email #6: oops things got busy

<![CDATA[<p>hi everyone! i realize it’s been a little longer than usual between emails, but life happens and things just got too busy for a bit. but i’m back and i have cool stuff to share! no real theme, just a lot of high-quality arts content for you. check it out:</p>

i am a big fan of the journal momus, so it's not that surprising that i also loved this interview with momus editor sky gooden. she talks about how art publications are changing perhaps for the better in response to an arts funding landscape that is doing the opposite, which is exciting to hear (and i feel like is why i do this email thing – because arts writing is getting so interesting these days and there is so much good stuff out there to read/watch/listen to!).

"Don’t you want art to make you happy it has been such a shit year." here are three poems about art... like, about specific artworks. the first one is about jay defeo's "the rose." of course i am not an expert but i think this is a great approach to writing about art in a way that feels to me so much more open and accessible than a lot of prose-centric art writing. maybe this is a direction in line with sky gooden's observations.

i really liked this sculpture by sahar khoury that was featured in a review i read. but the review was pretty short and i was curious to find out more... luckily i found this interview with the artist at bomb magazine to satisfy my curiosity. i love the way she talks about prioritizing unity over purity, in contrast to a lot of modern/contemporary sculpture (i don't know a ton about sculpture so feel free to educate me if that statement sounded silly).

ok i feel like this piece, on the "clinical horniness" of 2022 fashion, really embraces absurdity in a way i wish more fashion writing would do. more art writing too!!! more of this. i loved reading it, even if it's maybe only "art-adjacent" it's close enough for me.

this series from burnaway magazine, called the "DIY INDEX," reviews shows at alternative and artist-run spaces. YOU KNOW I LOVE IT!!! this series is specifically focused on spaces in the southeastern united states (burnaway is based in atlanta, i believe), but we need this for every region! i would devote my life to this kind of thing if i could, i just love seeing how people reimagine a space, community, and artworks, all in conversation together in such different and cool ways.

this next one is from bigwindow.org, which presents video art and complementary writing every couple of months or so. i really like the focus of this project, and the combination of video works that might at first be a bit opaque to lots of viewers (including me), supported by writing that offers another point of access. their newest feature by kate liebman is beautiful, but definitely heads in a kind of dark direction FYI. nothing graphic, just sad. but really affecting in a quiet, intimate way.

i recently finished reading this profile of the sculptor simone leigh, and i have been thinking about it a lot. first, it's such a good read, and her story and artwork are so compelling. but the thing that stuck with me is how she stuck with her vision through what sounded like some really discouraging moments... i don't have a lot to add except that i find it inspiring. it can feel like there is a lot of pressure to sort of "chase" after trends or strategize to achieve a certain professional goal. sometimes these things can push people to discover new things, which is great. but it's also ok to just do your thing if you really believe in it, and trust that that is enough.

on that note, i found this podcast by artist lex brown, which kind of feels like your cool smart nice friend just talking to you on the phone and helping you process the craziness of life and art and whatever... it's very affirming, and i like it. the first episode is about "the master narrative," and the arguments and artworks against it. i hope there are more episodes in the works!

finally, check out this trailer for mungo thomson's new video, "time life." it's sooo cool! it's mesmerizing. all the images in this video come from old encyclopedias and how-to guides, but they really become something more in this form. it's like the koyaanisqatsi of corny generic old photo books! i wish i could watch the whole thing, fingers crossed it will be shown somewhere close to me someday.

thank you for reading, let me know what you think! and tell me all the cool stuff you know about (shows, writing, videos, podcasts, etc). ---martha