Community: bloggers@brooklynmuseum

I’m happy to mention that Brooklyn-based artist Paul Notzold will be bringing TXTual Healing to our upcoming Target First Saturday on May 3rd. I’ve long been an admirer of this project and am thrilled to be able to see it live and in-person in our lobby.

TXTual Healing is an ongoing series of interactive performances that encourage the creation of dialog through text messaging from mobile phones. The project harnesses the SMS capabilities of the cell phone as a medium to interact with and explore our shared public and physical space, not as a means to escape it. TXTual Healing builds community through public story telling.

Using the speech bubble as a symbol for communication, participants send text messages to a provided phone number that automatically, anonymously, and in real time, displays these messages inside the bubbles projected onto the facade of a building. The result of projecting in shared public space give participants in the street a voice as loud as the corporate and government entities who financially predetermine the information in these spaces.

TXTual Healing encourages the public sharing of thoughts, experiences and ideas using networked mobile devices that typically support more private communications. Positioning the projections next to windows, or integrating the SMS interactivity with religious, political and socially charged graphics, invites people to share their own uncensored views of the information around them in the form of interactive theater.

For our installation, Paul has adapted the system to display images from our Utagawa exhibition  and worked with our Education and Curatorial staff to give txters questions to ponder. If you are coming this Saturday, be sure to bring your cell phone and if not we will be posting photos to Flickr and hopefully a really awesome video soon after the event.

Pics in this post are from the dry run last Tuesday.  While I was in Denver for AAM, Bob was having fun testing and sending me pics (see below - very funny Bob).

On April 5th we had our second talk in a series of discussions to commemorate the 185th anniversary of the founding of the Library. The well attended talk – entitled What is a book? – was given by Andy Birsh and Davin Kuntze, from Woodside Press, who spoke about the elements of the book format. Their presentation focused on typography, papers, and bindings in use before and since the days of Gutenberg. Mr. Birsh is the proprietor of Woodside Press in the Brooklyn Navy Yard, one of the largest fine letterpress printing studios in New York. Mr. Kuntze is a trained bookbinder, printer, and graphic designer who lives in Crown Heights.

As always, it was a great pleasure to listen and think about the history of books and to see some books that are great examples of papermaking, printing and binding. Books on view included books on papermaking and specimen books with paper samples and facsimiles of codices such as the Codex Mendoza, the Mexican manuscript. The following is part of the catalog entry for this remarkable book published in London in 1938:

“The Mendoza codex is a Mexican pictographic manuscript prepared on the authority of Don Antonio de Mendoza, the first viceroy of New Spain … A Spanish priest, familiar with the Nauatl … was employed by the viceroy to set down in Spanish the explanations of the glyphs as interpreted by the Mexicans themselves.” The facsimile includes the original pictographs in colors and the Spanish explanations.”

This codex facsimile is one of many in this collection that document the culture of Mexico.

Several truly rare books were out for the public to see such as Hori Apollinis selecta hieroglyphica (Rome, 1599). This emblem book (seen below) documents Horapollo’s attempt to decipher the Egyptian hieroglyphs and offers many woodcut images some of which are supposedly by Dürer. The book was recently on view in the Egypt Through Other Eyes exhibition organized by the Museum Library staff.

Other rarities on view included The First Book of Architecture by Andrea Palladio (London, 1721) and Specimens of plain and ornamental printing types, borders, ornaments, rules, &c. made at the type and electrotype foundry of James Conner & Sons (New York, 1859) A good example of an accordion binding was The Great Exhibition “wot is to be” : or probable results of the industry of all nations in the year ‘51. Showing what is to be exhibited, who is to exhibit it; in short,how its [!] all going to be done (London, 1850). This book is a continuous, illustrated strip, folded accordion style.

We also had a few artists’ books out that are exquisite examples of printing such as the Peter Kruty edition of The Diary of a Madman by Nikolai Gogol (Summer Gardens Editions, 1998) with art by Mikhail Magaril. Peter Kruty’s letterpress studio is in Brooklyn and he worked with a team to produce this great example of letterpress and fine binding. The book was included in the Artists Book exhibition here back in 2000. Another artist’s book that was included in the Artists Book exhibition here and on view for our talk is The Corona Palimpsest (1996) made by Nora Ligorano and Marshall Reese.

