weekend links: arts funding, Papo Colo, Wole Soyinka
Maria Eichhorn, 5 weeks, 25 days, 175 hours (2016). Photo by Andy Keate, courtesy ARTnews/the artist and Chisenhale Gallery.
Reports surfaced this week that Trump is planning to eliminate the National Endowments for the Arts and Humanities. This represents just .02 percent of federal spending—a minuscule amount that indicates cultural clampdown more than fiscal prudence. We will not be deterred. [Washington Post]
Which is not to say that Trump hates art—like all fascists, he has his favorites. Puccini, for example—a composer whose music provided a backdrop for Mussolini’s reign. Not surprising, but is it better or worse than 3 Doors Down? [MTV]
As contemporary art's voice in the political sphere is getting more attention, here's a reflection on institutional critique in the art world, and how standard practices should be dismantled to move toward alternative and more socially engaged institutions. [ARTnews]
MoMA PS1 director Klaus Biesenbach talks about Papo Colo’s latest performance, Procesión-Migración—a procession along the route to the El Yunque rainforest in Puerto Rico, where Colo will remain for a year in silence. The performance reflects the country’s past and current waves of migration, the economic frailty of the island, and its status as a territory. [artsy]
Speaking of challenging art spaces, choreographer Monica Bill Barnes has created a “museum workout” in the Met. Alongside a mix of disco, Motown hits, and voiceovers, participants dance and jog through the galleries. But not everyone feels at ease about running around art… [The New Yorker]
Nobel Prize-winning author Wole Soyinka is fulfilling his promise to tear up his Green Card if Trump got elected. Soyinka’s act is in reaction to Trump’s xenophobic rhetoric and vast number of followers, but he notes his “Wolexit” is a personal decision—“no one else is invited.” [The Atlantic]
Gearing up for the Women’s March on Washington, Fiona Apple has released a catchy chant for protesters this week. [The New York Times]
And Austin’s women musicians speak out against sexism in the punk scene. A powerful read. [Austin Chronicle]
—Katie Lauren Bruton and Sean Redmond