implicit art

Four Iowan’s Attempt Citizen’s Arrest On Karl Rove | AHN | July 27, 2008

Des Moines, Iowa (AHN) — Four people were arrested Friday for attempting to make a citizen’s arrest on Karl Rove.The group of three Catholic workers and a retired Methodist minister and Peace and Justice Advocate were cited for trespassing and released after trying to enter the Wakonda Country Club in Des Moines where Rove was scheduled to speak at a Republican Fundraiser.

The small group were acting under Iowa law that states private citizens have a responsibility to arrest someone if they believe a felony has been committed. That person is then turned over to police officials and a judge for formal indictment. Under the law a federal judge must evaluate the charges and decide if an indictment should be made.

This is the second attempt by two members of the group to arrest Rove, whom many believe should be held accountable, along with other members of the Bush administration, for war crimes, murder and lies to the public related to the Iraq war.

The retired minister, Rev. Chet Guinn, 80, told reporters who were on site for the pre-arranged arrest that everyone who remains silent when major crimes are being committed against all humanity becomes an accomplice.

I just saw this sign for the first time. It reads, “Connecticut Welcomes You. Birthplace of George W. Bush. We Apologize.”

Awesome (Updated note: it turns out that this sign is a mash-up / fake, but still awesome in my opinion. See comments for more.)

For those of you who don’t know, I’m a huge supporter of Creative Commons (CC), and more specifically iCommons. The former is an organization dedicated to open source coding and content for creative technologists, designers, artists, musicians, scientists (and more!), and promotes access and re-mixing through distribution licenses that are alternatives to copyright worldwide. The latter (iCommons) is an international community of the same types, all of whom may use or promote CC, copyfight, pirated content/material for activism and/or art, remixing and reusing legally and illegally, or anything around “the commons” of content and community; this is mostly manifested as a yearly summit of amazing individuals talking about and furthering the state of the (communal) arts (and the community itself).

In 2006 and 2007, I participated as an artist in resident (AIR) for iCommons (in Brazil and Croatia, respectively), and in the latter year I ran a larger AIR programme, where there were 6 interdisciplinary artists (and one arts critic!) from 4 continents. Although I’m sitting out this year (Sapporo!), I’m still a friend, as evidenced by the logo/link below and in my sidebar.

I highly recommend checking it out and getting involved - my life, art, networks and activist tendencies are better having been involved, and I’m sure to be participating again in the future.

UPDATE Well, read the below and watch the interview, but I will admit that, to quote AmericaBlog, Wright “crossed over into cuckoo-land yesterday, saying that our government created AIDS, among other things.” It’s weird the juxtaposition between the Moyers interview and his self aggrandizing press conference yesterday. I don’t understand….

UPDATE II: Joe Conason argues about how I feel re: the NAACP and press conferences held by Wright earlier this week. You should also google or youtube some of the clips from those, especially the former. It’s amazing how differently Wright can perform there and on PBS. And it’s sad that such a wonderful man would behave so badly for reasons unknown….

UPDATE III: I should make clear that I think this is in no way reflective of Obama, and I’m utterly sick of all the coverage Wright gets, while important issues (and Clinton and more importantly McCain scandals) are ignored by the MSM (mainstream media). Look at the polls! People care more about the economy, about Hillary’s political opportunism, and funnily enough the McCain ties to GEORGE W BUSH (who is actually less popular than the Reverend Wright!), than they do about Obama’s ties to Wright. Whatever the news agents tell you, and they all say Wright is more important, these are the real numbers. Americans know what’s important - can we please try to keep our eyes on the ball?

Original post:

Honestly, what an amazing man. Given Obama and what I know of him from reading both his books and watching his speeches (and my obsessive political followings more generally), I knew Wright was being mischaracterized by the media, but, wow, I had no idea of his lifelong commitment to making a better world. And what unflinching care, forgiveness and pacifism… It’s just striking. I am now a Wright fan, and plan to go see one of his sermons in the midwest when I’m there in the Fall.

Reverend Jeremiah Wright interview, part one

Reverend Jeremiah Wright interview, part two

And Bill Moyers, too - they don’t make them (journalists) like that any more….

