A BOOK ABOUT DEATH THE EXHIBITION ARCHIVE

RICK PROL LECTURE IN HUDSON VALLEY, NY [188]

2012-01-19T21:27:00.004-05:00

Rick Prol, I Have This Cat, 1985; acrylic on canvas, wood and glass; 96 x 93 in.

Rick Prol, a New York-based artist, and part of the ABAD exhibition in NYC in 2009 will lecture along with collector Ari Strauss during the exhibition Circa 1986, at the Hudson Valley Center for Contemporary Art in Peeksill, NY. He will speak about his life in the New York art world.

When: Sunday, January 22, 2012, 4:00-5:00 pm
Where: Hudson Valley Center for Contemporary Art, 1701 Main St, Peeksill, NY 10566.

Rick Prol, born and raised in NYC where he currently lives and works. He graduated from Cooper Union College in 1980 and began showing his work publicly in 1982 - during the then burgeoning East Village art scene. Prol was also studio assistant to painter Jean-Michel Basquiat.

"The East Village Art scene of the '80s thrived on the romance of slumming in an era of widespread economic prosperity. Rick Prol was one of the icons of that era, known for his cartoonish tableaux of mayhem, murder and suicide set in a rat-infested fantasy world somewhere East of First Avenue."
– July 1993, Art in America, Eleanor Heartney, via RickProl.com.

Ari Straus was a young collector during the 1980s and the son of two collectors. Straus was excited by the cartoonish aesthetic employed by '80s artists. Even at a young age, he was an avid comic book reader, and Straus appreciated the bridge between "High" and "Low" art, which emerged during this period. Ari is currently CEO of Monticello Motor Club, a private race car establishment for automotive enthusiasts located 90 minutes north of NYC.

*Free with Museum Admission and for Members*

For more information contact:
JessicaDenaro@hvcca.org or call 914-788-0100

Graham McDougal at Cornell [187]

2012-01-17T16:20:00.003-05:00

ABAD artist Graham McDougal opens an exhibition of his new work at the Milstein Gallery January 16th - February 11th and the Tjaden Gallery January 16th - 28th 2012. The galleries are on the campus of Cornell University.

Opening Reception, Thursday, January 26th, 2012. 5:00 - 7:00 pm, Milstein Gallery.

Graham McDougal's web site: http://www.madison-first.com/
More information: http://aap.cornell.edu

2012 Holiday Greetings [186]

2012-01-02T07:45:00.000-05:00

A small collection of New Year's e mail images and greetings received from ABAD artists over the past few days...

Louise Millmann

Caterina Verde

Christina Stahr

Helen Frankenthaler [185]

2011-12-27T12:37:00.001-05:00

Helen Frankenthaler (December 12, 1928 - December 27, 2011)

The Wiki. The New York Times Obituary.

Fancy Fancy : Kim Jong-il [184]

2011-12-20T05:10:00.000-05:00

Korean Central TV of the North, via Reuters

The body of Kim Jong-il lies at the Kumsusan Memorial Palace in Pyongyang in this image taken from video footage aired by Korean television on Tuesday, December 20, 2011.

Sin Fronteras at ABAD Seattle December 10, 2011 [183]

2011-12-07T14:23:00.001-05:00

Abel Rocha and Patricia Mazuela from Sin Fronteras will bring music to ABAD SEATTLE at the c on December 10th. There is a suggested donation of $10 at the door.

Mitsu Sundvall : On Being Japanese In Post War America [182]

2011-11-20T09:02:00.001-05:00

Mitsu Sundvall talks about her childhood as a young Japanese in the United States and the anti-Japanese sentiment through the prism of a best friend who saw through the then-prevalent prejudice rampant in post-War America. She reads at A Book About Death Seattle on November 19, 2001.

Please blog or hit the FB or Twitter button to share this video and post.

SEATTLE, ABAD & THE GRATEFUL DEAD [181]

2011-11-18T16:11:00.001-05:00

The A Book About Death exhibition opened in Seattle on 11.11.11 to a big crowd and the iconic sounds of The Grateful Dead, thanks to both curator Kathleen McHugh and gallery owner Almendra Sandoval.

Jacques Migeon and his group The Tangletown String Band, played a full set of Grateful Dead music and folks came in and out looking at the work and enjoying this, the 25th exhibition of the project.

More than 110 works were received by the gallery and on Saturday November 19, 2011 (beginning at 5 PM local time), about a half dozen films and videos will be shown in the gallery along with a reading and literary event with Herb Sundvall.

About the opening, Kathleen (pictured right, with Herb Sundvall and friend) writes: "On the night of the opening a group of people came in because they saw a flyer on a telephone pole. They were familiar with A Book About Death and had wanted it to come to Seattle. Many people in the crowd came down from Victoria, British Columbia thanks to Dame Mailarta and her friend "Snappy." They spent a couple of nights in Seattle and brought both friends and strangers they had met to the show. They are writing and talking about the show in Victoria now. It was a great suprise. All in all a great evening."

You can see about 60 images from the show here: ABAD SEATTLE PHOTO ALBUM.

ABAD SEATTLE OPENS: SNEAK PEAK [180]

2011-11-11T15:55:00.001-05:00

Hours before the opening of ABAD Seattle, curated by Kathleen McHugh, the walls are up and the show is readying to open its doors.

Details: Opening – Friday, November 11, from 6 pm - 2 am at the Almendra SandovalQUETZALCOATL GALLERY3209 Beacon Ave SSeattle, Washington 98144.

The exhibition will close with a reception on December 10, from 6 pm -2 am. For more information see the web site: http://abadseattle.blogspot.com/

Please retweet, blog and e mail this post to all interested parties. Thank you.

TANGLETOWN STRING BAND : OPENING ABAD SEATTLE WITH GRATEFUL DEAD SET 11.11.11 [179]

2011-11-04T16:21:00.000-04:00

Jacques Migeon and his Tangletown String Band will open the ABAD Seattle exhibition with a full set of music from The Grateful Dead. The Tangletown String Band is a Seattle musical staple. "We are extremely pleased to be part of this worldwide exhibition and contribute a musical component to this current chapter of the show," says Migeon, a Seattle local.

The Tangletown String Band is a collection of passionate musicians with good day jobs which they have no intention of abandoning. "We emerged from the basement practice room a couple of years ago and now have a couple of sets of tunes drawing equally from "Old Time" Music, Bluegrass, Alternative Country, and a handful of originals that could easily fall in the aforementioned genres.," says Migeon.

Tangletown has been seen playing at variety of Americana music events around Seattle for years. "We have been heard to say, with pride, 'I’m with the band' or 'I have rehearsal tonight,'" says Jacques. "Mostly however, we just love to make music with our friends and share that with whomever we can. At full strength, the band has seven members with Jacques and George on guitar, Karen on fiddle, Peter on Mandolin, David on Bass, John on Banjo, and Mary on vocals and back-up bass. A veritable forest of microphones can be found on stage as all of us like to sing creating very rich harmonies."

See videos, listen to their music on their website: Tangletown String Band

The Tangletown String Band on FaceBook. Give them a LIKE.

Ira Schneider's 11.11.11. [178]

2011-11-04T07:31:00.002-04:00

ABAD artist Ira Schneider opens his 11.11.11 on 11.11.11.

Ira Schneider is an American artist living and working in Berlin. He has a long history with the Emily Harvey Foundation.

WHEN: Opening / Vernissage 11.11.2011, 8pm/20h – Exhibition/Ausstellung 11.11. bis 23.11.2011

WHERE: Prima Center Biesentalerstr. 24 13359 Berlin, Germany.

Ira Schneider: http://www.ira-schneider.com

OIL : A Film by Karen Alekyan for ABAD Seattle [177]

2011-11-03T20:47:00.004-04:00

A film by Karen Alekyan to be screened at ABAD SEATTLE.

See Karen's web site: http://karenalekyan.blogspot.com/

ABAD History To Date [176]

2011-10-25T21:05:00.002-04:00

2011 Quetzalcoatl Gallery, Seattle, WA / November 10 – December 10
Second Avenue Firehouse Gallery, Bay Shore, NY / ABAD: The Ties That Bind / July 31 – September 2
Willo North Gallery, Phoenix, AZ / ABAD: Memento / May 3 – 28
Chiesa S. Antonio Piazza La Rotonda Badoere di Morgano, Treviso, Italy / Un libro sulla Morte omaggio a Ray Johnson / April 9 – 17
Elizabeth Stone Harper Gallery, Presbyterian College, SC / ABAD Life / January 20 – February 25

2010 SAL Gallery, CW Post Campus-LIU, Brookville, NY / Ray Johnson & A Book About Death / November 1 – 6
Belknap Mill Gallery, Laconia, NH / October 29–November 1
The Fluxmuseum, Fort Worth, TX / October 8 – 30
Jaffe Center for Book Arts, Florida Atlantic University, FL / July 15 – October 18
The RNG Gallery, Omaha, NE / Till Death Due Us Part / July 31 – August 28

Villa Torri & Biblioteca Comunale, Vimodrone, Italy / May 8-19
Museum of Modern Art, Wales, UK / April 27 – May 8
Exit 11 Contemporary Art, Grand-Leez, Belgium / April 11 – June 27
ASA Art Gallery, Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina / April 1 – 15
Prostor, Zagreb, Croatia / March 22–30
Steppling Art Gallery, San Diego State U, CA / ABAD Mexicali / March 10 – April 9
Vladimir Nazor Library, Zagreb, Croatia / February 26 – March 21
Museu Brasileiro da Escultura, Brazil / Um Livro Sobre A Morte / February 6 – 28

2009 La Sexta Literary Arts Festival, Tijuana, Mexico / November 21
Queens Museum of Art, NY / November 1 –15
River Mill Art Gallery, Westfield, NJ / October 17–31
Ripe Art Gallery, Greenlawn, NY / October 11–18
Otis College of Art and Design, Los Angeles,CA / October 11–31
Mobius, Boston, MA / September 19 – 20
Emily Harvey Foundation Gallery, Soho, NY / September 10 – 20

IMAGE TOP: EHF DIRECTOR, CHRISTIAN XATREC, INSTALLING WORKS AT THE EHF, NYC, 2009. IMAGE MIDDLE: INSTALLATION AT THE OTIS COLLEGE OF ART AND DESIGN, LA, CA, 2009. IMAGE BOTTOM LEFT: INSTALLATION ABAD AT THE QUEENS MUSEUM, 2009.

ON POWER [175]

2011-10-13T18:51:00.001-04:00

FROM: I SEND YOU THIS.

ABAD CW POST WITH VIV MAUDLIN [174]

2011-10-09T18:37:00.003-04:00

HEATHER MATTHEW: Collaborative Arts Practice [172]

2011-10-08T10:53:00.001-04:00

Contemporary Debatesin Visual Culture

ContemporaryCollaborative Arts Practices

presentation by

Alix Brodeur

Christine Huntsman

Heather Matthew

Rebecca Moon

Miriam Salomon

Kaye Wearne

Collaborative Arts Practice

Since the 1990’s there has been resurgentinterest and participation in collaborative art practice as it becameincorporated into the mainstream. There is, however, a long and complex historyof collaboration ranging from the hierarchical large scale studios of theRenaissance, through Surrealist Group experiments, Fluxus games and AndyWarhols pseudo industrial factory.

Groups may be fixed and formal, or theymay be loose informal networks of friends living and working side by side.Motivation varies from the ability to share tasks according to skills,promotional and economic benefits, to the fun and joy derived from working withothers.

But visual artists have also labouredunder the idea of the artist as an heroic solitary figure whose ‘voice’ orpersonality is expressed through their art to give it authenticity. Thisauthenticity ties in with the issue of authority or “authorship” which hasremained central to the debate about art as a saleable commodity. These notionsof the individual, academic or gallery based artist were challenged during the1960s by collectivist, anti-establishment, collaborative arts movements such asFluxus.

Fluxus had its roots in Dadaism but grewout of the musical performances of composer John Cage during the 1950s andmoved into the visual arts during the 1960s with artists such as GeorgeMaciunas, (text and ‘boxed’ art), Allan Kaprow (Happenings) and Joseph Beuys(sculpture). Perhaps its most famously linked artist is Yoko Ono whocollaborated with John Lennon in 1969 staged the famous “Bed In’.

This was a time of massive social andcultural upheaval when the very ideology of class, race, gender, and authoritywere being challenged and disseminated through the mass media and counterculture movement. From the Paris riots of 1968 through to the antiwardemonstrations in America and Europe of the 1970s, art became bound withpolitics, art was seen as an instrument for social change, art embraced theMarxist idea of the collective.

This idea of non-individual‘collectivity’, through collaborating arts practice instead of saleableindividual art in a gallery undermined the whole market value approach to art.A new ideology was beginning to take shape and be espoused by thinkers of thetime.

Art was now becoming embedded in‘context’ and ‘culture’, the artist inheriting a foundation and history,creating a “ language of decipherable metaphors whose purpose is to exploreaspects of contemporary society’. With such ideology in place collaboration couldbe recognised as a legitimate arts process or arts practise, creating ‘art’ inisolation no longer applied.

