Showing posts with label Margaux Williamson. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Margaux Williamson. Show all posts

Thursday, December 3, 2009

Panel Pause: Notes to Come and "What's The New Line?" Tonight

With two panels in two days, it has been an exciting time in my normally-hermit-like world. I just wanted to offer a quick confirmation that I am planning to post some notes from both "Of/By/For" and "Bring It" in the next few days.

Until then, if you still need a panel fix, there's a doozy for ya tonight at Cinecycle. I can't make it, but I look forward to reading other folks' observations. Here's the details from the press release:

Lawrence Weschler: What's The New Line?
December 3, 2009
Cinecycle (behind 129 Spadina Ave, Toronto)

The great American writer, Lawrence Weschler (who was on the staff of The New Yorker for 20 years and is considered by many one of the best narrative non-fiction writers working) is being brought to town by Sheila Heti and Margaux Williamson's production company, THE PRODUCTION FRONT, for an evening in which we, along with some great local artists and journalists, will try and figure out a better way of thinking about art in our time than along the increasingly confusing spectrum (or line) of fiction/non-fiction. In other words: We need a new line!

Participants on stage and around the stage that night will include: Douglas Bell, Shary Boyle, Jon Davies, Kelly Jenkins, Amy Lam, Jon McCurley , Darren O'Donnell, Christine Pountney, and Nadja Sayej.

Read More......

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Must-See: An Anthropological Introduction to Youtube


I just spent 55 minutes of my life watching this video, and if you haven't done it already, I strongly recommend you do that too. It shows a presentation called "An anthropological introduction to Youtube" by cultural anthropologist Michael Wesch. Wesch made the presentation to the US Library of Congress in June 2008, which might make it seem dated in internet terms. But really, there are some amazing insights (and incredible video montages) here. (The Numa Numa history is alone worth the (free) price of admission.)

I think this video also holds some jumping off points of particular interest to the art world, for example:

1) Is is possible that Youtube, with its self-reflexive, intimate-yet-distant nature, brings some of the dynamics of artmaking to the general internet-accessing public? After all, as Jerry Saltz famously has said, artists are like cats, always putting objects between themselves and their humans. I wondered watching this if Youtube provides the same freedom/set of conditions to a wider population.

2) There has been a lot of interest in the art world of late in re-enactment, and a lot of tiresome conference sessions that have revolved around the question of "Why are so many young artists interested in re-enactment?" There are many possible reasons in my estimation, but I think the contextualization of YouTube re-enactment that Wesch builds provides great insight into one possible answer -- that people re-enact in order to express that which is important or entertaining to them, and to become part of a wider community. If such re-enactments are instinctive in the mediasphere, why not in the artsphere?

Overall, a very worthwhile viewing experience -- fleshes out in words and reason what Margaux Williamson's Dance Dance Revolutions video circled around in a more oblique way.

FYI this video was called to my attention by Twitter user @Prof_K linking to the blog for We Are Social

Read More......