My president:

And, I must also quote Andrew Sullivan’s first response in full:

Alas, I cannot give a more considered response right now as I have to get on the road. But I do want to say that this searing, nuanced, gut-wrenching, loyal, and deeply, deeply Christian speech is the most honest speech on race in America in my adult lifetime. It is a speech we have all been waiting for for a generation. Its ability to embrace both the legitimate fears and resentments of whites and the understandable anger and dashed hopes of many blacks was, in my view, unique in recent American history.
And it was a reflection of faith - deep, hopeful, transcending faith in the promises of the Gospels. And it was about America - its unique promise, its historic purpose, and our duty to take up the burden to perfect this union - today, in our time, in our way.
I have never felt more convinced that this man’s candidacy - not this man, his candidacy - and what he can bring us to achieve - is an historic opportunity. This was a testing; and he did not merely pass it by uttering safe bromides. He addressed the intimate, painful love he has for an imperfect and sometimes embittered man. And how that love enables him to see that man’s faults and pain as well as his promise. This is what my faith is about. It is what the Gospels are about. This is a candidate who does not merely speak as a Christian. He acts like a Christian.
Bill Clinton once said that everything bad in America can be rectified by what is good in America. He was right - and Obama takes that to a new level. And does it with the deepest darkest wound in this country’s history.
I love this country. I don’t remember loving it or hoping more from it than today.

A fantastic artist and friend, with a real sense of community, someone who knows her way around - and helps to drive art on - the internet as well as the studio (not to mention kitchen: Joy and I were on residence in Croatia together for iCommons last year, and she made some fantastic meals), Joy Garnett has her first solo exhibition with Ed Winkleman gallery next week. Wish I could be there, Joy - good luck, the work looks great!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 25, 2008

Joy Garnett
New Paintings

February 15 – March 15, 2008
Opening: Thursday, February 21, 6-8 pm
Gallery Hours: Tues – Sat, 11 6 pm

Winkleman Gallery
637 West 27th Street
New York, NY 10001

Winkleman Gallery is very pleased to present a solo exhibition of new paintings by New York artist Joy Garnett. In four large canvases Garnett continues her groundbreaking exploration of the malleability of instantly globalized images and how they have begun to replace written language as the markers of mankind’s collective memory or consciousness.

Unlike her last three New York exhibitions, which centered on specific themes of conflict or violence, this grouping is united only by the loose suggestion of images possibly taken at precisely the same moment in very different locations around the world. Garnett circles the planet to underscore perhaps the unstoppable imperative of this new lingua franca. The images Garnett paints are culled from digital mass media outlets and then archived for sometimes months at a time, permitting their context to evaporate. Returning to the image with a fuzzy at best memory of what it reportedly documented, Garnett’s process highlights the role misremembering plays in this new dubious “reality.”

The optimistic rising sun in Morning in China references the economic ascent of the Asian giant, even as its smoggy landscape hints at the potential environmental disaster such rapid expanse can bring. The explosion and chaos suggested in the bright daylight of Noon points to the inescapably volatile nature that defines the seemingly ubiquitous power grabs taking place around the globe or simply the natural consequences of so much movement all at once. The South American seascape at moonlit dusk seen in Harbor (2) belies a calm similar to the Chinese morning, even as the blood red reflections hint at something sinister. And the overwhelmingly dark and massive destruction conveyed in the rubble of the World Trade Center in Night reminds us that there remains the potential for as-yet unimaginable nightmares. The first painting Garnett has been able to paint of the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks (despite it being the single most photographed event in human history), Night is a tour-de-force of expressionistic recollection visited upon its ubiquitous source image. It is also the only incident that’s clearly identifiable among the exhibition’s paintings, but as the event that only served to speed up an already insanely speedy world it has already taken on legendary status and become the central catalyst of the enhanced and panicked race to globalize.

Joy Garnett received her MFA from The City College of New York and studied painting at L’Ecole Nationale Superieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris. Her notable exhibitions include, Strange Weather at the National Academy of Sciences, Washington, DC; Image War, organized by the Whitney Museum of American Art (2006); When Artists Say We, Artists Space (2006); Visionary Anatomies, Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition (2004-2007); and Without Fear or Reproach, De Witte Zaal, Ghent, Belgium (2003).

For more information, please contact Edward Winkleman at 212.643.3152 or info@winkleman.com

“… in the name of preserving hope do we disdain it. That is how a phobocracy maintains its grip on power.”

This is a moving and wonderful article that every American should read before they go to the polls. Chabon, who wrote one of my favorite books of all time, nails it when he explains away the reasons people give to vote for Hillary over Barrack.

read it