Collaboration duos like Gilbert andGeorge who challenged notions of art in the 1960s with their “SingingSculpture”, went on to become ‘mainstream’ artists in the 1980s when they wonthe UK Turner Prize. The whole notion of authorship was explored bycollaborative duos like Christo and Jeanne Claude who after thirty years ofworking together as Christo then decided to use both their first names as aform of ‘authorship’. Othercollaborations like the 1980s group Guerilla Girls formed teams whose membersremained anonymous.

The problems around authorship becameparticularly important in art schools where allocating marks was dependent uponindividual students’ work. Collaboration as a serious arts practice wastherefore not actively encouraged by art schools. A famous example of this wasUK artists Jane and Louise Wilson, identical twins born in 1967, who attendedart college at separate locations, one in Newcastle the other in Dundee. Theyproduced a collaborative artwork for their final degree show and submitted thesame work to their respective art colleges.

Their relationship as twins is not playedout as their collaborative practice, although reviewers have noted each willrefer to “my work” or express what “I hope to achieve with the work”, whilst inthe presence of the other sister. So they work as a seamless duo without apparent delineation of separateroles, therefore blurring the notion of the single identifiable author.

Jane and Louise Wilson’s work takes theform of multi media video installations filmed on location and frequently atsites associated with oppressive institutional power. Many of the sites areexamples of modernist architecture and utopian design, or sites associated withcold war politics. They are filmed in their now desolate and ruined state,devoid of those invested with the power to instill fear, yet the installationsare still capable of provoking collective anxiety. Here the work of MichelFoucault on notions of power and hierarchy and how this affects behaviour whenin particular spaces is particularly influential. They are about making thefamiliar unfamiliar by evoking a sense of the uncanny.

This sensibility leads the audience toquestion modernity’s ideology of progress, and optimism for a better futurethrough scientific and industrial development. Stasi City and Gamma (1999) area paired installation, with Stasi City filmed at the now abandoned Stasiheadquarters in the former East Germany and Gamma at abandoned nuclear missilesilos at Greenham Common near London. In both, the camera shows quiet emptyrooms and spaces that were once sites of fear and interrogation, now conveyinga sense of human folly. The sisters appear ghostlike and dressed in uniform,gliding through the space silently. It is not without humour, as one of thesisters is seen passing over the space in a flying harness.

This interest in architectural spacesextends from the film content into the design of the multi screen installation.Through the kinetic placement of screens the viewer moves through and activatesthe installation space. The casting of their shadow onto the screens enhancesthe sense of being actively involved in interpretation and the process ofmaking meaning. This is evident in the work “A free and anonymous monument”(2004) filmed on location around Newcastle-upon-Tyne in the U.K. The work isbased on a now derilect public monument (The Apollo Pavilion) designed by theartist Victor Pasmore as a sculptural centerpiece for a utopian style housing developmenton the edge of the city. The images also include sites of industrial ruinationin the area and contrasts these with recent laboratories associated with thedigital age. Fragmentation occursas images move from sites of industrial demise to the quiet and seeminginvisibility of our digital age. There are 13 screens installed to mirror thedesign of the original Apollo Pavilion, giving the viewer a sense of beingimmersed in the location, surrounded by memory and association.

Occupying public space physically and inlarge numbers as a collaborative arts practice is another alternative togallery based art exposure.

When discussing contemprary collaborative art, it isimportant to recognize flash mobbing and culture jamming as two, if notobvious, legitimate practices.

Culture jamming could be defined as a disruption of oursociety’s norms and cultural standards as a way of gaining perspective as towhy we “do what we do”. This is a common practice in social movementscurrently, usually directing attention and questioning towards consumerism andpolitics. One example is Critical Mass, an event held typically on the lastFriday of every month in over 300 cities globally, where citizens (usuallyhundreds) cycle the streets. Some say this leaderless event is to drawattention to global warming, some say it is a way of cyclists reclaiming thestreets.

Flash mobbing on the other hand, has become popular as alarge group of people who assemble in a public area, usually perform some sortof action, then leave suddenly. In London, in 2006, the “silent disco” wasstaged where at a set time in the Underground, everyone with portable musicdevices began dancing. Similiarly, in the New York subway, “No Pants Day” hasbecome an annual event where, everyone participating, just as it sounds, ridesthe train in jackets and scarves, but no pants. Worldwide Pillow Fight Days arealso gaining popularity.

These sorts of events are worthy of recognition whendiscussing collaborative art. They are usually ambiguous in nature withoutleaders or formal organization. Some might say they have no “point” which isexactly their “point”. They challenge the archetypal roles of artist andaudience, by using the participants as the artists themselves.

New media andadvanced communication is now integral to collaborative arts practices and theinternet has enabled groups of artists to collaborate on projects all aroundthe world. Some international collaborative art projects operate as a mixtureof unselected mail art works which are then collected and combined under the‘facilitating authorship’ of a single artist.

An example of this collaborative projectwas the postcard art Book About Death which originated as an internet call outopen to anyone who submitted a postcard on the theme of death to Paris basedartist Matthew Rose. Each participant was required to send 500 copies of theirpostcard to be included in an exhibition at the Emily Harvey Gallery in NewYork. The idea was that the 500 artists who responded to the call providedtheir work for free to contribute to an unbound’ Book about Death .

Visitors to the exhibition were thenencouraged to collect one of each of the postcards to create their own unboundbook about death, resulting in huge crowds at the opening night. Some artistswho collected the entire range of postcards then exhibited the exhibition inother galleries in New York and further exhibitions have taken place in Brazil,Wales, Belgium, Croatia and Sarajevo with a proposal to exhibit in China underconsideration.

As organiser Matthew Rose says:

What is compelling forme is that artists have taken on this project as a mission of their own andgiven it in each turn in their own country a beautiful and personal shape. (1a)

In some ways this collaborative arts projectreferenced the ‘out of gallery’ ethos of the original Fluxus movement, EmilyHarvey herself was a supporter of Fluxus in the 1960s.

The concept that collaborative art couldoperate as a force for social change and allow marginalised voices to be heardoutside of the traditional gallery selection processes and restraints is onewhich is seriously pursued by other collaborative arts groups.

One such group is Los Carpinteros , aCuban art collective formed in 1991, based in La Habana and working and showinginternationally. Initially a trio ofclassmates from the Instituto Superior de Arte (ISA) formed by AlexandreArrechea (b.1970), Marco Antonio Castillo Valdés, (b.1971) and DagobertoRodríguez Sanchez (b.1969) it became a duo since Arrechea’s 2004 departure.Their work is part of the permanent collections of the Los Angeles CountyMuseum of Art, The Museum of Modern Art, New York, the Guggenheim Museum, NewYork, and the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, Madrid amongst others.

Their name,which means Carpenters, pays homage to and deliberately inserts them into tothe tradition of guilds of artisans, and tobacco and sugar cane workers whilereferring to their decision to renounce the bourgeois notion of individualauthorship. It was also a way to protect themselves from unwanted attentionfrom the authorities at a time when mass migration of artists had made theremaining ones highly vulnerable.

‘Wedid not want our work censored. So we disguised it. We cloaked it in a mantle ofmanuality and manufacture’¹

They are, infact highly accomplished woodworkers who make sculpture and installations in avariety of media often related to architecture and furniture but also cloth, asin their tent city and rubber on their serial sculpture of rubber sandals.Their work humorously explores the relation between architecture and design andbetween art and craft. Their drawings are often a point of departure for worksin other media and act as mock architectural drafts that are later mirrored intheir three dimensional work. Charles Merewether points out that this processof ‘going back to the drawing board’ and planning every detail in advance isone that has long been embraced by socialist thinkers. ² They havereferred to their drawings as ‘messages we send to each other’.

LosCarpinteros have chosen -and often talked about- a form of subtle protest andsocio political commentary. Their man size wooden grenade, ironically titled‘Jewelery Box’ and their ‘Bread Box’ shaped like a missile could be read aspacifist monuments while playing with the postmodern question of relationshipbetween object and text. Their installation called library 1, 2 and 3 is aseries of wall mounted measuring tapes containing sections of banned books, anobvious comment on censorship and possibly a dangerous one for Cuban artists tomake. Their position is unusual, as Jorge Reynoso Polenz has pointed out ³,in that there is a clear interest by Cuba in promoting Los Carpinteros -ahighly successful exportable product- which gives them a certain margin toexpress themselves freely and importantly, the freedom to travel.

They arecurrently working on their first long term US public commission, a large-scalesite-specific interactive installation titled Free Basket for 100 Acres for theVirginia B. Fairbanks Art and Nature Park opening in June as part of theIndianapolis Museum of Art. The drawings for this work -which draws on the formof a basketball court- are computer generated and look very different fromearlier ones, which used the palette of antique frescos. Conceptually howeverthis new work continues to explore their long held interest in juxtaposing thepractical and the imaginary.

Another major benefit of workingcollaboratively is the opportunity to pool resources as well as skills andideas. Economic considerations can be a major hurdle for individual artists andworking collaboratively often gives artists the opportunity to create largescale works.

This is particularly evident in the workof contemporary Healy and Cordeiro who bring a range of individual skills andsensibilities to create major installations which focus on contemporary issueslike consumer consumption and its associated problems.

Claire Healy and Sean Cordeiro are twoAustralian born artists who began collaborating on works in 2002 during thefinal years of studying their masters in fine arts at the university ofNSW.

They work with ideas of home, permanency and collection, anddevelop sculptural works in a variety of media. Through their works they raise socio-political issues suchas capitalism, globalization and consumption.

Their installations contain the everydayconsumables and debris of modern life. Healy and Cordiero explore creation and consumption, questioning thelayers that disguise the simple economics that underscore our increasinglycomplex lives. An example of this found in their huge garbage ball, the garbagecoming from an abandoned studio, they were to use. This illustrates thecontradiction between material affluence and the uncertain income of artists inwestern society.

These two artists look closely at usingresource sustainability, acquiring as little as possible and use material foundon site without adding more objects to the mass of stuff. They also up-cycle garbage to art formsand in so doing make the material and immaterial value of the raw materialvisible.

In their “The Cordial Home Project”exhibition, they were looking at the average suburban home and the emotionaland monetary values we put on them. They took apart a house, with the help of ateam of 40 people, and stacked all the material into the exhibition room. This house was the only house that theartists could afford and the artists were looking at the fact that theyrepresent a generation of Australian citizens who will no longer be able to owntheir own home. They are also looking at the amount of rubbish that is leftbehind when a person moves house.

Their site specific investigations of certain places are alsoinvestigations into the perception of the way things shift. Healy and Cordeiro’s “Flat Pack” installation in the “There is a Life After the TrailerPark” exhibition in Berlin showed 4 meticulous stacks, all being exactly thesame dimensions. The fragments forthese stacks had come from an abandoned trailer that a woman had lived in for40 years. The trailer had neverbeen moved in this time. There isa marked difference to Healy and Cordeiro’s lifestyle, constantly on the move,flying from country. In thisexhibition they are investigating an outmoded form of mobility, represented bythe trailer, and adjusting it to current forms of travel. Instead of the trailer being towed by avehicle it has been taken apart, packed up, and flown to a different site.

At the Contemporary Art Biennale, (Lyon,France), Healy and Cordeiro used a Lego block model of a certain region inChina, known as China’s “area 51”. This region was discovered by Google Earth in 2006 and appears to be anexact replica of the 157,500 km sq of the Chinese province Aksai Chin. Itborders in India and Pakistan and connects Tibet with a road that the Chinesebuilt in 1962. The artists are just considering this little mystery and bymaking a portable replica of the existing model they are bringing it to theattention of the world.

Healy and Cordeiro’s exhibition showing abizarre block of 105,774 VHS video cassettes arranged inside a church, mullsover the human condition of the meaning of life and death. The combined running time of thecassettes is enough to record the lifetime of the average person, being 66.1years. “Life Span” is the physical representation of what may flash before oneseyes in the moments before death. The installation takes over the small churchand substitutes film for religious doctrine as a vehicle for findingtranquillity and spiritual fulfilment. The stack of outdated media becomes a metaphor for society’smanufactured packaging of experience and emotion and for the ultimatetransience of life. Claire Healy has acknowledged that to send garbage half wayround the world for exhibition is ecological nonsense, but concludes that it iswhat the art world demands. –

And what the world demands also is toparticipate in the experience of art, whether that be going to blockbuster artexhibitions or being part of the flash mobbing phenomena, the mail artphenomena, or just teaming up with friends to create art outside of galleryspaces.

That artists who collaborate with eachother for shared inspiration, economy and the fun of working together on a sharedvision now exhibit in major art biennales is a testament to how well they worktogether and how art as a collaborative process is very much in demand.

