Brooklyn’s former “Broken Angel” house. Image by Chris Wood via Hyperallergic.
No, none of these links are about Dubai.
- Last night, gunmen opened fire on the “Muhammad Art Exhibit and Contest” in the suburbs of Dallas. The anti-Islam event was organized by Pamela Geller, president of the American Freedom Defense Initiative—which is considered a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center. A security guard was wounded before both gunmen were shot and killed by police. [Reuters]
- This comes just days after Renald “Luz” Luzier, sole surviving cartoonist from the Charlie Hebdo attack, announced that he has given up drawing Muhammad. It’s probably a wise choice. [BBC News]
- The Bay Area’s “Parking Lot Art Fair” opened this weekend. The event was a free (to both visitors and exhibitors) uncurated alternative to Art Market San Francisco in a public parking lot. Based on photos, it actually looks like it was more fun than it sounds. [SFGate]
- At the other end of the art world, Christie’s is hoping to break price records with the auction of one of the last major Picasso paintings in a private collection and Giacometti’s iconic “Man Pointing”. The works are valued at at $140 million and $130 million, respectively. [Business Insider]
- Clinton Hill’s “Broken Angel” story keeps getting sadder. Arthur Wood, the sculptor who was evicted from the property after living and working there for 30 years, is heartbroken that the developers who bought the site are incorporating fragments of his sculptures into luxury condos. [DNAinfo]
- A detailed account of a weekend with the dissident elite; artist Ai Weiwei, Wikileaks collaborator Jacob Appelbaum, and documentary filmmaker Laura Poitras. The three got together in Beijing for Rhizome’s 7on7. [Fusion]
- Interview Magazine talks with Beth Fiore and Jonathan D’Agostino about their new Lower East Side gallery space D&F. When asked what the biggest struggle was opening a gallery, Fiore responds, “I think the biggest struggle is bigger than opening a gallery. It’s being in the art world. It’s so hard, and there is no regulation, and you can waste a lot of time with some really bullshit people.” Hear, hear. [Interview Magazine]
- Russia is a weird place. In the 1990’s, culture, especially the music scene, was obsessed with being glamorous, apolitical, and mass-media friendly. Russia’s decadent post-Soviet years sound like they were probably a lot of fun… if you were a gangster or popstar. [The Moscow Times]
