John Wilson Bears Witness
The Met has a union, John Wilson has a message, Ana Mendieta’s traces, and other happenings around the city this week.
Wow, it's cold out there. This morning, as I was getting absolutely wrecked by the wind on the walk to work through McCarren Park, I spotted a lone snowman, sitting upon a park bench and gazing out upon the white-coated baseball field as if it, alone, could see the vision of greener pastures. May we all be like that snowman during this most freezing of weeks.
We also hope you had a lovely MLK Day! There's always a risk that even the most powerful legacies can be hollowed out into just a date on a calendar. But it's during these trying times that cultural institutions can help bring the urgency of that history back to life, revealing how it continues to shape and undercut our lives.
Indeed, if there's a theme to this week's issue, it's that of artists who continually pushed the line. It's the way Chilean artist Lotty Rosenfeld models short-circuiting authoritarianism's signals, or the way John Wilson contributes to a more complete visual history, or Ana Mendieta left traces that we must train ourselves to see. It can be seen in deeply collaborative events all around the city — an art build to protest a Brooklyn jail, screenings to stoke lost urban memories — the small hearths we tend when hell freezes over. It's enough to get us through the winter, I promise.
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From Our Critics
Natalie Haddad
Ana Mendieta: Back to the Source at Marian Goodman Gallery
"The work can also speak to the human imprint on the Earth in the form of those artificial borders that are destructive to both nature and the people who are exiled from one territory or refused entry into another."
John Yau
Witnessing Humanity: The Art of John Wilson at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
"In a country where the president demonizes immigrants and people of color, Wilson’s work reminds us that beauty, art, and politics don’t have to be divided, and the right to be seen should never be decided by others."
Clara Maria Apostolatos
Lotty Rosenfeld: Disobedient Spaces at Wallach Art Gallery
"[Rosenfeld] signals that survival under authoritarian rule requires both sustenance and nerve — both something to live on and something to stand for."
What Else Is Happening?
- The ballots are in, and The Met officially has a union!
- Maysles Documentary Center is screening Weaving Anni Albers and Monk in Pieces, featuring a post-screening discussion with the directors. (Wed Jan 21) [maysles.org]
- Look back at internet talk show and social sculpture Art Dirt NYC with artists G.H. Hovagimyan, Robbin Murphy, and Adrianne Wortzel at Earth gallery. (Wed Jan 21) [rhizome.org]
- Artist Sheanni Sims is hosting a free artist workshop (with free food) at Judson Memorial Church. (Wed Jan 21) [judson.org]
- The Social Life of Small Urban Spaces will be screening at Low Cinema in Ridgewood. (Through Wed Jan 21) [mas.org]
- Elyssa Maxx Goodman will be discussing her book Glitter and Concrete: A Cultural History of Drag in NYC at the Tompkins Square branch of the NYPL. (Thurs Jan 22) [nypl.org]
- Recess is hosting an art build to protest the planned Brooklyn jail. (Thurs Jan 22) [instagram.com]
- Victor Pearlman will be holding a fashion show for his collection AIRPLANE, made during his residency at Materials for the Arts. (Thurs Jan 22) [materialsforthearts.org]
- Hotel Chelsea is everyone's favorite icon — literally. Rosy Teed's gingerbread edifice won the fan favorite award at the Museum of the City of New York.
- John Yau will be reading with Carrie Hunter at Artists Space. (Sat Jan 24) [artistsspace.org]
- Soft Network is hosting a tour of the Sheyla Baykal archive. (Sat Jan 24) [instagram.com]
- Multidisciplinary artist Elsa Saade will be directing a puppet art building session marking the lunar new year — it's the double fire horse year, by the way, which is marked by upheaval. Sounds about right. (Sun Jan 25) [instagram.com]
- Sign up to attend An Assembly of New York Artists to share your ideas on a more equitable arts landscape at Danspace Project. (Mon Jan 26) [workingclassartists.org]
- Applications are now open for the Summer Youth Employment Program for those between the ages of 14 and 24. If you know, you know. [nyc.gov]
- For the omakase enthusiasts out there, the Sushi Legend (apt moniker) has put together a free list of NYC offerings, with prices and courses. All they ask is that readers submit corrections and don't get mad at them (the same rules apply to us, by the way). [thesushilegend.com]