NOTES

a Matthew Rose A Book About Death: The Project Rolls On -Some News

April 8, 2010 http://www.facebook.com/groups

1- Dagoberto Rodriguez in an interviewwith Rosa Lowinger The Object as Protagonist, published in Sculpture Magazine, Dec. 1999

2- Merewether, Charles. LosCarpinteros in Vitamin D: NewPerspectives in Drawing London, UK:Phaidon Press Limited, 2005

3- ReynosoPohlenz, Jorge. Los Carpinteros: Utopian model makers published in Afterall, Issue 9 Spring/Summer 2004

Joseph Nechvatal: Immersion Into Noise [171]

2011-09-23T09:23:00.002-04:00

Joseph Nechvatal, School of Visual Art professor and participant in A Book About Death (notably his video Viral Symphony shown at MUBE in São Paulo, Brazil) has just released a new book: Immersion Into Noise.

The artist and author has pre-released the book in an HTML version, which is offered here: Immersion Into Noise.

The book touches upon the enormous subject of "cultural noise" in all its manifestations – from the metaphorical to the actual. And yes, there's a bit of Jimi Hendrix in this book as well, plus a full on wrestling match with the whole idea of an "aesthetics of noise."

Nechvatal writes in his preface: "The notion of noise as creation itself is thus an important one that needs to be reconsidered and reevaluted."

NB: The series publisher Open Humanities Press in conjunction with the University of Michigan Library's Scholarly Publishing Office will release the print and downloadable e-book versions.

MINDFIELD : EDDY BERGMAN AT ABAD SEATTLE [170]

2011-09-19T19:33:00.001-04:00

Eddy Bergman's MINDFIELD, a video work for A Book About Death Seattle. View Eddy Bergman's YouTube Channel and see his video works.

MUR HAYMAN'S LITTLE COFFINS [169]

2011-09-10T20:21:00.000-04:00

E. Sherman Hayman thrilled us two years ago today at the opening of the A Book About Death exhibition in New York City with her delicately-made tiny coffins that quietly paid homage to the celebrated and famous (and cult ideas) in an off beat way that both tantalized and fascinated.

Wonderfully obsessive in their miniature detail and art world take on fashion, these magical little boxes took on life and culture as well as the taboo of death.

The artist (who goes by the name "Mur") will exhibit these works in Thanatos to Eros at the Lake Eustis Museum of Art in Eustis, Florida later this month. The exhibition runs from September 30 through October 30.

More information on the work (and more images) as well as the exhibition can be found here: Mur Hayman's Tribute Caskets and on Mur Hayman's web site.

Olivier Allais (1954-2011) [168]

2011-09-08T05:23:00.001-04:00

On September 1, 2011 we lost a very close and dear friend, Olivier Allais. I say "we" because there were hundreds of people at the services for Olivier yesterday (September 7) here in Paris and many more from around the world who were blessed with the presence of this gentle and beautiful man.

Olivier was like a big brother to me, but also to these many friends he had around the world from Australia to New York to China to Brazil. His was a spiritual quest and his project was the route he took and the people he collected along the way (including me). He knew both how to offer love and maybe more importantly, how to receive it. He was an articulate listener, a curious traveler and a friend with a seeming endless reservoir of love. While Olivier's ashes are interred at Pere Lachaise in Paris, his presence is literally spread across the planet.

A French man with an appetite for the world, Olivier spent several years in China and in early 2010 asked me about putting together an exhibition of A Book About Death in Beijing where he had many contacts with artists, curators and museum directors. A long SKYPE conversation with ABAD artist Alessandro Rolandi and Olivier from Beijing began the process of developing mirror sites for the main web pages of ABAD in China (the pages you are now reading are blocked in Beijing) and proposals for various museums and art centers in China. And while Olivier wasn't a contributing artist to the project, it intrigued him personally. We spent hours discussing the project in all its manifestations and possibilities.

However Olivier's health prevented him from moving forward as quickly as he wanted to for an exhibition. And his heart, simply, could no longer support his eagerness for this world.

On his FaceBook page in the "About Olivier" section he reminded us of what the journey was all about when he wrote: "Exploring the now."

It is hard to say we lost a great friend when we feel him with us, but we will miss his gentle touch and generous presence. With love, Olivier, we celebrate your life.

ABAD SEATTLE: POSTER BY ANGELA FERRARA [167]

2011-08-29T20:50:00.003-04:00

Poster by Angela Ferrara for A Book About Death Seattle. Yes, that's Amy Winehouse (14 September 1983 – 23 July 2011).

And yes, it's 11.11.11.

Download the ABAD SEATTLE POSTER HERE.

P.S. If you are on Twitter, please click the Twitter / Share button just below. Thank you.

MATTHEW ROSE FRANCE 24 INTERVIEW [166]

2011-08-24T16:54:00.002-04:00

Arts News: September 4, 2011 par tvnportal

France 24 Interview: Eve Jackson, Culture Editor of France 24, interviews Matthew Rose about his art and A Book About Death.
Click here to see the FRANCE 24 interview on their site. (Actual interview starts approximately 5 minutes into the piece).

JOE SAYLOR BRASS BAND AT ABAD 23 [165]

2011-08-24T15:40:00.000-04:00

Playing live: The Joe Saylor Brass Band: Music of the Jazz Funeral at The Ties That Bind, the A Book About Death exhibition at the Second Avenue Firehouse Gallery in Bayshore, New York. This performance took place during the August 13, 2011 artists' reception.

ABAD 23: THE TIES THAT BIND – THE MUSIC [164]

2011-08-23T19:12:00.003-04:00

Some images of the opening reception of The Ties That Bind, curated by LuAnn Palazzo, at the Second Avenue Firehouse Gallery in Bayshore, New York. Top image: AnnMarie Tornabene's Live Portrait performance.

Click here to see a number of the videos of the New Orleans Jazz Band playing some very hot tunes as the line marches to the gallery.

THE TIES THAT BIND : ANGELS [163]

2011-08-11T21:53:00.003-04:00

Many people have helped make the latest exhibition of the A Book About Death project happen, including these very fine folks who contributed towards the New Orleans Jazz Band fund (via Kickstarter):

ABAD ANGELS 2011 / List of Show Benefactors

Ann M. Bray, CA
Arthur and Mimi Leipzig, NY
Amy Bassin, NY
Betty Esperanza, Canada
Benoit David, Canada
Bernd Reichert, Belgium
Carrie Crow, NY
Cordula Kagemann, Germany
Ezra Huber, NY
Eva Brunner, Germany
Gary Hillier, Canada
Gregory Scheckler, MA
Jim Swanson, IL
Jane Wang, MA
Jamie Newton, OR
Jude Worters, Australia
Joe Carideo, NC
Joe Palazzo, NY
James and Shirley Hathaway. IL
Julie Sadler, NY
Kim Triedman, MA
Karen Rosnizeck, Germany
Liese A. Ricketts, IL
Louise Weinberg, NY
Lawrence Charles Miller, PA
Lorraine DarConte, AZ
Matthew Rose, France
Mara Thompson, CA
Mark Bloch, NY
Michael Chan, NJ
Milanka Bunard, Canada
Maya Van Jeier, NY
Michael Harford, IN
Nadine Bouler, NY
Nadine Witkin, NY
Patricia Sahertain, AZ
Patricia Kranenberg, NY
Richard Dailey, France
SEEKING KALI: Susan Shulman, Canada,
Ria Vanden Eynde, Belgium, and
William Evertson, CT
Susan Barbash, NY
Sonja Benskin Mesher, UK
Steven Ceraso, NY
Val MacEwan, NC
Vicki Ragan, NY
Willie Marlowe and Tom Speight, NY
William and Karen Evertson, CT

ABAD: THE TIES THAT BIND OPENS [162]

2011-08-10T08:49:00.005-04:00

LuAnn Palazzo has just installed and opened the ABAD exhibition: The Ties That Bind. The exhibition is located at The Second Avenue Firehouse Gallery in Bay Shore, New York on the East end of Long Island.

Steven McElroy of The New York Times reported on the exhibition and the total A Book About Death project. The opening for the exhibition, replete with a New Orleans Jazz Band, takes place on Saturday August 13, 2011, beginning at 6 PM.

Directions/info on the venue: The Second Avenue Firehouse Gallery is open Saturdays from 12-4 PM. Website for the gallery: http://www.secondavenuefirehouse.com/gallery.html

See more installation photos here: http://abad-23.blogspot.com/

ABAD SEATTLE LAUNCHES [161]

2011-08-06T07:39:00.001-04:00

ABAD Seattle will take place from November 10 to December 10, 2011 at the Quetzalcoatl Feathersnake Gallery. The exhibition is curated by Seattle artist Kathleen McHugh.

Details: Opening Nov 10 6-9 pm. Closing reception Dec 10, 6-9 pm.

See the art call: ABAD SEATTLE.

MAILING ADDRESS:
Almendra Sandoval
QUETZALCOATL GALLERY
3209 Beacon Ave S
Seattle, Washington 98144 USA

See the site, guidelines, work already submitted: http://abadseattle.blogspot.com/

ABAD IN THE NEW YORK TIMES [160]

2011-07-30T21:00:00.003-04:00

The New York Times' Steven McElroy wrote about A Book About Death: The Ties That Bind, curated by LuAnn Palazzo in the July 31, 2011 edition.

The featured image is by Joan Harrison, the artist who curated Ray Johnson & A Book About Death at CW Post.

The Ties That Bind opened and welcomes artists to a New Orleans Jazz concert on August 13, 2011.

You can click on the image to read only a part of the article. To read the complete article, click: Visual Meditations on Death.

y así de tantísimo amor nos queremos [159]

2011-07-29T14:28:00.005-04:00

y así de tantísimo amor nos queremos...

and like this, with lots of love, we love each other....

Bibiana Padilla Maltos and Devon Endl are the proud parents of a small wonderful person. Bibiana is one of the ABAD artists who participated in the first NYC exhibition and organized an exhibition in Mexicali.

Congratulations...

LACMA & ABAD [158]

2011-07-25T16:27:00.003-04:00

Letter from LACMA (Los Angeles County Museum of Art) confirming receipt of A Book About Death in their permanent collection.

Many thanks to Mara Thompson who organized the exhibition at The Otis College of Art and Design, and the gift to LACMA.

THE TIES THAT BIND : OPENING 31 JULY 2011 [157]

2011-07-25T12:23:00.006-04:00

A Book About Death: THE TIES THAT BIND

Curated by LuAnn Palazzo

Artists' Reception:

Saturday, 13 August 2011, 7pm–10pm

Exhibition: 31 July–2 September 2011

The Second Avenue Firehouse Gallery is open Saturdays from 12-4 PM.

GALLERY WEBSITE: http://www.secondavenuefirehouse.com/gallery.html

Directions: The Second Ave. Firehouse is located in Bay Shore at the corner of Mechanicsville & Second Avenue Southern Pkwy to exit 42S (Fifth Avenue South), left on Union Blvd.,right on Second Avenue, proceed to the corner of Mechanicsville & Second Avenue. Firehouse is on the left.

For more information, please see The Ties That Bind website:

http://abad-23.blogspot.com/

Susan Shulman On CUTV [156]

2011-07-19T07:34:00.001-04:00

Artist Susan Shulman on Montreal's CUTV talking about her work and the role A Book About Death played in her life and current projects.

See Susan Shulman's work here: http://www.susanshulman.com/

THE TIES THAT BIND : ABAD LONG ISLAND [155]

2011-06-26T13:59:00.002-04:00

THE TIES THAT BIND, the ABAD exhibition at The Firehouse Gallery in Bayshore, New York slated to open on July 31, 2011 and will receive works right up until July 15. Please note the deadline and all details on the site: THE TIES THAT BIND.

SEND ART TO: ABAD 23 / LuAnn Palazzo
The Second Avenue Firehouse Gallery
17 Second Avenue, Bay Shore, New York 11706 USA

Also of note: More than $1000 was raised via Kickstarter.org to hire the New Orleans Jazz Band, The Joe Saylor Brass Band to perform and lead a New Orleans Second Line Jazz at the Artists' Reception on August 13, 7 pm.

Says curator LuAnn Palazzo: "This will be the first show to expand the movement to include live musical performance at the August 13 reception with The Joe Saylor Brass Band. Now the ABAD vanguard can claim poets, visual artists, performance artists, multi-media artists and musical artists!"

The Joe Saylor Brass Band is comprised of some of the most exiting and talented young musicians on the Jazz scene today. The band members come from all parts of the world and their influences range from the beats of Africa to the horns New Orleans. (Photo: Joe Saylor in the center).

The band came together at Harlem parades led by Jonathan Batiste, piano virtuoso from New Orleans. Leader Joe Saylor has played with many Jazz greats including Jonathan Batiste, Wynton Marsalis, Ellis Marsalis, Roy Hargrove and Ben Wolfe. Joe recently appeared on an episode of HBO’s “Treme,” along with Jon Batiste.

The band will perform New Orleans Second Line (Funeral) Jazz selections including:

Whoopin' Blues...Just A Closer Walk With Thee...Bourbon Street Parade...When The Saints Go Marching In...The Second Line...Oh, Didn't He Ramble...What A Friend We Have In Jesus...In The Sweet Bye and Bye among others.

