"Art is what makes life more interesting than art"

-Robert Filliou

Art and Censorship

(Image from CNN.com)

This is something I am extremely passionate about, and I feel the need to speak out about it.
Today, the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C., removed David Wojnarowicz's video-portrait entitled "A Fire in My Belly" from the exhibition "Hide/Seek: Difference and Desire in American Portraiture," because of a small scene depicting a crucifix covered in ants, which was apparently offensive to Christians and aroused "the ire of the Catholic League and politicians," as CNN reports.

(http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2010/12/01/video-of-crucifix-removed-from-gallery/)

As a student of art history, and someone not unfamiliar with exhibiting controversial or potentially offensive art, I understand that there are and have been works of art which have been considered transgressive, provocative and taboo. I also understand that museum space is, rightly, public space.

However, part of the mission of museums, curators and artists is to create and present art and exhibitions which challenge the public. An exhibition such as "Hide/Seek" is about questions of gender, sexuality and identity, and meant to facilitate expression and constructive dialogue. Censoring a work of art because it is offensive to some destroys any chance for learning and communication. Letting a knee-jerk reaction of fear lead to this type of censorship trivializes and does disservice to a work of art that has many more layers of meaning and content than one short provocative scene.

Furthermore, the public is done a disservice as well: I firmly believe that uncomfortable and "difficult" art can offer some of the most profound learning experiences for those who have the courage and freedom to confront their own discomfort and to experience a work of art in an informative and thoughtfully-curated exhibition such as this one.

Visitors to museums always have a choice: to engage with a work of art or to walk away. Because of this and every instance of censorship, the choice is no longer theirs to make.

forest dwellers

I love the woods around my town this time of year. They are so stark and barren, quite romantic in a gothic/Wuthering Heights sort of way. The branches have a life of their own without leaves; I love the way the church spire peeks out between them, it reminds me of how old-New England must have felt, though admittedly not much has changed in Woodstock over the centuries...




I'm pretty sure this is the cave that we thought housed a troll when we were kids.

Two roads diverged...




Yard work, to prepare for the coming snow




barn doors and scuffed boots... ah I miss Vermont

blackandwhite

I can't take credit for these gorgeous black and white photographs, taken with a real film camera by my friend Alberto. They document the festivities of our Oct. 29 Peggy Guggenheim Interns Society Gala so elegantly. It was such an amazing weekend, absolutely lovely to see so many people I had missed since summer! And at what better venue than the Guggenheim?



At MoMA, earlier that day...


Here I am at Le Pain Quotidien, drinking cappuccino out of a bowl.

The gang. We had such a fun time!

Inspiration

Happy Halloween! I wanted to post some pics of my ongoing decoration projects in the new apartment, and also of some of my inspiration. I'm sort of going for a classic-modern combination, with some gypsy/eclectic and artistic elements thrown in. And a pile of books. Each room is different, I'm having so much fun working on them all.

Above is my festive entry-way decor. Note the martini glass filled with candy corn. The kids in my building are going to trick-or-treat to the different apartments tonight.

This mirror is in the living room. The mosaic is amazing, such a modern touch.

These chairs were so out-dated, mom and I decided to re-upholster them with this amazing old-fashioned looking fabric. The graphic style and French-countryside feel is perfect.


I really wanted bold geometric tribal rugs to give a sense of contrast to the antique-y feel of the floor and furniture. This one's in the living room.

Vermont apples on the table in the entry way. I love this retro-kitsch bowl, but my parents don't, so now it's mine!

I love my bedroom, it is now my favorite room in the apartment.

(a close-up of my five-ft square abstract canvas that I have hung over my bed, one of my favorite large paintings where I just played with color and atmosphere)

My fab shower curtain.

Inspiration shot of daisy on our rug at home. She's so chic.

Tea and art history reading, the two constants in my life right now.


Beautiful Vermont in Fall. New York is just starting to get some color.

More soon!

Hello Fall

I am so happy to be in New York, settling into the new place (pictures to come) and new neighborhood and new school and NEWNEWNEW that's the name of the game this Fall.

With the incredible amount of reading and *new* information I'm absorbing these days, I can get a little frazzled. When that happens, I just try to channel some of my moments of hippy-ing out in VT, and these great photos mom and I took one evening... so artsy.

Interesting Artist

Since I've been lately immersing myself in all things art (even more than usual), I thought I'd share this really interesting video I came across, about a French graffiti artist who calls him/herself Princess Hijab, and whose work relates directly to the ban on burqas in France, but also speaks quite well about the enduring and surprising power of the image in contemporary society, something I think we often underestimate in our visually-overloaded daily lives.

http://www.babelgum.com/5004778/princess-hijab.html

New York!

I'm back in the Big City, starting my foray into the exciting world of grad school - wish me luck, more updates soon!

(above is a photo of Duke House, home to my school, the NYU Institute of Fine Arts, image courtesy of their website)

synesthesia

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eHnnGHgeyC0&feature=sub

I've been meaning to post this video forever, it's a really cool take on what it's like to have synesthesia, which is basically a blending of different senses. Some people can see sounds, taste colors, hear tastes. I have the most common form of synesthesia, where I see letters and numbers in distinct colors.

Apparently about 80% of synesthetes are artists, no surprises there.

sunsets and soirees

Some glamorous shots from our end-of-month festa on the roof of the Guggenheim, along with a particularly amazing sunset in Venice.