In this issue:
Jean Bundy’s book review, Gold from Newton’s Apple Tree: Historical Recipes for Natural Inks, Paints & Dyes by Nabil Ali, “is an exploration of the art of extracting colors from plants, and draws its inspiration from sources dating back to antiquity and continuing in the present day through [Ali] as a visual artist and researcher….[at] Cambridge University’s Botanic Garden (6, 20).”
Juan Carlos Buenrostro Garcia’s essay, As If You Had Been Wounded (Counter) Art Criticism for Difficult Moments, “[proposes] a critique of art that writes without presuming 'a discovery'; one that allows itself to be woven into the stories that precede and accompany it, weaving and threading these experiences together like a lively gathering — blending voices, rhythms, and perspectives, whether in writing or audiovisual form.”
Viktor Witkowski’s essay, Why is Nobody Calling for the Boycott of the US Pavilion? surmises, “Is it ignorance, resignation, the inability to recognize or face the damage done by the Trump administration?.... And those who want to cling to a sanitized notion of art by stating that art & politics have to be separated, are precisely the same people who are most oblivious… to being used for political ends.”
Danelle Bernton’s exhibition review Their Eyes were watching Minnie Evans (1890-1987): The Lost World, sleuth’s The Lost World: The Art of Minnie Evans at Atlanta‘s High Museum (thru 4/19/26). Evans, an American folk artist, with less than a sixth grade education, was “a domestic … admissions gatekeeper…. [and] shellfish harvester.”
Enxi Liu’s exhibition review, Aftersound: Francis Alӱs’ Acoustic Territories and Ephemeral Communities, discusses Alӱs’ show Richochets at London’s Barbican Centre (thru 9/1/24). “In the gallery, the sounds of [children playing] games from the ruins of Mosul or Ukraine emanate from speakers, striking and reverberating against the brutalist concrete walls built upon London's own ruins.”
Marc Michael Moser’s exhibition review, Wishing, not acting, discusses Anne Imhoff’s show ‘Wish you were gay’ at Austria’s Kuntshaus Bregenz (thru 9/22/24) concluding, “While Imhof’s work is celebrated for its provocative depth and postmodern flair, it is impossible to ignore the commercial undertones that permeate the exhibition, raising questions about the intrinsic market value of her artistry.”