Curator of the CW Post exhibition Ray Johnson & A Book About Death, Joan Harrison, has created a second poster (top image) for the event that is free to download. Please see the site here (right hand side) and click to download.

Please send this post out on Twitter, and FB and anything else you have. Even call someone on the telephone and say "Hey! Check this out."

Ray & Bob Box [154]

2011-06-10T08:06:00.000-04:00

Robert Warner a long time correspondent and dear friend of Ray Johnson has opened the boxes of correspondence - and some others - in this unusual and thrilling exhibition at the Esopus Foundation space in New York.

The exhibition (June 2 – 30, 2011) entitled “RAY AND BOB BOX” includes a series of events. Their correspondence is explored in the Foundation magazine, Esopus 16.

Among the performances at the Esopus Space will be Robert Warner archiving the contents of 13 boxes given to him by Johnson in the early 1990s. Click here to see the events schedule.

Esopus is also a twice-yearly magazine that features content from all creative disciplines. The latest publication is devoted to the contents of these boxes, and is presented at their space, 64 West Third Street, New York, NY, Suite #210.

Esopus web site: http://www.esopusmag.com/gallery.php?Id=3776

OPENING : ABAD MOMENTO ARIZONA [153]

2011-06-06T18:46:00.001-04:00

Part of the opening of ABAD Moment in Phoenix included a military color guard presentation. Pictured here is veteran Bob Hicks playing taps at the gallery. See more photographs from the opening here.

Text by Patricia Sahertian, curator of the exhibition in Phoenix, Arizona:

Opening night at Willo North Gallery for the A Book About Death ~ Memento exhibit with special honors for John S. Turner. The Glendale American Legion Post #29 Honor Guard, under Bob Hicks was there to perform the memorial ceremony. Many thanks to George Cushing, retired U.S. Air Force Senior Master Sergeant, past commander of the Northwest Valley Veterans Association for organizing the service. Introductions and memorial prayers were said by Rev. R. Dale Copsey, Ret. Chaplain, Lt Col, USAF-Ret, a 2007 recipient of the Arizona Veterans Hall of Fame Society from Mesa, Arizona.

JEANNE JO'S ROULETTE [152]

2011-05-31T09:50:00.001-04:00

Jeanne Jo, ABAD artist who brought the 2009 opening live to the world through her live tv broadcast of the events, is a well known performance artist. Her piece, Roulette, is just one of a dozen videos she's produced and performed. See more of Jeanne Jo's work here: http://www.jeannejo.com/

The Ties That Bind [151]

2011-05-13T20:11:00.003-04:00

New poster for the Ties That Bind. If you like, you can Download the poster.

ABAD LONG ISLAND [150]

2011-05-13T19:50:00.004-04:00

ABAD ITALIA [149]

2011-04-10T20:39:00.000-04:00

ABAD Italia, Ommagio a Ray Johnson: Artists Books opened on 9 April 2011.

Thanks to Virginia Milici, curator of the exhibition. This is the front of the church in Treviso, Italy where the exhibition opened. See more photos on Virginia's FaceBook Album Page.

ABAD ITALIA OPENS [148]

2011-04-05T07:55:00.000-04:00

ABAD ITALIA: http://unlibrosullamorte.blogspot.com/

RAY JOHNSON VIDEOS [147]

2011-03-26T20:11:00.001-04:00

See videos of Ray Johnson by Nick Maravel: Ray Johnson Videos.

Elizabeth Taylor 1932-2011 [146]

2011-03-24T11:17:00.000-04:00

The intersection of art and life. Elizabeth Taylor (1932-2011), silkscreen by Andy Warhol.

ABAD The Ties That Bind : Open Call [145]

2011-03-14T10:11:00.000-04:00

LuAnn Palazzo has launched an open call for the 23rd installment of A Book About Death. The show is called The Ties That Bind. This exhibition, which calls for two 5.5 inch x 8.5 inch works on paper (not postcards), will take place in August 2011 at The Second Avenue Firehouse Gallery, 17 Second Avenue, Bay Shore, New York 11706. USA.

For all information please see the web site set up for the exhibition: http://abad-23.blogspot.com/

FluxFest Chicago [144]

2011-03-11T11:06:00.001-05:00

Cecil Touchon, Director, The Ontological Museum, directed this photograph of participants of FluxFest Chicago, held recently in Chicago's Museum of Contemporary Art. Many participants of this festival also participated in and hosted ABAD exhibitions. The Fluxfest was spearheaded by artist Keith Buchholz. Click the photo to enlarge full screen. (It's a fisheye!). PHOTO © 2011 CECIL TOUCHON.

Tom J. Byrne: ABAD ITALIA [143]

2011-02-14T13:29:00.000-05:00

Paris-based, Irish artist, Tom J. Byrne, created this copper-covered book for ABAD Italia, Ommagio A Ray Johnson.

ABAD Momento: Arizona [142]

2011-02-04T12:14:00.004-05:00

Curated by Phoenix-Arizona-based artist Patricia Sahertian, the ABAD Momento exhibition is set for May 2011 in Phoenix, Arizona at the Willo North Gallery.

Please see the site for all information on the exhibition, including deadlines, guidelines, venue and how you can get involved: http://abad-phx.blogspot.com/

Please use the buttons below to put the artist call on Twitter, your FaceBook page, or to blog and write about this new chapter in the ABAD project.

Call to Artists

Deadline for postcard and memento: April 25, 2011
Show dates: May 3 to 28, 2011
Reception: May 6, 2011

SEND ART TO
Patricia Sahertian
1517 W. Willetta Street
Phoenix, AZ 85007 USA

Please send jpgs (no larger than 600 x 400 px) of your work (for posting on the ABAD Momento blog), with your name and your website/blog or contact link to Patricia. Tell the story of your momento here.

Call for: one work on paper, post card size: approximately 6x4 inches (either vertical or horizontal)
any medium, original art or reproduction is acceptable theme: death

Optional twist: include a memento
Mementos play an important role in our remembering. A simple thing like a toothbrush, a letter, a toy, a paperclip, or a swatch of fabric, can be a fond reminder of a lost loved one. So please also send a tiny memento, if you like. See memento guidelines.

Momentos will be displayed with your work.

Neither Patricia nor the Willow Gallery WILL RETURNED YOUR WORK. ALL WORKS WILL BE KEPT IN THE PERMANENT COLLECTION.

Exhibition space
Willo North Gallery

Please use the buttons below to put the artist call on Twitter, your FaceBook page, or to blog and write about this new chapter in the ABAD project.

ABAD LIFE: SOUTH CAROLINA - REID WOOD. EXPO THRU FEB 25, 2011 [141]

2011-02-01T12:25:00.005-05:00

Reid Wood contribution to the ABAD Life exhibition taking place in Clinton, South Carolina, curated by Ann Stoddard.
http://abookaboutdeathlife.blogspot.com/

Les Joynes: New Paintings [140]

2011-01-29T05:56:00.000-05:00

Les Joynes, who contributed work to A Book About Death, shows his paintings in New York through March 7 at 532 Gallery Thomas Jaekel.

Joynes' heavenly bodies and floating archeo-cognitive elements work as fused artifacts of memory collected from imagined topographies. The ring paintings, like Spring (2011), left, are baroque and rococo gateways inspired by Alain Resnais’ 1961 film Last Year in Marienbad, says Les. “They are like structures that floated to the surface in my memory like life preservers floating in after a storm at sea.”

See Les Joynes contribution to the original NYC ABAD exhibition here.

Joynes is recipient of the Nordic Artist Center Fellowship in Norway; Kolleg Artist Fellow, Bauhaus Foundation Dessau Germany; Edwin Austin Abbey Mural Fellowship and was Japanese Ministry of Education and Culture (MEXT) Scholar Japan 1997-2001.

The artist is a graduate of the MA Fine Art Program at Goldsmiths College, London; and possesses a B.A. (Hons) Fine Art, Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design, London; M.A. Sculpture from Musashino Art University, Tokyo. He was Visiting Scholar at Columbia University, New York (2008-2010) where he has been researching contemporary art, memory and artifact. Les Joynes web site.

Dennis Oppenheim 1938 - 2011 [139]

2011-01-28T21:07:00.000-05:00

Dennis Oppenheim died at age 72 of liver cancer on January 22, 2011.

Jerry Saltz obituary and farewell.

Image: “Reading Position for Second Degree Burn,” 1970. Jones Beach, New York. Duration of exposure: 5 hours.

Seeking Kali Ray Johnson Flip Book for ABAD Italia [138]

2011-01-26T20:07:00.000-05:00

Kali Ray Flip Book from William Evertson on Vimeo.

A Book About Death: Life [137]

2011-01-25T01:18:00.001-05:00

Curated by Ann Stoddard, this exhibition takes place at the Elizabeth Stone Harper Gallery, located in the Harper Center for the Arts at Presbyterian College in Clinton, South Carolina. Exhibition dates: January 20 - February 25, 2011 URL: http://abookaboutdeathlife.blogspot.com/.

The archival set of the original ABAD exhibition is provided by Thérèse and Adam Zaid, of New York.

E. Sherman Hayman's Little Coffins [136]

2011-01-03T16:34:00.000-05:00

E. Sherman Hayman, one of the many artists in the ABAD project who focused on the objects of death in a somewhat humorous way, has produced a video about The Final Frontier. It's terrific as are her small art-centric coffins.

RAY JOHNSON & A BOOK ABOUT DEATH OPENING NIGHT VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS [135]

2010-12-16T20:08:00.000-05:00

Video by Barry Rivadue. Please repost, blog, tweet, using the buttons below. Thank you!

Joan Harrison: Tideline [134]

2010-12-10T09:43:00.000-05:00

Joan Harrison, who co-curated the Ray Johnson & A Book About Death exhibition at CW Post, exhibits her immense Tideline collage piece at the Hillwood Art Museum, on Long Island, until December 16, 2010.

The piece, writes Joan, is 26 feet long.

See Joan Harrison's web site: http://www.joanharrison.com/

Bouler & Millmann: Festivus [133]

2010-12-06T19:57:00.000-05:00

Hardcore ABAD artists, Nadine Bouler & Louise Millmann, celebrate Festivus in paint and collage.

RIPE ART GALLERY
67 A Broadway,
Greenlawn, New York
Opening: December 11, 2010
Through: January 8, 2011

Details on FaceBook

ABAD World Logo By LuAnn Palazzo [132]

2010-12-01T16:12:00.002-05:00

LuAnn Palazzo designed ABAD ornaments (pictured here) as well as ABAD tee shirts.

Please see: http://www.zazzle.com/designdivany/gifts

Rain & Other Stories: Danielle Voirin [131]

2010-11-27T08:21:00.001-05:00

Danielle Voirin's view is always unusual, interesting, and leaves you wanting to see a bit more. Sometimes this American photographer gives you an arm de plus, sometimes it's a minimalist view of a wall – and spider.

She took the series of Zen/Bathtub images of me some years ago on assignment to feature artists working in their studios. After 50 or so photos of me drawing, I said, "Dani, let me run the tub." One of those images is my profile shot here, another is used as the header on my blog.

Her photos, though, always tell a story. Seldom are they snapshots of the like we see endlessly on FaceBook.

And Dani told the story of the small calf destined to become a meal, Carole, for the global project, A Book About Death.

Here is her "Rain." Click on it to enlarge and see the reflections – the real subject of this photograph.

On her blog she plays the narrator and protagonist in an endless struggle against spiders, moths, and mice. Her self-portraits in black and white are funny and moving and beautifully made. She has documented the lives of artists at the Paris Squat at 59 Rue de Rivoli. And she's gone back and forth to South America for a number of portrait projects.

More work from the Paris-based photographer: http://www.daniellevoirin.com/blog/

And here is Dani's professional site: http://www.daniellevoirin.com/

Exhibitions On Tour International Database - Worldwide Listing For Exhibitions [130]

2010-11-16T10:22:00.002-05:00

A Book About Death is now listed in the :

Exhibitions on Tour International Database

Un Libro Sulla Morte : ABAD ITALIA Altered Book Artist Call [129]

2010-11-15T10:30:00.000-05:00

The Nuovo Archivio Fluxus Biblioteca Artist’s Book / Altered Book (Treviso, curated by Virginia Milici) presents an exhibition in homage to Ray Johnson with reference to the first ABAD exhibition by American artist Matthew Rose:

Un Libro Sulla Morte.

Virginia writes: "I took part in this show with great enthusiasm, collaborating on a mail-art piece with the artist Walter Festuccia. Since then, I have continued to participate in all of the subsequent projects linked to the initial exhibition. The show has traveled the world with new projects and new forms of participation. The various exhibitions have been documented in an archival blog touching upon all aspects of ABAD.