I could go on and on about all of the great books we had out on view … if you want a full list of what we all looked at send an email and we will be happy to send the list to you.

Keonna Hendrick, Education Intern for Library Outreach, enjoys looking at one of the many rare books we had
out for the public to see.

National Library Week having just ended, it seems opportune to bring up a topic that was discussed during the talk which centered on the future of the book and the challenges presented by the Internet. There seems to be a notion in the air that “all of this will be digitized” if it hasn’t been already and that we will not need libraries. Perhaps it is so much easier to click at your computer instead of getting up and opening a book. But what a pleasure that is! Touching the paper, seeing images that in many instances are engravings or are hand colored, feeling the binding. I realize I am speaking from the perspective of a research librarian surrounded by books that have a true intrinsic value. As in most art libraries, we have many books filled with tons of images – engravings, photographs, textile and paper samples etc - that have an incredible tactile quality to them. I don’t look forward to the day when I have to climb into bed with a computer instead of a book. I know I am not the only one who feels that we need to speak up for the book as a physical entity and would really like to begin a discussion here about this issue. As far as I can see here in Brooklyn there are two camps of thinking: the book lover who speaks for the beauty of the physical book and the Internet lover who wants everything online and available in a very immediate way. Which camp are you in? Can the wishes of the two camps converge so that we can have everything – the book and the digital version?

Photos by Leah Golubchick

I am excited to announce Dawn Mostow as the winner of our Cosplay Costume Contest that was held at Target First Saturday on April 5^th. The theme of the evening was “Japanimated! The Arts and Culture of Japan,” which related to our two exhibitions of Japanese art, © MURAKMI and Utagawa: Masters of the Japanese Print, 1770–1900. Cosplay (which comes from the words “costume” and “play”) is very popular among anime and manga fans in both Japan and the United States. We chose to have a Cosplay Contest because in planning the program we were looking for an activity that would engage visitors and encourage them to participate celebrating the unique, creative cultures coming out of Japan. For this contest we invited visitors to come dressed up as their favorite anime or manga character and have their picture taken by our volunteer photographers Priscilla Vazquez and Leah Golubchick. Many people dressed up and you can see their fabulous costumes on our flickr stream. It was hard for our panel of judges to pick a winner from the many wonderful costumes, but all chose Dawn’s as one of their favorites.

Rei Ayanami from Evangelion, left, with Dawn at Target First Saturday, right. Photo by Leigh Paris.

Dawn is dressed up as Rei Ayanami, a character from the anime series Evangelion. Dawn chose Rei Ayanami because, “I wanted a popular character that is easily recognizable to anime fans, but also holds a visual interest to people not familiar with Japanese animation, thereby creating an interest in the genre.” Dawn has been involved in Cosplay for ten years and made her costume herself. She has a background in costume design, and is currently studying for an MFA at Pratt Institute. She remarked that making the costume was challenging because she had to work on bringing a two-dimensional character to life. Thanks to Dawn and everyone else who participated in the contest and made April’s Target First Saturday memorable! I hope you can all join us again in May.

This Saturday, April 12, to celebrate our two exhibits of Japanese art we will host an academic symposium entitled “Love and Pop: Contemporary Visual Cultures in Japan and Beyond.” This is the first symposium held in a many years at the Brooklyn Museum that specifically highlights the work of graduate students. It is the first of what I hope will be an annual event. I think it is a unique event because the material that will be presented is both academically rigorous and accessible to all. The day will start off with a keynote address by Roland Kelts, author of Japanamerica: How Japanese Pop Culture Has Invaded the US. It will continue with a panel entitled “Consuming Desire: Superflat, Otaku, Kawaii and the Grotesque,” moderated by Eugenie Tsai, Curator of Contemporary Art at the Brooklyn Museum. The second panel, “Visual Release: Gender, Art, Representation and Exchange,” will be moderated by Aiko Nakagawa. Aiko is a street artist and founding member of the artist collective Faile. Incidentally, the work of Aiko and Faile was very popular on our Flickr page during the Graffiti show during summer of 2006. I chose these moderators for their particular takes as a scholar, curator and artist (respectively) on Japanese and American culture and contemporary art.

