Letter from the editor: New Yorkers are a clever bunch, and lately they’ve been finding all sorts of ways to process and hold space for the intensity of current events. Art workers ted kerr and Diya Vij (whom I interviewed back in May) have teamed up to start a collaborative mail art project. As Danilo Machado writes, “the hope and rage conjured by MOURN ON THE 4th of JULY will remain useful as we continue facing death, unrest, and change together.” Likewise, I recently chatted with American Artist, whose unique approach to examining the nuances of Black labor and visibility is one we’ve appreciated so much that their recent solo shows made our annual “Best of Brooklyn” list not once, but twice in a row. Elsewhere around New York, our staff writer Valentina Di Liscia reports on the most recent set of museum layoffs. At the Brooklyn Museum, the New Museum, and the Shed, the news has been devastating. Fellow staff writer Hakim Bishara also reports on a harrowing attack against artist and curator Kate Bae. “People yell at me ‘go back to China’ or ‘hey, coronavirus.’ I face these attacks at least twice a week on my way to work,” remarked Bae, who is Korean-American. In the galleries (or rather, their online equivalents), Lydia Pyne profiles the pioneering Modernist architect Eileen Gray — the subject of a multipart exhibition organized by Bard’s Graduate Center gallery. Stay safe, Both museums received Paycheck Protection Program loans in the millions. Hakim Bishara With Carl Craig Sessions, Dia:Beacon presents an online screening series inspired by the enduring legacy of Black musicians and artists. Dessane Lopez Cassell | Streaming July 16–19 The multidisciplinary arts center in NYC, which laid off 28 full-time workers, received a Paycheck Protection Program loan in the range of $2-5 million. “People yell at me ‘go back to China’ or ‘hey, coronavirus.’ I face these attacks at least twice a week on my way to work,” says Korean-American artist Kate Bae, who was physically assaulted near Bryant Park. From going to a library or museum, to visiting a concert, the Texas Medical Association created a graphic to assess the scale of risk, on a scale of one to 10. Organized by Diya Vij and Theodore (ted) Kerr, MOURN ON THE 4th of JULY rejects “patriotic fanfare,” inviting responses from artists, writers, and organizers nationwide. Danilo Machado By every measure, Eileen Gray ought to be as well-known as her Modernist male contemporaries. An exhibition at Bard’s Graduate Center offers a smart correction to the historical record. Lydia Pyne Lacking any attempts to deepen or broaden conversations about Hujar’s work, Cruising Utopia at Pace Gallery feels more like a store than an exhibition. Danilo Machado American Artist is a lot of things — a multidisciplinary maker, a designer, writer, and educator, as well as a consummate tinkerer. Dessane Lopez Cassell This week, artists reflect on quarantining from their studios in Illinois, Maine, Oregon, and New York. Elisa Wouk Almino Your contribution helps us keep our reporting free and available to all, and makes our journalism possible when independent reporting is needed more than ever. Become a member of Hyperallergic today! |