"I first heard about this project in 2009 while working through the death of my mother, who died of a melanoma in December 2007, which along with my passion for mail-art prompted my decision to participate. In May 2010 my father, who was suffering from Parkinson’s Disease, worsened by Alzheimer’s, died. I think of death as part of life, this for me is a much felt argument. After much contemplation I decided to continue and to bring this exhibition to Italy. I contacted Matthew to ask for his approval and support in developing this new version of his project. His response was positive and enthusiastic, I would like to publicly thank him for this and announce an invitation to all of the artists who took part in the first project as well as all subsequent ABAD exhibitions to participate in this new call:

"The exhibition will take place in the Centrale Libreria Costaneiro Galleria Piazza Giorgione, Castelfranco Veneto, (Treviso) Italy.

(The Organisers reserve the right to change the date and location of the exhibition)

Date: 22April 2011

Participate: Artist’s Book or Altered Book, e.g. small Moleskine book, or any other suitable "book." Your book can be several postcards bound together. Please add the title somewhere on your work: “Homage to Ray Johnson: A Book About Death” (In your own language).

No returns

Technique/Medium: Free

Deadline: 20 March 2011

Documentation: Web

Mail your "altered" book to:

Virginia Milici

Via G. Verdi 18/A

31038 Paese (Treviso) ITALY

Please send photos of works submitted in jpg format : maximum 1800 pixels / 300kb / 72dpi

e-mail: arte@virginiamilici.org

The exhibition will be re-shown in celebration of 50 years of Mail-Art 1962 – 2012 in homage to Ray Johnson, Father of Mail-Art (date and place to be confirmed).

Please use the buttons below to e mail, blog or send this artist call off to Twitter. Thank you!

Ray Johnson & A Book About Death [128]

2010-11-10T16:10:00.001-05:00

Ray Johnson/A Book About Death Opening from William Evertson on Vimeo.

James Meyer: After Kafka [127]

2010-11-08T05:41:00.000-05:00

James Meyer, a New York painter and contributor to the original ABAD exhibition, takes his newest works to Morgan Lehman Gallery in NYC in After Kafka.

From the gallery: "The strange, distant world of childhood memory is a consistent theme in the work of James Meyer. While never explicitly implied, the autobiographical nature of the artist's own childhood, in 1960's suburban America is the primary source of inspiration in his pictures. But while these images, culled from seemingly personal photographic sources are the choice of the artist, they appeal to the viewer as both instantly recognizable memories from their own shared histories.

"Using a variety of media such as paper, wood, and brushed aluminum, Meyer creates monochromatic sculptural paintings that utilize repetitive images of children in motion and at play. In the case of his wood and metal works, negative space is created directly by the white walls of the gallery. His imagery is often repeated serially in different scale, material and size elevating the subjects to an iconic status.

"The black silhouetted image of a young girl hula-hooping set against a grid background of candy-colored squares may not seem like a particularly ominous image, but in this work by Meyer, a palpable sense of dread is conveyed. As the viewer approaches the work, a topological “ball and stick” molecular model rendered in the negative is revealed. The cognitive association between the girl and the molecule range from the innocence of an elementary school science class to the horror of complete nuclear fallout. It is this juxtaposition of disparate, but psychologically linked images that is of primary concern in the artist’s work."

The exhibition opens on November 18 and runs through December 23, 2010. Click for info.

See the interview with James Meyer: A Sunny Mascacre Of Innocence.

Betty Esperanza's Gypsy Kali [126]

2010-11-07T20:04:00.000-05:00

ABAD GYPSY KALI - A Random Buskerfilm by Betty Esperanza © 2010 from Betty Esperanza on Vimeo.

A Book About Death GYPSY - KALI is an interpretive film depicting death, love lost, gypsy and Kali ceremonial rituals by multi-media artist Betty Esperanza.

This performance art film aired at the Night of the Living Fluxus opening for Ray Johnson & A Book About Death, at the SAL Gallery, C.W.Post Campus of Long Island University, NY on November 3, 2010.

Esperanza travelled from Montreal, Quebec to perform an "Ofrenda to the DEAD" ritual as well as exhibit her piece "Gypsies Never Die Or Lie" amongst artists from all over the world. Esperanza was also in the original ABAD Exhibit in Soho, NY in 2009 at The Emily Harvey Foundation.

See Betty Esperanza's web site for more: benudemedia.blogspot.com

Seeking Kali At RJ&ABAD At CW Post [125]

2010-11-06T20:52:00.004-04:00

"I've always been interested in the creation myths of different cultures," explains William Evertson, the inspiration behind Seeking Kali along with Susan Shulman and Ria Vanden Eynde.

"Especially the common thread that god or the gods make perfect worlds yet evil creeps in with the introduction of man (or woman) In Kali Yuga, although I conflate several characters; Kali works to create a perfect world but is beset by a demon intent on introducing mischief and evil."

Kali, writes Evertson, "...becomes a mere broker in the West of commodities and services. At times she has been a New Age movie distortion or a symbol of feminist rage. Many times this cross cultural borrowing seems far removed from the mystery and paradox present in an archetype that is mother and goddess, yet also a symbol of destruction. Perhaps more close to the truth is the statement, "The most common modern Hindu perspective of her is largely symbolic. She is revered for her no-nonsense way of eradicating negative thoughts and bad habits in the minds of her followers. In other words, she will lop off your inflated ego in no time flat if you ask her, and she offers no guarantees that the process will be painless."

Photo: Original ink drawing on acetate, used for the performance.

The Seeking Kali Theater piece on video is viewable here.

The shadow box theater piece debuted at Ray Johnson & A Book About Death at CW Post College's SAL Gallery on Long Island. This project grew out of creative relationships between artists involved in A Book About Death. The resulting project, Seeking Kali, has become a full blown exhibition/project unto itself. Contribute to Seeking Kali or see the works thus far submitted here.

Ray Johnson & A Book About Death Opening Night SAL Gallery CW Post [124]

2010-11-06T09:27:00.002-04:00

The opening night of Ray Johnson & A Book About Death at CW Post was a sensational coming together of more than 1000 artist works and crowds that came, saw and performed.

Curated by Joan Harrison, LuAnn Palazzo (photo, above), and Constance Sloggatt Wolf, the exhibition focused on Ray Johnson's original A Book About Death, and featured a dozen or so original photographs of Ray Johnson by Joan Harrison.

The NYC works, first exhibited at the Emily Harvey Foundation more than a year ago in September 2009, were shown along with almost 500 works mailed in from all over the world. New posters were produced, as well as a full slate of performances. (Photo below left; see full the program, here).

Artists dressed up, or in some cases, took off their clothes. A tableaux vivant of a mother and child (actually, a large adolescent) performed quietly within the exhibition space. Outside, artist Honey Millmann protested ("Nothing! I'm protesting nothing!" she said), and then switched to proposing something different with a sign that said "ABAD IDEA." A man showed up with a used coffin (for sale: "Only used once."), while most came dressed like the living dead, the exhibition opening just days after Halloween. "It's the Night Of The Living Fluxus," someone explained.

Other artists wore photocopies of Ray Johnson works, like Mark Bloch (below right), while William Evertson produced a 15 minute shadow theater piece entitled "Seeking Kali." (See the video of the performance here).

There are many more photos of the exhibition on the dedicated site for the show, as well as a full catalog of the exhibition works and several press articles. Click here to view.

Joan Harrison, Constance Sloggatt Wolf and LuAnn Palazzo, curators, offer this statement about the exhibition:

Ray Johnson was all about creative connection. Today, 15 years after his death, the bonds of his creative legacy and the bonds of friendship here at C. W. Post are still strong and defined by a sense of shared creative history and purpose. The evidence is plain to see through this exhibition.

Many of the artists taking part in this exhibition knew Ray Johnson personally or were correspondents of his, while others are alumni, faculty and students of the university. Even more are part of a creative global network who have been inspired by Ray’s work and moved by the universal theme to answer the call to communicate.

We would like to thank Matthew Rose, the father of the original ABAD Project in 2009, and all those at the C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University who helped make this exhibition possible. Our special thanks go to Dean Benjamin Moore of the School of Visual and Performing Arts, who, when approached with the idea said simply, “Do it!”

Most of all, we feel deeply grateful to our international roster of contributing artists for sharing their vision, their thoughts, their humor and their remembrances of loved ones lost. The outpouring of love and dedication to this project, and to this show in particular, has been quite literally overwhelming.

Art is a celebration of life lived to its fullest and to quote poet W. H Auden, “Art is our chief means of breaking bread with the dead.”

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Viv Maudlin Visits Ray Johnson And A Book About Death At CW Post [123]

2010-11-03T14:40:00.003-04:00

The spectacular Viv Maudlin gives a video tour of the Ray Johnson And A Book About Death exhibition at CW Post.

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One Year Later [122]

2010-11-02T07:20:00.000-04:00

Susan Shulman and Betty Esperanza celebrate the one year anniversary of A Book About Death.

Photo: Cecil Touchon, taken September 10, 2009, on the street outside the Emily Harvey Foundation Gallery, 537 Broadway, NYC.

Performances: Belknapp Mill ABAD [121]

2010-11-02T07:12:00.000-04:00

"A Book About Death @ Belknap Mill" hosted an Evening of Fluxus Performance as part of the reception for the exhibit.

A small but highly appreciative audience viewed close to 20 Fluxus performance events, participating in some.

Photos, above: Reed Altemus performs, Christine Tarantino's "Life in 90 Seconds." The group performs, "Danger Music #17" by Dick Higgins.

To see more photos from the opening performances, please check out the site: http://abookaboutdeathbelknapmill.blogspot.com/

Seeking Kali Debut At CW Post [120]

2010-11-02T06:35:00.001-04:00

The project Seeking Kali debuts at the Ray Johnson And A Book About Death exhibition at CW Post, November 3, 2010.

http://seekingkali.blogspot.com/

Seeking Kali is an artist call that is currently conceived of as an online exhibition of artist works based on the Hindu goddess Kali. The myth and archetype of Kali is rich and varied and also found its way to the West. ABAD artists William Evertson, Ria Vanden Eynde and Susan Shulman invite your interpretation.

Submission guidelines are available on the blog.

Kim Triedman's Poets For Haiti [119]

2010-11-01T11:04:00.000-04:00

Kim Triedman, an artist and writer who contributed to ABAD, edited the volumne "Poets for Haiti: An Anthology of Poetry and Art."

Published by Yileen Press, the book brings together 18 writers who responded to the earthquake in Haiti by coming together to raise relief funds for the people of Port au Prince and other affected areas.

Among the poets involved, Gail Mazur, Robert Pinsky and Rosanna Warren. (Photo, right: Author Kim Triedman).

All funds raised from the sale of this book go directly to that fund, Partners in Health. Order the book here: http://www.yileenpress.com.

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Ray Johnson & A Book About Death : Installation Preview [118]

2010-11-01T06:03:00.001-04:00

Some photos of the installation for the Ray Johnson And A Book About Death exhibition due to open November 3, 2010 at CW Post, Long Island, New York.

Top photo: Ray Johnson's 1963 piece, A Book About Death, the work that inspired the name of the project.

Middle photo: A small sample of the more than 500 original works mailed in to the RJ&ABAD exhibition.

Bottom photo: The view of the SAL Gallery, CW Post, Long Island University, taken Sunday October 31, 2010. The original posters from the ABAD exhibition in NYC, September 10, 2009 are in the window.

Ray Johnson & ABAD Newsday: Article [117]

2010-10-30T12:32:00.000-04:00

Click the article to enlarge and read.

Call Ray Johnson! [116]

2010-10-29T09:58:00.001-04:00

"Hey Ray! It's for you!"

As a special preview to the CW Post exhibition Ray Johnson & A Book About Death opening on November 3, 2010, Joan Harrison has set up a Ray Johnson phone-in line. Yes, call Ray Johnson!

In the United States, you simply dial the following number and follow the prompts to hear Ray talk about A Book About Death, Correspondence Art, Making a Rectangle, How to Become A New York Correspondence School Member and other wonderful things from the iconoclastic artist.

Call 1 516 299 9472.

When prompted, enter the stop number listed. The Stop Numbers are as follows:

63 Ray Johnson and A Book About Death
64 Cut 1 Correspondence art, Kings, Making A Rectangle
65 Cut 2 A Correspondence School event
66 Cut 3 The Charlotte Moorman Avant Garde Festival
67 Cut 4 How To Become A NYCS Member
68 Cut 5 Ray Johnson/Will Farrington Phone Messages.

As a footnote, I still have some of Ray's messages recorded from 1990-1992. One of my favorites is: "Hello Matthew, This is Andy Warhol calling from Heaven...."

Have any Ray Johnson phone messages? Let us know...

Photo of Ray Johnson and Richard Lippold, 1954, thanks to: Mondo.

CLICK THE BUTTONS BELOW TO SHARE ON FACEBOOK, TWITTER, YOUR BLOG. TNX.

ABAD Texas Fluxhibition Posters [115]

2010-10-29T06:17:00.000-04:00

Angela Ferrara's poster for ABAD Texas, curated by Cecil Touchon. See more posters, here.

Fluxhibition #4 and A Book About Death Article - Fort Worth Weekly [114]

2010-10-22T18:50:00.015-04:00

http://fwweekly.com/ Article Click Here
(Please write a comment while at the Fort Worth Weekly site.)

