Spring 2017 News

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R E S I D E N C Y

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Visual Studies Workshop Project Space
April 10 - May 6, 2017

I'll be in residence at VSW's Project Space working on the project described below. There will be a presentation and talk towards the end of my stay, most likely the first friday in May. I'll send out more info when that's settled.

"43"

On the night of September 26, 2014, in the city of Iguala, in the state of Guerro, Mexico, 43 students "disappeared" after their buses were ambushed by uniformed police officers. Their fate is still unknown but history does not make one optimistic about their fate. Keith and I have been visiting Oaxaca, Mexico since 2009, and we were struck by the grief, concern and outrage expressed by the city after the abduction of the 43. The quantity and immediacy of street art and actions were indicative of the shock that reverberated throughout Mexico.

I made photographs while in Oaxaca and have been collecting information about this situation for two years, but have been unable to make much sense of it -- mostly because it is such a difficult subject. My thought of making it a residency project was to utilize the physical and mental space provided by VSW to find some purpose in the materials. It is a vastly different way of working for me, but the residency encourages experimentation, so we'll see.

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E X H I B I T I O N S

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AMPLIFY & MULTIPLY: Recent Printed Activist Ephemera

March 31 to April 17, 2017
Coburn Gallery, Colorado College, Colorado Springs CO

AMPLIFY & MULTIPLY  is an exhibition of activist/social/political printed posters, protest signs, objects, fundraiser publications, and other ephemera, made in (roughly) the last 6 months, advocating for social and environmental justice, equality, and the rights of oppressed people. This is a show that "stands in opposition to fascism, racism, white supremacy, misogyny, and every other horrible tool that power uses to maintain its killing grip. Work included has been deployed in the real world as opposed to being made just for this show and created by people who felt compelled by recent events to produce and share their message in print medium." (from the prospectus). I sent a copy of a fake New Yorker cover which quotes Art Spiegleman's haunting Sept. 24th, 2001 cover for the magazine, the first issue produced after the Twin Towers fell. My work was made for "A Crack," a publication organized to gather responses to the Trump Administration that didn't get off the ground. The title of the publication was from Leonard Cohen: "There is a crack in everything. That's how the light gets in."

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Booknesses: Artists Books from the Jack Ginsberg Collection

University of Johannesburg Art Gallery - APK Campus
Johannesburg South Africa

Two of my works are exhibited in this exhibition of historical and contemporary book objects from South African and international artists, one of the largest and most comprehensive exhibitions of artists’ books ever to have been mounted. The exhibition and its catalogue showcase a small aspect of the remarkable Jack Ginsberg Collection of Artists’ Books which is acknowledged as one of the finest and most comprehensive collections of artists' books anywhere. Sarah Bodman, Senior Research Fellow for Artists' Books (UWE, Bristol), sent some snaps of "Homemade Maps" and "The Decider" in situ. Thanks, Sarah!

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P U B L I C A T I O N

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O Livro de Artista e a Enciclopédia Visual
Amir Brito Cadôr
Published by EDITORA ufmg, Belo Horizonte, 2016
(656 pps, 23 x 16 x 3.5 cm.)

I was flattered to be included in this Brazilian encyclopedia of artists books. The text is Portuguese, but even without knowing the language I'm finding it interesting to "read." It is well illustrated and organized by subject categories such as "archeology of knowing," "the art of memory," "reading allegories," and "a world of paper." My book, "INDEX," appears in the "Technologies of Reproduction" chapter. Although there is a healthy representation of Europeans (Tom Phillips, Joan Fontcuberta, Dieter Roth) and Americans (Clifton Meador, Buzz Spector, Sol LeWitt), there are many works by Latin American artists (mostly unknown to me outside of León Ferrari). Because of its encyclopedia format (and my lack of Portuguese), the illustrations are a bit of a tease but do whet the appetite for more research.

 

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S U M M E R   T E A C H I N G

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Bookbinding for Photographers
Visual Studies Workshop Summer Institute

May 29 - June 2, 2017

I'm thinking of rebranding this class as "McBookbinding."  Not to imply it's fast, cheap, or bad for your health, but I get requests to teach it out and about in a franchise-ey sort of way (see below).  I passionately believe that photographers and artists who plan to make books and take the time to gain knowledge of how books are constructed and work with physical space and real time make much more interesting and meaningful work. Click here for more info.

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Bookbinding with the Photographer in Mind
Peters Valley School of Craft
19 Kuhn Road , Layton, NJ

July 7-11, 2017

Peters Valley School of Craft is located within the picturesque Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. It offers a range of workshops, from blacksmithing and woodworking to fibers and photography.  It will be the first time I have taught there. It looks to be quite the active community and I look forward to seeing how it all goes.  Click here for more info.

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Good Press for Keith Smith

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I have to share this link to a review in Artforum of Keith's current exhibition at Bruce Silverstein Gallery. If you're in the City stop in and take a look.

BRUCE SILVERSTEIN GALLERY, 529 West 20th Street, Third Floor
 

March 9–May 6

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 Happy Spring, and thanks for clicking.