weekend links: Zadie Smith, Shakespeare death threats, Belkis Ayón
Belkis Ayón, La Cena (1993). Image courtesy Michael Nagle/The New York Times.
Zadie Smith discusses the masterful horror thinkpiece Get Out and Dana Schutz’s controversial Open Casket in this must-read essay on black pain. [Harper’s]
Drawing Justice: The Art of Courtroom Illustration is a selection of 98 courtroom sketches on display at the Library of Congress. It takes a look at how the restrictions of cameras in the courtroom has given sketch artists the difficult task of capturing some of the most difficult moments in American history with just a pen and paper. [Hyperallergic]
Ever since New York Public Theater started decapitating a Trump look-alike in its performance of Julius Caesar, theater companies with the name Shakespeare in the title have been receiving death threats all over the country. Stay strong, playwrights. [Boston Globe]
The Dallas Museum of Art plans to set a Guinness World Record on July 6th, Frida Kahlo’s 110th birthday, for the largest gathering of people dressed up as the artist. An exhibition featuring Kahlo’s work is on display at the museum, with participants receiving discounted admission. Unibrow required. [Star-Telegram]
An exhibit at El Museo del Barrio in Manhattan has opened featuring the work of the late Cuban print maker Belkis Ayón. Before she passed away in 1999, Ayón tried her hand at printmaking just as the medium was going out of style. The pieces on display are inspired by an all male, Afro-Cuban religion called Abakuá that the artist took a certain fascination to throughout her life. [The New York Times]
Azniv Korkejian, the woman behind the music in the new Judd Apatow comedy The Big Sick,has released her first album under the name Bedouine. The debut album feels like a mix of jazz and twangy Americana folk at times. It’s sure to leave listeners feeling something—missing home, perhaps. [Fader]
Yayoi Kasama is allowing others to see themselves up close and illuminated in her new exhibit, Infinity Mirrors. Being able to experience the exhibit in person is powerful and rare, which is why the use of social media and Instagram has become an essential part of the message Kasama presents. [The Atlantic]
All of Alex Norris’ very-bad-but-good webcomics conclude with his signature character—a troublemaking blob—saying “oh no.” His shtick seems like it would get old fast, but sure enough, Norris (thankfully) keeps churning out the three-paneled comics with no end in sight, posting a new comic every day on his website. [It’s Nice That]
—Sean Redmond and Natalie Walrath