Fort Worth Community Arts Center

Hanging through the end of October at the Fort Worth Community Arts Center will be Fluxhibition #4: Fluxus Amusements, Diversions, Games, Tricks, and Puzzles, a collection of more than 120 Fluxus artworks from 23 countries and five continents. Fluxus is a movement from the latter half of the 20th century defined by multimedia artworks that
explore the gray area between camp and high art and that are diagrammatic, collagist, often text-heavy, and often satirical. Fluxus has roots in the work of such Modernist luminaries as Duchamp, Joseph Cornell, and John Cage and is perhaps more relevant today than ever: In an era of seemingly limitless information (visual, literary, and sonic), Fluxus art sharpens viewers’ bullshit detectors.

At the center of the international Fluxus movement today is the Ontological Museum, a virtual place founded and curated by Fort Worth’s Cecil Touchon, who came up with the idea after forming the International Post-Dogmatist Group as a student at the University of Texas-Arlington in 1987. “The International Post-Dogmatist Group intended to be totally inclusive of virtually everyone, and you have to exclude yourself from it to not be a member,” Touchon said with a laugh. “It’s not about creating a new power circle of insiders, and everyone else is out. It’s more like a sponge that absorbs everything that’s attracted to it.” Group members are also “20 minutes ahead of everybody else,” Touchon said, “which is the length of time it takes to explain post-dogmatism to anybody.”
The Ontological Museum has a wing, the Fluxmuseum, whose permanent collection is about 20,000 pieces strong –– except when they’re on exhibit, they reside in a Fort Worth storage unit.

Which brings up Touchon’s current project: achieving tax-exempt status. The hope is that by becoming a bona fide nonprofit, the Ontological Museum will be able to find a permanent home. “The museum is an experiment in global communication, cooperation, and coordination and the idea of capturing across the contemporary moment whatever’s going on within as far as our network can reach out,” Touchon said. “So in the future, if anybody ever goes back and looks over this collection, they’ll see this constantly expanding influx of new people into the thing, and I think that alone is extremely fascinating. But the whole thing is, you’ve got the internet, you’ve got global culture, you’ve got the idea of a museum and artists running it themselves as an alternative to the typical older-style wealthy collectors who go out and buy whatever they like, and later they make a museum out of it. This is more like a working anthropological idea, like gathering bugs or something like that. It’s not about the value of the individual works but about the artistic value of it, its cultural value, its value as a piece of intellectual property as opposed to its preciousness as a collectible object.”

The birth of internet culture gave rise to the Ontological Museum. “The internet created this wonderful playground for these ideas,” he said. “The internet was a tremendous leveling device, because no matter how big or powerful any museum is, you only look at it through a screen that’s the same size as everybody else’s web page. Because of that, if you make your web page look more or less like a museum web site, to anybody coming to it, it looks the equal to any other museum. I mean, how would anybody know just from looking online?”

Before founding the Ontological Museum, Touchon started an e-mail group for collage artists. It eventually became another wing in the museum, the International Museum of Collage Assembly and Construction. Collage artists began collaborating with one another via snail-mail and were encouraged to donate works to the museum. Touchon quickly amassed about 1,000 pieces.
Eventually, Touchon discovered Fluxus via the internet. “Wow, a lot of what these guys are doing, I’ve been doing since the 1970s,” he said. “I realized I was pretty much a Fluxus artist.” He started the Fluxmuseum about four years ago.

The first Fluxhibition, Party in a Box, didn’t go so well –– one of the collaborators refused to return the package that had been mailed to him (and still hasn’t, to Touchon’s great dismay). The second Fluxhibition, New and Improved Fluxus, was a statement group show and fared much better. “A lot of us have been working since the 1970s on Fluxus ideas, but we weren’t connected to those original guys,” Touchon said. “And so there’s been sort of this transition of the old first-generation Fluxus guys and now all of us, but we’re claiming to be that same group as opposed to all the artists who are working with those same ideas but are totally independent and don’t think about a group. Part of Fluxus is group activity. That’s a big element of it.” The membership in the core group is “very elastic,” Touchon said. “It might be 10, or it might be 50 to 100” artists.

For New and Improved Fluxus, “We were introducing ourselves as, ‘We are Fluxus guys, and that’s just the way it is, and if you don’t like it, tough,’ ” Touchon said with a laugh. (Photo: Right).

The third Fluxhibition, Thinking Inside the Box, was also a success. Consisting of boxes and drawing from both the Fluxmuseum and collagist wing, the group show featured a piece by Yoko Ono and was “really well received,” Touchon said, noting that it also got a “thumbs up” from Picasso Gaglione, an early Fluxus artist who happened to be in town and caught the show, at UTA.

One of the few times that contemporary Fluxus members have met in person was in New York City a couple of years ago. The occasion was the opening for A Book About Death, a massive collection of postcards inspired by the work of early mail-artist Ray Johnson. The celebration was capped by a couple of Fluxus performances, including Requiem for Rubberbands, in which a cantor sang the first few lines of Mozart’s Requiem (inserting “Fluxus” in certain parts) while Touchon and the audience played rubberbands strapped to their fingers like mini-guitars. “At the end we shot them up into the air, and rubberbands were raining down on everyone,” Touchon recalled.

(A Book About Death Installation View at the Fort Worth Community Arts Center)

Touchon has concepts for shows scheduled through 2016 and is confident that he could rotate Fluxus exhibitions every month for years “and that’s even if no one sends me any more art.”
Notable Fluxmuseum pieces include “Soul Fart,” a red-and-white-striped handheld object that is placed to the butt (and then preferably photographed) and also “The Key to the Lock is the Box,” a small box made out of keys, including the key that unlocks the box.

Upcoming Fluxhibitions include the Fluxcase Micro-Museum and Fluxface in Space, a part of Face in Space, a NASA program in which fans can upload photos of themselves to be launched into space as part of the two remaining space shuttle missions. Fluxus artists will be taking photos of themselves and their art. A group exhibition will follow, everything leading up to the Jubilee Jamboree, the Fluxmuseum’s celebration of Fluxus’ 50th anniversary.

Touchon, who is represented locally by William Campbell Contemporary Art, could focus only on his own work, but he is driven by a curatorial spirit. “I’m in galleries all over the country,” he said. “I make a living [via my artwork], which is actually kind of hard to do in the art industry, and I do pretty well. So for me, you can promote yourself, but how far does that go? You can promote your career only so much. I want to include a whole lot of other people in my process and my experiments in life.”

International Fluxhibition #4 and A Book About Death: Both thru Oct 30 at Fort Worth Community Arts Center, 1300 Gendy St, FW. Free. 817-738-1938.

Fluxmuseum ABAD Opens in Texas [113]

2010-10-08T18:30:00.000-04:00

The Fluxmuseum opened up in Texas today with a massive exhibition devoted to games and gew gaws as well as the A Book About Death archive set and new works. A truly amazing exhibition, spearheaded by Flux Meister Cecil Touchon.

Take a moment to check out the initial installation shots and since Cecil paid for this out of his own pocket, please consider tossing $10 or more towards defraying his costs. You will see the PayPal button on the link page (to the right).

Photo: Fluxhibition #4 - Table with catalogs for sale and a Book About Death installation in the background.

Caterina Verde: The Lucretian [112]

2010-10-05T06:30:00.000-04:00

Caterina Verde, the artist who designed the ABAD Wall featuring all works in the original exhibition, opens her exhibition The Lucretian at White Wash Studio in Amagansett, New York, October 9, 2010.

The exhibition will include drawings, watercolors, texts, photos and video.

The Lucretian is the embodiment of the Epicurian poet's master poem - "De Rarem Natura" or, "On The Nature of Things". The Lucretian holds in his gaze the thoughts he expounds in his poetry: that nothing comes from nothing; that the natural world is made up of atoms and void and no more or less. He holds an abhorrence of superstitions and cruelty justified by religion, yet he is devotional in his adoration of Venus.

The Lucretian is the minuteae of movement that allows us to place our thoughts and projections on him and this is determined by the meaning based on our understanding. For more information see the gallery here: http://whitewashstudio.net/

Matthew Rose Is Scared But Fresh At The Orange Dot Gallery London [111]

2010-10-03T18:58:00.000-04:00

SCARED BUT FRESH: An Exhibition of Collages and Terribly Unusual Objects from Matthew Rose opens at The Orange Dot Gallery, in London Tuesday October 5, 2010. The exhibition runs from October 6 through 31 2010.

OPENING : TUESDAY 5TH OCTOBER / 6PM– 9PM, PLEASE RSVP (ESSENTIAL): danielle@theorangedot.co.uk

THE ORANGE DOT & SCARED BUT FRESH will also participate in the BLOOMSBURY FESTIVAL. DATES: Saturday, 23 October, all day; Sunday, 24 October, all day.

Along with the works on display and the exclusive prints, signed exhibition posters and copies of Masters: Collage will be available to purchase. Plus, as mentioned, there will be terribly unusual objects. "Some are made of wax," says Matthew Rose. "Some are made of wood and have batteries."

Keep Calm Gallery will also debut a new print, Anglais, a signed and dated unlimited edition in conjunction with the exhibition.

The Orange Dot Gallery
54 Tavistock Place Bloomsbury
London, WC1H

For a preview of works and details on the exclusive prints created for the exhibition, please visit the gallery website: http://www.orangedotgallery.co.uk

IMAGE: ABOVE, POSTER OF L'ORANGERIE. LEFT: FRESH, COLLAGE ON BOARD, 2007. RIGHT: JOSEPH CORNELL, COLLAGE ON BOTTLE, 2007.

DOWNLOAD & PRINT THE POSTER FREE (15MB, PDF).

Ginny Lloyd : ABAD at The Jaffe Center For Book Arts at FAU [110]

2010-09-27T17:26:00.000-04:00

Artist Ginny Lloyd recently exhibited A Book About Deat at Florida Atlantic University's Jaffe Center for Book Arts. She writes:

"When the A Book About Death project and exhibition was announced I knew this was something special that I wanted to be a part of, as an artist participant in all ways. I made immediate plans to attend the opening at the Emily Harvey Gallery in NYC and worked on my submission while I was on vacation. It wasn’t easy, coming up with a concept and executing it remotely, but I made the deadline. [Photo, above, from left to right: Keith Buchholz, Reed Altemus, Bibiana Maltos, Reid Wood, Ginny Lloyd].

"Attending the opening, seeing other artists I had not been in touch with for years and gathering my copy of the original show was an experience. By the time I had stooped over boxes and boxes, increasing the load in my bag as I collected “pages” of the book, I felt I was in an interactive theater experiencing death by book. I joked with a few other artists that Matthew had wanted us to be the unwitting participants of this death theater by placing the boxes in rows on the floor in a hot room.

"Carrying the book back to my hotel room and subsequently organizing it for the flight home I felt I had obtained a treasure. Little did I realize at the time how this project would grow and circulate the world with many variations on the original exhibit.

"This summer when my 80s archive was collected by the curator at the Florida Atlantic University’s Jaffe Center for Book Arts for an impending display of my work and archives titled Carbon Alternative, I showed him my copy of A Book About Death. John immediately loved the concept and wanted to dedicate a case just for the book. The photographs you see document this display.

"Appearing one afternoon during the Carbon Alternative exhibition was the Inter-Florida Fluxus Tour including Keith Buchholz, Bibiana Maltos, Reed Altemus, Reid Wood (and me). All of us were in the original exhibit and also attended the Emily Harvey Gallery opening a year ago. The book brought us to together in NYC and again in Florida. So the cycle continues."

If you would like more information about the Carbon Alternative exhibit, 80s art, or the tour check out the following: Carbon Alternative show July 15th to October 18th at
Inter-Florida Fluxus Tour.

Information about 80s activities and art at: http://ginnylloyd.blogspot.com. Image above: Ginny Lloyd's piece for A Book About Death (NYC September 2009).

Ivana Režek's 11 Visions in Paris [109]

2010-09-27T07:59:00.001-04:00

A group show of 11 contemporary lady artists on the subject of women and the aspects of femininity Ivana Režek, curator of the ABAD exhibitions in Zagreb and with co-curator with Natasa Stanisic for ABAD Sarajevo, has come to Paris with 11 Visions, a group show featuring 11 women artists from Eastern Europe.

The exhibition opened September 24 at Galerie Art'est, 96 Rue Quincampoix, Paris, France, 75003

Getting 11 women to detail their intimate and personal stories in paint, collage and photograph is quite a feat, not to mention getting them all to Paris. The exhibition, conceived by Ivana, previously traveled to Berlin.

The group show covers two small rooms but details quite effectively the world of women: secrets, memories, hidden personalities, childhood fantasies, sometimes stepping into the realms of dreams, fantasy and fairytales, magic, witchcraft, and an identification with archetypal characters like deities, witches, and angels.