A collage of works of art by Aiko Nakagawa

In organizing this symposium I hoped to create a platform for students producing scholarship related to visual culture to share their work with a wider audience. I initially imagined the symposium would attract local students. To my surprise and delight panelists are flying in from as far away as London and California. The panelists are: Kaori Hoshino, Brooklyn College; Meghen Jones, Boston University; Maya Kimura, California College of the Arts, San Francisco; Marci Kwon, New York University; Cindy Lisica, University of the Arts, London; Dawn Mostow, Pratt Institute; Pennylane Shen, New York University. If you join us on Saturday I would love to know what you think!

One of the biggest challenges we face with an exhibition like Click! is getting the word out. Click! depends on two types of participation, initial submissions from the artist community and participation from the online community who will evaluate those submissions. Getting to word out to the artist community is critical and that means we’ve been doing a lot of leg work.

Physical card distribution is still a major method of communication throughout the Brooklyn communities. Many of the local mom-and-pop establishments like cafes and bookstores have a place for card drops and announcements. As you can see, we printed a lot of cards, so we’ve been working to get them into the neighborhoods. Happily and with the help of many staff who have taken a bunch to their local hangouts, we are now down to two small stacks!

Since this is a photography show, it seemed like a good idea put announcements in all the Brooklyn-based groups on Flickr. Instead of just posting, we wrote the administrators of each group to ask permission to do so. The admins were great about getting back to us and our postings are now in place. For those of you who have never seen the Brooklyn groups on Flickr, there’s a great online community there, so spend some time checking it out.

In addition to Flickr, there’s a strong blogging community in Brooklyn and we’ve been sending information their way. To get an idea of how large and active this community is, take a look at the blogroll at The Gowanus Lounge. Also of interest, the Brooklyn blogging community hosts a monthly blogade.

And that’s not all. There are many artist collectives in Brooklyn that we’ve been contacting and, in turn, they’ve been sending notification e-mails to their lists of artists. In addition, there are photo documentation projects for certain areas and we’ve been contacting the people running them. Take a look at What’s The Hook? and the Coney Island Documentation Project for great examples.

So, this post is a bit of thanks to all those who have helped us get the word out about our open call. If you’ve sent out e-mails, allowed us to post to your Flickr group, accepted cards, installed our widget, posted to your blog - thank you! We couldn’t do this without your help and we are happy to be neighbors!

One of my favorite parts of my job as a museum educator and public programmer is witnessing the conversations that visitors have in the galleries and or during public programs, such as performances and panel discussions. The works of art in Infinite Island have stimulated a lot of discussion, especially around questions of identity, culture, nationality, history and community. We are continuing to highlight these themes with two upcoming public programs that will give Infinite Island a proper send off.

Roger Bonair-Agard in Masquerade. Photo by Peter Dressel

The first is a performance this Saturday, January 19, at 2 p.m. by Brooklyn-based Caribbean members of spoken-word collective louderARTS Project. It is hosted by Def Poetry Jam’s Roger Bonair-Agard, and features poets Hallie Hobson, Rich Villar, and Cheryl Boyce Taylor.

Next weekend, on January 26, we will be collaborating with the organization Domestic Workers United to present their short film “Work and Respect” in the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art. Members of Domestic Workers United, many of whom are from the Caribbean, will talk about the film making process and their experience organizing for their rights as domestic workers in New York City.

I am really looking forward to both these programs which highlight many important voices from our community and, if you join us, we would love to know what you think.

Art handlers installing Miguel Luciano’s Platano Pride and Miguel Luciano himself.

Over the past few months of teaching university students in Infinite Island, I have found that students instantly respond to works of art that incorporate ideas and images referencing popular culture. Pieces in the show such as the one by Miguel Luciano, Platano Pride, start conversation before I even have a chance to ask any questions because the students understand immediately the visual language with which the artists are working. This Saturday, November 17, at 2 p.m. we will host the third panel discussion in the Infinite Island discussion series which will focus on the role that music and popular culture play in contemporary Caribbean art and culture. I look forward to hearing more from the panelists about how popular culture and music can serve as sites for creativity and resistance in the Caribbean and Caribbean Diaspora communities. I know that the insights they share will enhance my teaching and the discussions I will have in the galleries with my students.

