From the category archives:

Off Our Chest

Seriously, Fuck You, GOP

by Paddy Johnson on January 12, 2017
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It’s been real hard to motivate to do anything this morning. Last night the Senate held a “votearama” – and eventually passed – the budget resolution that contains instructions to repeal the ACA or “Obamacare”. Democrats proposed amendments to preserve certain parts, like healthcare protections for veterans. Republicans voted against that. They voted against coverage for pre-existing conditions. Then they killed CHIP, the children’s health insurance program. They voted against federal aid to rural hospitals, against contraception coverage, against the rule that allows you to keep your kids on your insurance until their 26, and against protecting Medicare and Medicaid.

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Working Through Post-Election Grief with This Riot Grrrl Playlist

by Michael Anthony Farley on November 18, 2016
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For many of us feminists, the election of Donald Trump might just be the single worst event we’ve collectively experienced. This statement needs no litany of examples to back it up.

Of course, many people—myself included—have been glued to social media, religiously reading political commentary, the news, and critical theory to help process how royally fucked the world is. But honestly, the only thing that I have found to be remotely comforting is feminist punk.

Here’s my suggested playlist, paired with a stage of grieving correlated to each song.

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Twyla Launches The Most Offensive Art Ad on the Internet

by Paddy Johnson on October 13, 2016
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The new art editions company Twyla is certainly making a splash. Last week they announced they raised 19 million in venture capital funds while boasting such innovations as being able to search by color, size and theme. This week, they’ve embarked on an ad campaign so offensive, it’s been papering my feminist Facebook forums. Behold the ad above, which encourages collectors to “get some” while picturing a young woman taking off her shirt. A caption overlaid reads, “Recently Single? Buy Art”.

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Why I Didn’t Come to Your Opening

by Michael Anthony Farley on August 30, 2016
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No, we cannot make it to every single art opening our friends would like us to. Here’s why.

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One Day Into the World Without Gawker

by Paddy Johnson on August 23, 2016
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For those of us who started and maintained blogs in the mid aughts, yesterday’s closure of Gawker wasn’t easy to watch. A year ago, I published a list of art blogs and magazines with Corinna Kirsch, full of headings modified with words like “active”, “not-active”, “defunct”, and “deleted”. It was already the end of an era then. Now, with the demise of the largest and arguably the most pioneering of blogs, I find myself wondering who amongst us will be left standing.

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Updated: City Councilmen Holdup Bill to Save the City’s Artists and Small Businesses

by Paddy Johnson on August 26, 2015
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What is it going to take to get city politicians to start doing the right thing? It costs a small fortune to live in this city and when bills are introduced that would help give a leg up to artists, there isn’t enough support to get them off the ground.

Case and point: The Small Business Jobs Survival Act. This is a bill that will help commercial tenants facing displacement from rising rents—including artists’ studios and small businesses—and it currently has only 23 of the 26 votes it needs to pass.

The bill would require commercial landlords to offer ten-year leases to all existing tenants who’ve paid their rent on time. If the two sides can’t agree on terms, they go to arbitration. Currently a landlord doesn’t have to renew a tenant’s lease, can kick the tenant out whenever it suits them, raise their rent exorbitantly, and the tenant has no means of contesting the decision.

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Bring Back the Nerdocracy

by Paddy Johnson and Corinna Kirsch on January 8, 2015
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The tide has changed for blog nerds. Tech is cool, but text is not.

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Not Just a “Soccer Mom,” Michelle Grabner Likes Math

by Corinna Kirsch on October 24, 2014
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I’ve seen Grabner’s show Ken Johnson complained about. What is he talking about? No, really, what?

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Dave Hickey on Democracy and Art

by Corinna Kirsch on August 7, 2014
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Dream on, Dave Hickey.

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The Guggenheim’s All-Male Monopoly on the Rotunda Continues

by Corinna Kirsch on July 8, 2014
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Yesterday, the Guggenheim announced its 2015 exhibition schedule, and yet again, no women have solo shows in the rotunda.

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