Artists: Tajči Čekada, Krešimira Gojanović, Anja Maleć, Marina Paulenka, Ivana Režek, Nataša Stanišić, Vesna Šantak, Diana Šimek, Bruna Tomšić, Martina Vrbanić, and Gabrijela Rukelj.

Galerie Art'est, 96 rue Quincampoix, 75003 Paris
mail: contact@artest.fr Tel: 01.71.19.59.14.23 Exhibition from September 24 - October 2 2010

Billie Maciunas: The Eve of Fluxus [108]

2010-09-12T20:18:00.002-04:00

Billie Maciunas has graciously contributed a copy of her new book, "The Eve of Fluxus," to the Ray Johnson and A Book About death Permanent Archive. The book is a memoir of Billie's meeting and marrying George Maciunas, founder of the 20th century art group Fluxus. This group influenced Ray Johnson and many of the contributing A Book About Death artists.

Writes author Billie Maciunas: "The Eve of Fluxus: A Fluxmemoir is published by Arbiter Press, an independent press in Orlando, Florida. The book is 131 pages, measures 6-inches x 8-1/4 inches, and includes photos by Hollis Melton of The Flux Wedding and the Black and White Piece that George and I performed for the Flux Cabaret on February 25, 1978.

"Photos include images of Louise Bourgeois, Jackson Mac Low, Alison Knowles, Geoffrey Hendricks, Nam June Paik, and Larry Miller (as maid of honor).

"Art historian Kristine Stiles wrote the Preface; Fluxus artist Geoffrey Hendricks contributed the Introduction, and Fluxus artist Larry Miller wrote the Afterword.

"The book cover and all photos are black and white as an homage to George’s graphic style and the fact that he was color blind. It is primarily a love story as told by an itinerant poet who was profoundly changed by association with and marriage to George. In writing the book I tried to associate George’s personal attributes with those he possessed as an artist. The subtitle, a Fluxmemoir refers to the style of the book, which crosses scholarly, fictional, poetic, and nonfictional genres."

The book has three covers, “Bubble,” (pictured), “Silo,” and “Bullet,” designed by D. S. H. Watson, Orlando, Fl. You can order the one you like. See: On The Eve of Fluxus site for all information.

Joseph Nechvatal In Paris: Art Retinal Revisité [107]

2010-09-12T08:12:00.001-04:00

American artist in Paris, Joseph Nechvatal, opened his exhibition Art Retinal Revisité at Galerie Jean-Luc + Takado Richard, on September 4. Nechvatal, who contributed his film Viral Symphony to the ABAD exhibition at MUBE in Brazil, explores the deterioration of the retinal image through digital works focusing on various human apertures.

The exhibition features some 25 digital works from his ground-breaking digital painting works.

On Sunday, September 26, the artist invites the Parisian public to attend a performance of his Viral Symphony at the gallery. Click on image above to see the information for the performance.

Visit Joseph Nechvatal's website.

Fluxhibition #4, ABAD Texas & More [106]

2010-09-01T20:25:00.003-04:00

Fluxhibition 4, ABAD Texas, the work of Lenny Quarles and Nernia opening October 8. Through October 30.

More info here: http://fluxmuseum.org/index.html

Image: Mark Bloch performing at ABAD New York, September, 2009.

Fran Bull: In Flanders Field [105]

2010-09-01T17:14:00.003-04:00

Fran Bull one of the formidable and well known artists to have contributed to the ABAD project, opened her full-on installation, In Flanders Field at The Woman Made Gallery in Vermont in January, 2010.

Gallery Assistant, Ruby Thorkelson, just published a piece about the exhibition as well as the fascinating job of installing this massive exhibition. See Ruby Thorkelson's article, click here (and many many photos).

An interview/review of the exhibition also recently surfaced on Vermont Artzine that we'd like to share as well. (It's in two parts). See the Fran Bull interview on Vermont Artzine.

"In Flanders Fields is an epic and elegiac hymn composed of subtle yet powerful notes reminding us of the constant interplay between life and death, not only on the world stage, but in our own day to day lives." – excerpt from B. Amore review for Art New England Magazine .

"I feel like I am part of it. I can feel the mourn of all the souls that could have died in all the battles that the world has had. It gives many people a vision of sadness and the bad things that hatred can bring upon people." – From the Guestbook at the exhibition.

Image: In Flanders Fields In Situ. Photo: Michael Heeney

Marie Kazalia On Kickstarter [104]

2010-08-29T08:14:00.001-04:00

Marie Kazalia, a painter involved with the ABAD project, has just launched a project on Kickstarter to help her complete a series of new paintings. Take a look, support her project; minimum support begins at $1. She looks to raise $3000 for this series.

FLUXMUSEUM ABAD TEXAS ART CALL [103]

2010-08-27T14:56:00.005-04:00

A Book About Death and Day of the Dead Call for Works Deadline for all works: October 1, 2010.

Send Works Of All Kinds To: FLUXMUSEUM/ABAD 2010
6955 PINON STREET
FORT WORTH, TEXAS 76116 USA

A BOOK ABOUT DEATH was an fantastic exhibition and performance that started in New York City at the Emily Harvey Foundation in September of 2009. Since then it has been traveling around the world and will be exhibited in Fort Worth, Texas this October.

The Fluxmuseum has a complete set of the ‘pages’ of this book. Cecil Touchon and Company will be mounting the A BOOK ABOUT DEATH exhibition at the Fort Worth Community Art Center during the month of October (Oct. 8-30) We will be arranging an evening of performance as well toward the end of the exhibition. Hopefully on Halloween Eve (October 30, 2010)

In addition to the installation of A Book About Death we would like to invite artists to contribute works around the traditions of Day of the Dead and Halloween. We will set up an ofrenda on the floor below the installed book.

Research the Day of the Dead, ofrenda, Halloween, death masks, etc. and create works of art that celebrate or refer to this special time of the year. Works can be mementos, antique photos, objects, masks, collages, assemblages, etc.

Please send original works only. All works will be displayed, no jury, no fee, no returns. Contributed works will become a part of the Ontological Museum permanent collection. Please include a deed of gift form. To get the deed of gift form go to: http://ontologicalmuseum.org/exhibitions.html scroll to the bottom of the page to see link.

Take a photo of your contribution and send to info@ontologicalmuseum.org for the blog we will set up for this exhibit. Images should be around 800 pixels on long side.

Email Subject line should say: ABAD 2010

In the email include details about the work, yourself and a link you would like to have visitors go to from the blog. Image above:Dilar Pereira, Lisbon, Portugal.

Incoming works will be posted here: http://abookaboutdeath-fluxmuseum.blogspot.com/

The Art Cure: Call For Works [102]

2010-08-25T07:12:00.000-04:00

Tatiana von Tauber, an ABAD artist has written about a new project she's launched, The Art Cure, a silent auction art call for Breast Cancer awareness.

The Art Cure is a breast cancer awareness art project which invited breast cancer patients and survivors to spend a day this August painting with me, international artist Tatiana von Tauber while I document their experience for a book, “The Art Cure Diaries.” The artwork produced during this session will be up for a month long silent auction during October 2010.

The call for participants elicited very warm responses from a number of non-local artists who had never had breast cancer, but who wished to donate art to project. After discussion, The Art Cure’s Advisory Board and I decided to invite the international community of artists as well as non-local breast cancer survivors/patients to donate one work of art to The Art Cure. All proceeds from the silent auction will be divided between Young Survival Coalition Savannah Affiliate and Susan G. Komen for the Cure® Coastal Georgia Affiliate with 50% going to each organization.

The Art Cure blog (http://theartcure.blogspot.com/) will showcase all artwork available for bidding while the originals are exhibited October 1-29, 2010 at Horizon Gallery, 206 E. Bay Street, Savannah, GA, 31401, 912-324-3232.

The Art Cure opening gala is October 1, 2010 from 5:00-9:00pm. The public opening will be Sunday, October 3rd from 3-6pm. The Art Cure closing is October 29th from 5-9 pm where winners and final proceeds will be announced.

For official details of The Art Cure International Artists Call visit http://theartcure.blogspot.com/2010/08/art-cures-international-artists-call.html. Contact Tatiana at theartcure@gmail.com with questions, press requests and other inquiries.

Seeking Kali – An Artist Call [101]

2010-08-19T06:46:00.000-04:00

Seeking Kali is an artist call centered on myth, archetype and the manifestations of the Hindu goddess Kali. Full of paradox, Kali is mother and goddess and yet horrific as a symbol of dissolution and destruction. She devours time and slashes ego.

Curated by Ria Vanden Eynde, William Evertson and Susan Shulman, the three began collaboration shortly after meeting in connection with A Book About Death.

Evertson writes: "While producing a portfolio of images of Kali, in wonderful synchronicity, several other artists began to share their images. Because of the inspired responses to achieving a western understanding of Kali, we are first initiating an artist call in which we invite you to freely interpret your vision of Kali to be shared online on the Seeking Kali blog."

(Image above by Joan Harrison). Submission details are available at http://seekingkali.blogspot.com/

Future plans at Seeking Kali include a print portfolio of Kali images. If you would like to remain informed about future Seeking Kali developments please visit the blog for updates.

Direct link to the artist call is here.

Ray Johnson & A Book About Death : Angela Ferrara Poster [100]

2010-08-18T07:17:00.001-04:00

Angela Ferrara produced this beautiful poster for the Ray Johnson And A Book About Death exhibition at CW Post, Long Island University. Works are now being accepted. Please see: RJAABAD.

Download the poster free here: Angela Ferrara Poster.

Please use the buttons below to blog about this exhibition and artist call.

Cathie Borrie On World Alzheimer's Day At MoMA New York [99]

2010-08-08T16:12:00.000-04:00

Cathie Borrie, a contributor (and great helper) for the ABAD exhibition in New York will participate at MoMA's World Alzheimer's Day.

While the program set for September 21, 2010 is free, seating is limited. So sign up now.

See Cathie's website: http://www.cathieborrie.com/

ABAD OMAHA OPENING PHOTOS [98]

2010-08-05T11:48:00.001-04:00

Curators Louise Millmann & Rob Gilmer (owner of RNG Gallery) pose in their wedding best for the opening moments of A Book About Death Omaha at the RNG Gallery on Leavenworth Street in Omaha, Nebraska. The exhibition was supported by neighbor and famed Omaha restaurant, Dixie Quicks.

The opening was seen from around the world via two live feeds. "What a show! What great fun! Who knew death could be so colorful, so exciting...oh, and the food!" said Millmann, who created the special wedding dress for the opening.

See many more photos from the opening and a full catalog of works submitted and posters presented: Click ABAD OMAHA.

ABAD OMAHA LIVE WEB STREAM [97]

2010-07-30T08:27:00.002-04:00

Tune in to watch the opening of A Book About Death Omaha live webstream: http://www.livestream.com/abadomaha

The live stream begins on Saturday, July 31, 2010 at 7 PM local, Omaha Time. That would be CDT. One hour behind New York, seven hours behind Paris and if you're in Japan or Australia probably just as you're having breakfast.

Ray Johnson : From BMC To NYC [96]

2010-07-26T20:10:00.000-04:00

A very large and impressive exhibition of Ray Johnson's work from 1943 to 1967 recently closed at The Black Mountain College in Asheville, North Carolina. Curated by Sebastian Matthews, the exhibition generated a tremendous amount of interest thanks not only to Matthew's Ray Johnson Show blog about putting the show together, but also by John Dancy-Jones' blog, Raleigh Rambles which covered a good part of the activity.

Frances Beatty, director a Richard Feigen Gallery in New York, and one of the key guardians of The Ray Johnson Estate, gave a talk in May 2010 on the adventure of actually putting up an exhibition with Ray Johnson. A 48-page catalog was also produced, and is available from Black Mountain College.

From the Black Mountain College site on the exhibition: The Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center (BMCM+AC) will present the exhibition From BMC to NYC: The Tutelary Years of Ray Johnson (1943-1967) beginning February 19th, 2010, and running through June 12th. In addition, we will host related programs, including a guest lecture, a film screening of the popular documentary How to Draw a Bunny, a collage workshop by Washington DC collagist Krista Franklin and an opening-night performance by Graham Hackett and Poetix Lounge. An exhibition catalogue will be available for purchase.

A seminal Pop Art figure, Ray Johnson has been called the most significant "unknown artist" of the post-war period, a "collagist extraordinaire" who influenced Pop artists such as Andy Warhol and Keith Haring, as well as a generation of contemporary artists. Since his death, however, Johnson has emerged not only as a key member of the 1960's generation, but as one of the major artistic innovators of the second-half of the 20th century.

Black Mountain College—in particular, Johnson’s first teacher, Josef Albers—was a critical factor in Johnson’s development as an artist. Indeed, Johnson’s time at the college can be viewed in retrospect as a platform from which he dove into Manhattan and its vibrant art world. Our exhibition will explore the ways that many of Johnson’s early tutelary influences, both the people and the places, helped create his unique vision. Throughout his career, Johnson always found ways to engage those around him—mentors, friends and strangers alike—in a correspondence “dance” of collage, letter writing and interactive performance art. Following in Marcel Duchamp’s footsteps, Johnson, as one art critic put it, “introduced life into art.”