Panelists include Sujatha Fernandes, Assistant Professor of Sociology at Queens College, City University of New York and author of Cuba Represent! Cuban Arts, State Power, and the Making of New Revolutionary Cultures; Raquel Z. Rivera, Research Fellow at the Center for Puerto Rican Studies, Hunter College, and co-editor of an forthcoming anthology Reading Reggaeton: Historical, Aesthetic and Critical Perspectives; and Infinite Island artist Miguel Luciano. The discussion will be moderated by Infinite Island curator Tumelo Mosaka.

If you join us we would love to know what you think!

As an educational programmer I am always on the lookout for organizations with which we can collaborate to bring innovative and diverse programs to the Museum. I am especially excited about our upcoming film programs this weekend that are a partnership with Art:21—Art in the Twenty-First Century. Art:21 offers a unique perspective on contemporary art by giving viewers an often unseen look of artists working in their studios, installing, and reflecting on their works in progress. On October 13 and 14 we are showing a special sneak-preview of the episodes “Protest” and “Paradox” from their upcoming 4th season.

The episode “Protest,” showing Saturday, October 13 at 2 p.m., features artists Jenny Holzer, Nancy Spero, Alfredo Jaar and An-My Lê. The artists in this episode employ visual art as a means to provoke personal transformations and social revolutions. This episode is particularly relevant to the exhibitions featured in our Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art because it speaks to the themes of The Dinner Party and Global Feminisms Remix. Following the screening, Brooklyn-based artist An-My Lê will discuss her work (see above for a clip from “Protest” featuring An-My Lê).

On Sunday, October 14 at 2 p.m, we are screening the episode “Paradox” as part of our Caribbean Film Series. “Paradox” features the artists Jennifer Allora and Guillermo Calzadilla, whose video and photographs are featured in Infinite Island. The episode explores artists responding to paradoxes between global and local realities, and engaging with uncertainty in the art they create. Following the screening Eve Moros Ortega, Art:21’s Series Producer, will discuss the episode.

As I am committed to closely linking public programs to themes and questions that are raised by the works of art in our exhibitions, I am enthusiastic about the two Art:21 episodes that we are screening and the talks that accompany them. If you join us we would love to know what you think!

Artist Steve Ouditt installing his Infinite Island work, “Excerpts From the Propagandist’s Diary of L. Padre Grande,” 2007.

What happens after an exhibition opens? Even after the works of art are displayed in the galleries, activity behind the scenes at the Museum does not stop. In the case of museum educators and educational programmers like me, our work really begins after an exhibition opens, but starts many months before. To prepare for Infinite Island: Contemporary Caribbean Art, I have been working closely with curator Tumelo Mosaka to decide what kinds of public programs related would offer innovative perspectives and interesting experiences for our visitors. After months of preparation, our inaugural public program for Infinite Island will take place this Saturday, September 22nd at 2 p.m.

Visualizing Caribbean Art and Culture in the Twenty-first Century includes five dynamic speakers who come from a variety of backgrounds and areas of expertise: Aisha Khan, Associate Professor of Anthropology at NYU and Director of Undergraduate Studies; Infinite Island catalog essayist Annie Paul, Associate Editor of the journal Small Axe and Head of Publications at Sir Arthur Lewis Institute of Social and Economic Research at University of the West Indies in Kingston, Jamaica; and Infinite Island artists Jean-Ulrick Dèsert, Deborah Jack and Steve Ouditt (pictured above). Tumelo Mosaka will moderate the event.

This is the first in a series of three panels and it should be exciting to hear the discussion of contemporary Caribbean art and culture with these artists and scholars. If you attend, let us know your thoughts.

Update 9/26/07: Photos posted to our Flickr account.

Following up from this earlier post, here’s our video from the Dietch Art Parade! Many thanks to Tiny Masters of Today for allowing us to use their track “Trendsetter” (featuring Kimya Dawson & Angelo Spencer). Bang Bang Boom Cake, the new LP from Tiny Masters is being released September 25, so check ‘em out. More thanks to Ken Yee, a Flickr contact of ours and fellow Brooklynite, for allowing us use of his parade photography in the vid. It was pretty difficult to shoot the parade and be in it at the same time, so we were grateful to have this additional material in our editing process.