8th Sharjah Biennial

Lutz & Guggisberg

Population. 2007
About 200 charred woodbirds

The Sharjah Biennial strives to encourage collaboration between artists, art institutions and organisations locally, regionally and internationally, and to promote cross cultural exchange. This year, the Biennial will once again, offer the entire city of Sharjah to artists for the creation of new site-specific work. This year’s theme is by far not a novel one, but en vogue again. The organizers propose to view "art as a way of creating a better understanding about our relationship with nature and the environment, whilst considering its social, political and cultural dimensions in an interdisciplinary way." The 8th Sharjah Biennial aims to be both a "celebration of the natural world and a response to the countless alarms being set off as a result of human thoughtlessness." Simultaneously, one is aware of the fact that one is part of the problem – as a participant of the consumer society and of the global art jet-setting community, as well as by conducting the Biennial in a country with an enormous energy consumption.

Rirkrit Tiravanija


Less Oil More Courage. 2007
Based on a painting of 2003

Tiravanijas adopts late painter Peter Cain's sketch-book entry "More courage less oil" in his work. Whereas Cain probably referred to his own production as an artist, the restructured sentence and the Gulfstate context evoke special associations. The piece was shown on the stairway of the Sharjah Art Museum and in light boxes along the streets of the city.

Raeda Saadeh


Vacuum. 2007
Video

In the video, one can see a woman with a vacuum cleaner in the mountains.

Jesús "Bubu" Negrón

Installation. 2007
Carpet made out of cigarette stubs
Souq Al-Arsa, Heritage Area

In a photographic documentation the artist shows the street cleaners, who have collected the cigarette stubs, other helpers and the fabrication of the object.

Marjolijn Dijkmane

Wondering about the future. 2007
Chroma key intervention, 7 x 5 x 5 m
Heritage Area

more at Universes in Universe and at the official webpage




© Photos: Haupt & Binder

Battle of the Bands - The Return

Ladys and gentlemen! It's high noon! Time for the clashing BATTLE OF THE SWING BANDS!! In the left corner: LES HAFERFLOCKEN SWINGERS from X-Berg/Neukölln ... and in the right corner: DON BAD'HABONG from Friedrichshain... Two heavy weight swing bands from Berlin, ready to give everything in a syncopated fight for groove and glory! One night only!

tomorrow Friday 27th 9pm
a must if you are in Berlin


at Tante Kaethe

it´s a bit tricky to find. Go here for instructions.

iconic

Sasha Pivovarova by Miles Aldridge
click pics for full pleasure

uploaded by the enchanting Amy Prada

via corazón de látex

Google Maps: The truth about the red markers.

Google Maps uses small graphical icons to show location related search results on a map in an alphabetical order. Most likely you have seen these weird red balloons already on Google maps standing somewhere in the streets. But did you knew they really exist ?
The project “Map” by Aram Bartholl questions the red markers of Google Maps in a charming, ironic and iconic way.





"On each new search ten red markers (A - J) known from the analogue world find their new position automatically within milliseconds. Interestingly each marker and even the speech bubbles with further information do cast a shadow on the map and satellite image. While zooming in the map the pixel size of the markers on the screen always stay at the same size. But if their size is seen in relation to their environment they shrink while the user does zoom in the map.
This effect corresponds exactly to the phenomenon of Mr. Turtur, the illusionary giant of the children fantasy novel “Jim Button and Luke the Engine Driver“ written by Michael Ende.

The size of the rebuilt red Marker in reality corresponds to the size of a marker in the web interface in max zoom factor of the map."

Go here for a Making Of Video (QT)


more about Aram inhere

digged at we make money not art

Elvis, Jesus and Jane

Welcome pilgrims on search for higher beings.
Hi Toots

Due to a strange warp in the space time continium the Elvis that became president meets the Elvis that became the rock legend. This obviously amuses the president but gives the musician an eerie feeling of acidbackflash.

Many visit this sacred place on search for higher beings. Not long ago I welcomed the thousands visitor willing to pay tribute to Jane. But Jane isn´t the only godess that leads into the realms of placeboKatz. Lately more and more find their way to salvation by searching for Elvis.
Contrary to poular believe it is not the well dressed Elvis mentioned here,

it is The sacred Heart of Elvis that guides as a light in the darkness.
A short sermon about Elvis and Jesus: The Similarities, which includes evidence that Elvis and Jesus are the same (for those who haven't figured it out for themselves) is actually more popular among those who come here than the search for nudes.




