help keep it open.
Do you get a sense that it's almost as if the world is figuring out live how to use Twitter in these circumstances? Some dissidents were using named accounts for a while, and there's been a raging debate in the community about how best to help them.
Yes, there's an enormous reckoning to be had about what works and what doesn't. There have been disagreements over whether it was dangerous to use hashtags like #Iranelection, and there was a period in which people were openly tweeting the IP addresses of web proxies for people to switch to, not realizing that the authorities would soon shut these down. It's incredibly messy, and the definitive rules of the game have yet to be written. So yes, we're seeing the medium invent itself in real time.
Talk some more about the sense of participation on Twitter. It seems to me that that has spurred an entirely deeper level of emotional connection with these events.
Absolutely. I've been saying this for a while -- as a medium gets faster, it gets more emotional. We feel faster than we think. But Twitter is also just a much more personal medium. Reading personal messages from individuals on the ground prompts a whole other sense of involvement. We're seeing everyone desperate to do something to show solidarity like wear green -- and suddenly the community figures out that it can actually offer secure web proxies, or persuade Twitter to delay an engineering upgrade -- we can help keep the medium open.
When I see John Perry Barlow setting himself up as a router, he's not performing these services as a journalist. He's engaged. Traditional media operates as source of inofrmation not as a means of coordination. It can't do more than make us sympathize. Twitter makes us empathize. It makes us part of it. Even if it's just retweeting, you're aiding the goal that dissidents have always sought: the awareness that the ouside world is paying attention is really valuable.
Of course the downside of this emotional engagement is that while this is happening, I feel like I can't in good consicence tweet about anything else!
There was fury on Twitter against CNN for not adequately covering the situation. Was that justified?
In a way it wasn't. I'm sure that for the majority of the country, events in Iran are not of grave interest, even if those desperate for CNN's Iran info couldn't get access to it. That push model of one message for all is an incredibly crappy way of linking supply and demand.
CNN has the same problem this decade that Time magazine had last decade. They simultaneously want to appeal to middle America and leading influencers. Reaching multiple audiences is increasingly difficult. The people who are hungry for info on events of global significance are used to instinctively switching on CNN. But they are realizng that that reflex doesn't serve them very well anymore, and that can't be good for CNN.
Do you get the sense that these new media tools are helping build a global community, forged more by technology and a desire for connection, than by traditional political or religious divides?
You can see it clearly in what's happening right now. And it cuts both ways. The guy we're rallying around, Mousavi, is no liberal reformer. But the principle of freedom of speech and fair elections and the desire for reform trump that.
So how does this play out?
It's complex. The Ahmadinejad supporters are going to use the fact of English-speaking and American participation to try to damn the dissidents. But whatever happens from here, the dissidents have seen that large numbers of American people, supposedly part of "the great Satan," are actually supporters. Someone tweeted from Tehran today that "the American media may not care, but the American people do." That's a sea-change.
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