Through a carefully selected group of paintings, collages and early correspondence, From BMC to NYC: The Tutelary Years of Ray Johnson will explore the early transitions in Johnson’s career—in particular his graduation from high school in Detroit to his three years of serious study at Black Mountain College to his immersion in the Manhattan art scene of the 1950s and 1960s. From BMC to NYC, curated by writer and collage artist Sebastian Matthews, will trace a circle around roughly two decades of Johnson’s early art, creating a spotlight on his explosion from talented painter and master collagist to, by the 1960s, Grand Dean of Dada & Postal Art. The exhibition will provide an interactive, playful presentation of Johnson’s “tutelary” work, highlighting the people and places that influenced Johnson’s creations in order to give the viewer a roadmap of Johnson’s creative process.
The Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center is an exhibition space and resource center in downtown Asheville dedicated to exploring the history and legacy of the world's most acclaimed experimental educational community, Black Mountain College. Over the course of its 24 year history, Black Mountain College attracted and created maverick spirits, some of whom went on to become well-known and extremely influential individuals in the latter half of the 20th century. Even now, decades after its closing in 1957, the powerful influence of BMC continues to reverberate.

Photo: Windows of BMC by Charter Weeks.
Ray Johnson letter to Arthur Secunda, bottom right.
Photo: Interior exhibiton Sebastian Matthew's blog.

Signs of Our Times [95]

2010-07-22T05:50:00.000-04:00

Signs of Our Times, a project launched by Jane Hsiaoching Wang and Mobius.org is looking for digital entries. Please visit the site for all information about the exhibition, and contribute your works.

Poster for the project by Angela Ferrara.

Strange Positioning Systems: Caterina Verde Project On Kickstarter

2010-07-09T19:06:00.001-04:00

Artist Caterina Verde launches her global, live streaming performance project, Strange Positioning Systems. SPS is a play on GPS, and the essential concept is live high definition video streams from all over the world that express the global village aspects of our brave new world as seen – and performed – by artists in the project. Caterina Verde is the creator of the Wall for A Book About Death.

For the project to get underway, a Kickstarter page was created. This enables Caterina Verde to achieve her goals and produce high quality streaming video. She is seeking $8500 to produce the project. Each artist participant in the SPS project offers a view of their work and a bit about the their own SPS concept from their place on the planet – Norway, New York, Paris, Vienna, etc. (See my page here). Contributions of varying amounts are rewarded with artworks. For example, a $75 contribution to the SPS project will reward the donor with my hand-stenciled signed print of DUMB BUNNY. See all the rewards here: SPS ART WORKS.

Caterina Verde explains: "Strange Positioning Systems (SPS) is a global real-time live streaming performance project. SPS is projecting performances from one space to another---on the street, in a space, on the mountain, etc.

"A play on GPS tracking technology, Strange Positioning Systems (SPS) looks at the aesthetic, cultural and psychological peculiarities of positioning the self and collective enterprises in a fluid, electronically - dislocated environment.

"We are looking for funding for high end live streaming capabilities as well as for furthering a global network for artists doing live action work and helping artists and curators financially realize the work by creating an action fund. We also want to further develop our website so that it is a live portal for the works for the events.

"Given that this time in history seems to be seminal in terms of the horribly strange positioning systems such as the oil in the gulf, the planetary uncertainties both geo-physical and geo-political, we feel that our global community project is even more imperative.

"SPS, Strange Positioning Systems is evolving as a “strange system” or temporary environment with feeds from various places in the world and led by a different artist(s) or presenter(s). One space overlaps another creating a ternary--triple-based architecture. Plunging into the mix a cross breed of formats, moments and actions inform and reflect the actual strange positioning systems that we must all bear in our culture(s).

"Our first presenter in the U.S for live streaming is the Outpost in Queens, NY. The Outpost has received a small grant from the Annenberg Foundation for our first presentation but we need additional funding for high end streaming capabilities. We are collaborating with artists and organizations from around the world (Norway, France, Iran, Austria, multiple locations in the U.S. and more) and are looking to expand our network into more remote areas."

Currently the artist line up includes: ALEXANDER VISCIO; PASHA RADETZKI; ANDREA WOLLENSAK; HOPE SANDROW; MATTHEW ROSE; ELISE MARTENS; EBON FISHER; ZOHREH ESKANDARI.

Please consider contributing to this fascinating project, and if you can, place the Kickstarter widget for SPS on your blog or other web pages.

See: http://www.strangepositioningsystems.org

Fluxface in Space [93]

2010-07-09T04:29:00.000-04:00

A Book About Death has helped in many ways to bring artists together, and the result has been a number of group projects that span the globe, tapping the enormous number of creative talents for ever new exhibitions. The most recent is Fluxface in Space, organized by artists Gary A. Bibb and Cecil Touchon.

The essentials: Create a work of art about space exploration, photograph yourself with it and upload it to the NASA web site (yes, the government web site), and then submit it to the Fluxface in Space project for exhibition. (Image, top: Angela Ferrara's poster for the event/exhibition).

Bibb and Touchon write on the Facebook Group Event Page for the project: "Gary A. Bibb in collaboration with Cecil Touchon have conceived an exciting new exhibition project for the Fluxmuseum. Using the Face In Space Program from NASA - we are organizing a 'Fluxface in Space' exhibition to be launched into orbit on the last two Space Shuttles!

"Artists are to create one original postcard sized work of art in any media (preferably collage/ photo-montage) with the themes of Space Exploration & the Arts, the Shuttle Program, Outerspace, Rockets, Astronauts, Astronomy etc . This will be a commemorative project around the fact that the Space Shuttle program is coming to an end after these last two flights."

See the Fluxface in Space Website.

LuAnn Palazzo Poster & Joan Harrison Invitation: Ray Johnson And A Book About Death At CW Post [92]

2010-07-04T06:47:00.002-04:00

The series of exhibitions for A Book About Death has generated nearly two dozen posters, some plucked from the original postcard pieces to the New York City exhibition, and others created by talented artists specifically for subsequent shows.

The artists who have designed posters for the show include: Angela Ferrara, Louise Millmann, Robert Gilmer, April Gornick, Julia Hoffmann, Robert Mars, Cecil Touchon, Caterina Verde, Mark Bloch, Joan Harrison, Ben Elmer, Bibiana Maltos, David Rager, Matthew Rose, Rob White, Osiris Hertz, Keith Buchholz, Jean-Pierre Machain and Nadine Bouler.

Each poster is offered free as a downloadable PDF to any and all, and they serve as vivid and historical markers in the global rolling out of the project.

Co-curator of the CW Post exhibition of Ray Johnson and A Book About Death, LuAnn Palazzo created the first poster for this fall exhibition.

The artist call for CW Post, well underway, is the first that directly involves Ray Johnson's name and refers to his elegant and simple "book" A Book About Death. Here, a generous handful of Xerox copies made from drawings and texts, were sent through the mails in loose format. Those pieces will be on view at The SAL Gallery, C. W. Post College, Brookville, New York. October 31 - November 5, 2010.

Launched by Joan Harrison, artist and friend of Ray Johnson who made dozens of photographs of the late artist, the CW Post exhibition has already attracted enormous local attention. Ray Johnson frequented the CW Post campus and was very well known to literally thousands of people on Long Island. Joan Harrison designed the invitation to the exhibition, right, using her photographs of Ray Johnson taken over the years they were neighbors on Long Island.

Down load LuAnn Palazzo's poster for Ray Johnson and A Book About Death.

Christina Stahr In Prague : LABYRINTH [91]

2010-06-30T09:27:00.000-04:00

Christina Stahr, a New York based artist with Czech and German roots and a major supporter in the A Book About Death project, exhibits L A B Y R I N T H, a solo exhibition at the Brooks Gallery, Naplavni 3 Prague 2, Czech Republic.

RAY JOHNSON & A BOOK ABOUT DEATH: CW POST EXHIBITION [90]

2010-06-23T19:27:00.000-04:00

An Open Call to Artists to Contribute to RAY JOHNSON & A BOOK ABOUT DEATH (ABAD)
This new ABAD show will open in the SAL Art Gallery at the CW Post Campus of Long Island University in Brookville, NY, and run October 31 to November 4, 2010. Submit one 4"x 6" artwork in any media on the theme of death/life.

Please include the words “A BOOK ABOUT DEATH” on the front and your name and your e-mail address/website URL on the back. The work may be sent in an envelope for protection or mailed as a postcard. All submitted work will become part of a permanent Ray Johnson ABAD Archive. It will not be returned.

You must submit both a physical work and a virtual one to be part of the project. Every submitted piece will be posted to theexhibition blog.

Submission Deadline: October 15, 2010

Mail 4" x 6" artwork/card to:
Prof. Joan Harrison
Art Department
C.W. Post Campus, LIU
720 Northern Boulevard
Brookville, NY 11548
United States of America

Submit a 4x6 jpg of the image with your name and e-mail and or web URL to: LuAnn Palazzo at DesignDivaNY@gmail.com

“A BOOK ABOUT DEATH” (ABAD) is an unbound, un-paginated book produced by artists worldwide. The original project was conceived by Matthew Rose who invited artists to contribute 500 identical postcards on any aspect of the theme of death. That show took place at the Emily Harvey Foundation Gallery in NYC in September 2009. The exhibition was a tremendous success, attracting hundreds of visitors to the Soho gallery.

Since then, the ABAD project has taken on a remarkable life. It continues to travel the world, appearing in museums and galleries across the US and in Brazil, Belgium, Croatia, Italy, Sarajevo, and the United Kingdom. A set of cards is also in the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art in NYC, the MoMA Wales and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

The project includes work from artists as famous as Yoko Ono as well as lesser known talents. The pages are of every kind of design imaginable, from personal and metaphysical to conceptual and abstract. The ABAD project has forged many new friendships among artists across the globe and has even spawned a handmade artists' magazine named Abalcabal.

WHAT IS DIFFERENT ABOUT THIS SHOW?
“RAY JOHNSON AND A BOOK ABOUT DEATH” is a new exhibition that will, for the first time, feature a copy of the original 1955 ABAD project by American artist Ray Johnson (1927-1995)–the inspiration for this entire series of exhibitions. It will set the stage for all 480 cards from the original Emily Harvey Gallery exhibit together with new submissions created especially for this show.

Ray Johnson’s unbound book of the same title was mailed to his New York Correspondence School students and included pages in his idiosyncratic style that were funny, sad and ironic “one-page essays” on death.

WHY IS THIS EXHIBIT HAPPENING AT C.W. POST CAMPUS of LIU?
Ray Johnson lived nearby in Locust Valley and was a frequent visitor to Hillwood Art Museum. He was a good friend of many artists who teach and work here and did several performance works on campus.

Several art alumni of Long Island University were contributors to the original New York ABAD project and would like other artists to become part of the rich worldwide art community that has grown up around the project.

RAY JOHNSON & A BOOK ABOUT DEATH: CW POST EXHIBITION ARTIST CALL.

Sigmar Polke 1941-2010 [89]

2010-06-11T18:07:00.000-04:00

Sigmar Polke (February 13, 1941 – June 10, 2010). CLICK TO VIEW NYT Slide Show.

PHOTO : Angelika Platen

Sigmar Polke (mitten in der Luft), Düsseldorf, 1971
Silbergelatineabzug auf Barytpapier auf Aluminium aufgezogen
Rückseitig signiert, datiert beschriftet und nummeriert
120 x 80cm Exemplar 1/5 Galerie Haasag.

Anki King: Figment, Governor's Island [88]

2010-06-11T10:30:00.000-04:00

Anki King, ABAD artist, exhibits at Figment at Governors Island, New York, June 11-13, 2010. Pictured here is her piece, Cradle of War, (H 55" x L 36" x W 30").

Cradle of War will be located in Nolan Galleries, Building 10b, 1st floor. See the map of all FIGMENT events.

FIGMENT is an explosion of creative energy. It’s a free, annual celebration of participatory art and culture where everything is possible. For one weekend each summer, it transforms Governors Island into a large-scale collaborative artwork… and then it’s gone.

Details & Directions

The closest subway stations to the Battery Maritime Building (next to Staten Island Ferry) are as follows:
1 to South Ferry Station
4/5 to Bowling Green Station
W to (weekdays only) Whitehall St. Station; R to Whitehall St. Station

Ferry Schedule to Governors Island: Friday
From Manhattan: First ferry at 10 AM, hourly until 3 PM
From GI: First ferry at 10:30 AM, hourly until 5:30 PM

Saturday/Sunday : From Manhattan: First ferry at 10 AM, every half hour until 5:30 PM
From GI: First ferry at 10:30 AM, hourly until 7:00 PM

Ferry from Pier 6 in Brooklyn Bridge Park
Saturday/Sunday: From Brooklyn: First ferry at 11 AM, runs continously until 5:20 PM
From GI: First ferry at 11:10 AM, runs continously until 7:00 PM

Website for Figment