Higher Beings are delighted :)

Make Money online

Becoming a millionaire with blogging is an easy task, everyone does it,
but finally one can make money with style.

Now turn on your printers and enjoy the night with personalized money.

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Google Content Blocker

What is Google Content Blocker? Google's mission is to organize the world's advertising for maximum exposure to Web users. Unfortunately, annoying Web content often overwhelms the page, causing many users to become distracted and overlook the ads.

That's where Google Content Blocker comes in. It effectively blocks all Web site content, leaving only the advertisements.

How does Google Content Blocker work?
After you install Google Content Block, just surf the Web as you normally do. When we find a site that has content, we will block that content so you see only the ads. It all happens automatically, with no effort on your part.



Frequently Asked Questions

How does Google Content Blocker work?
You're probably too dumb to understand the technicalities, but we'll tell you anyway. We install special top-secret proprietary software on your system. When you browser to a Web site, this software examines the document. Ads are displayed, and everything else is hidden.

C'mon man, don't insult my intelligence. How does it work?
OK, OK. Here's a white paper that describes the process in detail: Google Content Blocker White Paper (PDF)

What type of Web content is blocked?
How many times do we have to tell you? Everything is blocked except the ads. It's not rocket science. One more time. Repeat after me: If it's an ad, it's not blocked. If it's not an ad, it's blocked. Got that?

What if I use this along with an ad blocker?
You figure it out, Einstein. You'll get nothing. Not a goddamned thing. A white page with nothing on it. Zilch. Nada. Nothingness. Only morons use an ad blocker.

What if I click on a page that has no ads?
A Web site with no ads? What do you think this is, 1991? The chances of that happening are very small. In such a case, we will insert some randomly selected Google AdSense ads so you'll have something to read.

Does Google keep track of the content that's blocked?

Of course we do. It goes into our database along with every site you've ever visited or even thought about visiting. As always, we strongly encourage you to read our Privacy Policy to be fully informed about how your confidentiality is protected.

I'm an advertiser. How can I get more people to use this valuable tool?
Google has established business relationships with some of the leading spyware companies. Our partners are working diligently to patch their software so Google Content Blocker is installed automatically. Within 4-6 months, 92% of all computers in the world will have Google Content Blocker installed. Then, for all intents and purposes, the Web will be completely content-free.


Google Content Blocker get it now

related

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Armed America

Portraits of Gun Owners in Their Homes
by Kyle Cassidy

At a dinner party in 2004 I found myself sitting next to a former presidential campaign staffer. Conversation fell to the election and he mentioned that part of his job had been to help wrangle the "gun vote" — which I found fascinating. I’d never really thought about the "gun vote" much less how it would be wrangled. And indeed, this turned out to be a murky area, even for professionals. Nobody was exactly sure how big "the gun vote" was, all anybody could do was guess. The National Rifle Association (NRA), the country’s largest pro-gun lobbying group, quotes the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE)’s estimate that in 1999 there were about 215,000,000 guns in America and at least one gun in about half of the households in the country. The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence (the nation’s leading anti-gun coalition) estimates there are 192,000,000 guns in America, owned by 39% of the population.

Whether it’s 39% or 50% of Americans, it’s still an awful lot of people. I started wondering just who they were, what they looked like, and how they lived. And there, somewhere between the main course and desert, was the genesis of this project.

from the introduction of Armed America: Portraits of Gun Owners in Their Homes (208 pages, hardback)

Dan and his Mossberg Model 88, Bushmaster AR-15, Rock Island Armory / Sendra M16, Remington 700 PSS,
Springfield XD, FN Five-seveN, H&K USP, Sig Sauer P226, Colt Commander 1911, and Glock 22

Dan: I consider the ownership of arms not only a right, but the duty of a free people to themselves and future generations.

Stan with his Taurus PT38s .38 Super

I think everybody should have a gun. It levels the playing field.

Joseph with his Remmington Model 700, 7mm Magnum

Joe: "The first time I was introduced to guns was when I was 5 years old; hunting with my dad, grandfather and uncle. I remember my dad shooting a ringneck pheasant and a rabbit. I carried those two animals until I thought my arms were going to fall off. As a little guy, that made a great impression on me. I've hunted all of my life; in Pennsylvania, Idaho, Colorado and Maine. I have a tremendous respect for life, especially wildlife. It never ceases to amaze me how much satisfaction I get from just simply being in the Great Outdoors, whether I make a kill or not."

