From the category archives:

Opinion

What’s the Use of an Art Critic in a City on Fire?

by Michael Anthony Farley on April 28, 2015
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For the past twenty-four hours or so, I’ve been struggling to write about the situation here in Baltimore. I’ve tried doing my job—reviewing art shows—but even attempting to view politically informed projects in Baltimore through the lens of recent events felt strangely inappropriate. Like many bewildered Baltimoreans, any coherent thoughts I’ve attempted to compile have been quickly drowned out and scattered by the sounds of sirens and countless low-flying helicopters.

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Sanitizing the Web: Google’s Mobile-Friendly Update

by Corinna Kirsch on April 22, 2015
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Crappy websites, art websites, old websites—Google is pushing you out. This is gentrification on the web.

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Protesters Should Collaborate With the Whitney in Protest of Gas Pipeline

by Paddy Johnson on April 16, 2015
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Monday night about two dozen protesters took the streets of the Meatpacking district to protest the Whitney Museum’s decision to build a new mega-museum on top of a Spectra Energy natural gas pipeline. The pipeline brings gas that has been fracked (a practice known to use carcinogens and toxins) from Pennsylvania to New York. So, that’s bad. Pipelines are also dangerous—is it really a good idea to build a museum over something that could explode?

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Let Them Eat Cake: Kanye, SAIC, and the High Price of Graduation

by Katie Waddell on March 31, 2015
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Rosalia Marzulio wants to bake Kanye West’s honorary doctorate in a cake.

That is, the artist and freshman at School of the Art Institute (SAIC) is requesting that SAIC President Walter Massey pass this proposal on to West. She started a Facebook event and Twitter feed so the project could gain some momentum. When I spoke to her on the phone last Saturday, she’d landed a meeting with President Massey, and was excited to pass on her idea to the administration.

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Should Location Determine Artist Pay Grade?

by Corinna Kirsch on March 18, 2015
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Working Artists and the Greater Economy (W.A.G.E.) and the online publication art-agenda have announced a payment tool for online commissions and digital artworks, set to debut this spring. Where you live might determine how much you should get paid.

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Bill de Blasio’s Affordable Live-Work Scheme Is Not Even Barely a Plan for Artists, or Anyone

by Whitney Kimball on February 3, 2015
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This plan makes no sense. Let’s do the math.

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Notes on Chris Ofili’s Night and Day at The New Museum

by Paddy Johnson on January 31, 2015
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It only took me three months to see the Chris Ofili show at The New Museum but, boy, am I glad I made that happen last week. It’s fucking incredible—I left the museum euphoric. And the three floor show of paintings, drawings, and sculpture has been extended until the end of the weekend, so you’ve still got time to see it. I can’t recommend doing so highly enough.

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Steve Lambert Pledges to Donate 100% of Possible ArtPrize Winnings to the LGBT Fund

by Paddy Johnson on October 10, 2014
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Steve Lambert, a finalist in this year’s ArtPrize competition says that if he wins, he will donate the money to the LGBT Fund of Grand Rapids. That’s potentially a lot of money. He’s been nominated in both the public vote, and by the jury. The top prize for each is worth $200,000. Currently, he’s up for the $20,000 Time-Based Juried Award and the $200,000 Juried Grand Prize. (He’s now out of the running for the public vote prize.)

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