...a huge tip of the sombrero to my gifted compadre out in the Minnesota outback, Louis Mendoza
Friday, April 30, 2010
No Surprises! The New York Times Pans PHANTOM SIGHTINGS
updated below! original posting 4/13/10
The New York Times' Ken Johnson weighs in with a less-than-loving pan of the Phantom Sightings show. You think you want a taste? You don't. Here's some anyway from Johnson's acidic conclusion: "A more astutely focused, judiciously selected exhibition might lead to different conclusions, but this one will not alter the impression that last rites for this type of show are in order." Zoiks! More from Johnson's screed is here.
But as they say in London, no worries. The NYTimes did the same favor for Luis Valdez's Zoot Suit back in the day and Valdez is still getting good work!
The New York Times' Ken Johnson weighs in with a less-than-loving pan of the Phantom Sightings show. You think you want a taste? You don't. Here's some anyway from Johnson's acidic conclusion: "A more astutely focused, judiciously selected exhibition might lead to different conclusions, but this one will not alter the impression that last rites for this type of show are in order." Zoiks! More from Johnson's screed is here.
But as they say in London, no worries. The NYTimes did the same favor for Luis Valdez's Zoot Suit back in the day and Valdez is still getting good work!
Hit the image to your right for the PHANTOM SIGHTINGS review; then tap the image below for a trip down memory lane and Richard Eder's snarky Zoot Suit review from 1979. More better? Daniel Hernandez's post on the LA Phantom Sightings show.
Chon Noriega weighs in with a worthy riposte to the NYTimes review in his monthly CSRC newsletter hot out of Westwood and UCLA:
Chon Noriega weighs in with a worthy riposte to the NYTimes review in his monthly CSRC newsletter hot out of Westwood and UCLA:
The art world no longer excludes Chicanos? If only we had spoken to New York Times reviewer Ken Johnson five years ago, we could have avoided the painstaking research that informs Phantom Sightings: Art after the Chicano Movement. The exhibition, which I co-curated with Rita Gonzalez and Howard Fox, opened last month at New York City’s El Museo del Barrio. It is the first exhibition to focus on contemporary artists influenced by the Chicano civil rights movement. These artists do not engage in identity politics. In fact, several of them are not even Chicano. But Mr. Johnson’s review on April 10 ignores all that and instead lauds the 2010 Whitney Biennial as an example of how the art world has assimilated “artists of many different backgrounds.” But wait! The Biennial does not include any Latino artists. And, ironically, the Biennial is exactly the kind of “identity-based group show” that he rails against. In fact, it is the exemplary case. Johnson’s review is confused and mean-spirited, revealing a bias against exhibitions that engage race and ethnicity. In New York City, the Mexican-descent population is 300,000. Nationwide it is 30 million. According to Johnson, this population has been “assimilated” into museum exhibition and modern art history. Really? He concludes that any museum or foundation that supports another view is sustaining an unnecessary “evil” that should be given its “last rites” (that is, killed). What Johnson calls an “evil” we call a phantom that remains exiled from mainstream institutions. That phantom represents 10 percent of our nation. This review, like recent events, suggests an underlying fear that, in the words of Eric Cartman, “There are too many minorities.”
Don't Talk To Me Weeth Dat Steenken Axcccennte! Arizona, in the NEWS, again...
Fritz Lang's M screened for free! Very cool site; gracias to boingboing!
hit Peter Lorre for the flick--then go to full screen for an eerie treat! thanks to boingboing's Cory Doctorow for the headsup!
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
More Luchador/Mexican Wrestling Goodness from Carlos Avila | LUCHA LORDS EDITION
For the rad LUCHA LORDS site, hit the image above; and also be sure to check out Scarlett Johansson (as BLACK WIDOW) rip-off Mexican Wrestling moves in Iron Man II in this HDclip:
Luchador/Wrestling Allegories from Jack Teagle and Carlos Avila
first, jack teagle--hit the luchadores for his rad site...
and, now, from Carlos Avila, two rad, cinematic, luchador bonbons--the fusion of performance, street culture, and dance in the videos signals an evolution in what can now be rightly called a lucha libre aesthetic or luchador imaginary (a tip of the sombrero to Jacques Lacan!)
Does America Mean WHITE
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Jon Stewart on Arizona: Humor in a Swiftian Vein
The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
Law & Border | ||||
www.thedailyshow.com | ||||
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Thanks to Sandra Islas, of LPAN, for sharing the link with me.
Spread the Palabras! Shifra Goldman Poetry Circle, This Weekend in LA!
Adolfo Guzman Lopez writes in to remind us of a cool gig going down this weekend in LA--hit the poster above for the skinny or visit these sites mentioned in Adolfo's note:
I hope you can make it, spread the word or check out some of Shifra's work. It's impressive. Here are some links:
http://www.library.ucsb.edu/speccoll/collections/cema/goldman.html
http://www.networkaztlan.com/writers/shifra_goldman.html
In poetry,
Adolfo
Dan Olivas on BIBLIOCRACY on KPFK
Headsup that Chicano author Dan Olivas will be winging his way through the LA airwaves (and, internationally, streaming on KPFK) Wednesday, April 28, 2010 @ 2:30pm on Bibliocracy. Here it live here! Or find it archived by hitting the KPFK logo above! Don't miss it!
See Amazon's gallery of his cool books here!
Gilda | Rita Hayworth | Lobby Cards--Bizarre New Period Lobby Cards
Wow. These are some of the most curious GILDA movie artifacts I have run across. I love the 2nd lobby card where the Ballan Munson (George Macready) character eyes "his bride"--if you've read Tex[t]-Mex, you know what I am thinking! Which bride, Johnny (Glenn Ford) or Gilda (Margarita Dolores Carmen Cansino)???
Monday, April 26, 2010
Warrior, Diva, Goddess Event @ CSUN this FRIDAY!!! Spread the Word
for more info, go here! or email the coordinator, CSUN profe
extraordinaire, Diana Contreras--one of my former students,
a UCLA film MFA, indy writer/activist, and new Fulbright Scholar
Award Winner!
extraordinaire, Diana Contreras--one of my former students,
a UCLA film MFA, indy writer/activist, and new Fulbright Scholar
Award Winner!