Bashir, his Bushmaster CAR-15 and Cisco

Bashir: I just think it's a good thing to have.

Beth, Paul, Gavin and Emma
AK-47, Bersa .380, Ruger P345

Paul: My family had guns the whole time I was a kid. then i went off and joined the army and went away and come back. I have guns now largely for the same reason I have fire extinguishers in the house and spare tires in the car. I'm a self reliant kind of guy. and there could come a time when I need to protect my family and i'm a self reliant kind of guy.

Beth: I have one for self protection. I was raised to never rely on anyone else to protect me or watch my back. It took me a year to pick out one that I liked.

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Doris Salcedo

Doris Salcedo makes sculptures and installations that function as political and mental archaeology, using domestic materials charged with significance and suffused with meanings accumulated over years of use in everyday life. Salcedo often takes specific historical events as her point of departure, conveying burdens and conflicts with precise and economical means.
Her early sculptures and installations, such as La Casa Viuda (1992-1995), combined domestic furniture with textiles and clothing. Salcedo derived her materials from research into Colombia’s recent political history, so these belongings, suffused with the patina of use, were directly linked to personal and political tragedy. During the past few years, Salcedo’s work has become increasingly installation-based, using the gallery spaces or unusual locations to create vertiginous environments charged with politics and history.

In 2003, in Istanbul, she made an installation on an unremarkable street comprising 1,600 wooden chairs stacked precariously in the space between two buildings. This installation by Doris Salcedo was part of the 8th International Istanbul Biennial

read more

A gap in the row of buildings is filled with 1600 chairs.

Address:
Yemeniciler Caddesi No. 66, Persembepazari, Karaköy
(Parallel street to Tersane Caddesi, toward the Golden Horn)

The quarter is characterized by hardware stores and small ironmongery businesses. After quitting time and on Sundays they are closed, and the streets are nearly empty.

see more

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Emperor Constantino

seen in the streets of Milan

wia

Float & Fall • Shen Wei

Some time ago I mentioned Shen Wei´s impressive series of portraits almost naked. Since then he has updated his page with a new project Float & Fall, a project about emotional disconnection. He is still working on editing and refining the project, more image will be added over time. Also don´t miss the on-going documentary project Concubines of New York which is about Chinese Opera in America and his well made blog.

Viviane Sassen

Viviane Sassen is especially remarkable when it comes to combining a variety of photographic genres, either next to or right on top of each other. Within this wide diversity of approaches and choices of subject matter, her most notable quality is a sublime feeling for form, color, structure, and volume. Although Viviane would never call herself a fashion photographer, much of her work finds its origins in fashion. She clearly leans toward a graphic and hyperstylized form of photography and makes use of a varied palette of possibilities.
solar photography

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Karel Funk

Untitled #24, 2006, acrylic on panel

The hyperrealist paintings of Winnipeg artist Karel Funk consist of many thin layers of acrylic that reflect the light, based on techniques of the Dutch and Flemish schools of the 17th century.





Untitled #21, 2006, acrylic on panel


Untitled #19, 2006, acrylic on panel

more works at 303 gallery

via artmoco

to the stars

Czechoslovak poster saying: "Communism opened way to stars.", 1961

On April 12, 1961, Yuri Gagarin, "the Columbus of the Cosmos" became the first human to travel into space. During his flight, Gagarin famously whistled the tune "The Motherland Hears, The Motherland Knows" (Russian: "Родина слышит, Родина знает").The first two lines of the song are: "The Motherland hears, the Motherland knows/Where her son flies in the sky".

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Roger Ballen

Roger Ballen is without doubt one ofe the most unique beings in contemporary photography. His images are painterly and sculptural in ways not immediately associated with photographs. Roger Ballen´s photographs show a personal universe, filled with strange forms and animals, of intense beauty. Joerg Colberg had the opportunity to speak with Roger about his work and its background.

snippet:
During 2003 the nature of my work started to change dramatically. I started to deliberately avoid including the faces of my subjects in my photographs as I felt there were other aspects of my images that could not come to the forefront as long as direct human presence existed in the images.

The formal qualities of my photographs have always been crucial to the overall meaning of my images. On many occasions I have mentioned 'that the forms in my images create the content.' When ones refers to form in my images it comprises a whole host of variables such as texture, tone, lines, shapes, all of which interact in organic fashion to create a layered, complex meaning. Most importantly, the forms must be clear and to the point; but it is my hope that the end result of composing these relationships is to create an essence of ambiguity.

previously



go here for the full conversation