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Pub. DateTitleDuration
03 May 2022Whitney Biennial Report: Care and Caution01:08:41

We're baaaaack! After a four month break William and Paddy return with some big news about the podcast and an in depth conversation on The Whitney Biennial. We do the full dive here: What are the themes? How is it organized? Is it worth seeing? Is it too cautious? Who are the notable omissions? Why do these omissions matter?  

 

Artist discussed:

Cy Gavin

Rebecca Belmore

Guadalupe Rosales

Lucy Raven

Kandis Williams

Raven Chacon

Na Mira

Alex Da Corte

Trinh T. Minh-ha

Coco Fusco

Dave McKenzie

Jacky Connolly

Alfredo Jaar

WangShui

Daniel Joseph Martinez

Jason Rhoades

Rick Lowe

Pao Houa Her

Nayland Blake

Awilda Sterling-Duprey

Matt Connors

Leidy Churchman

Monica Arreola

James Little

Ralph Lemon

Jane Dickson

16 Jul 2021Explain Me with Laura Raicovich: Art and Museums in An Age of Protest01:46:01

This week hosts William Powhida and Paddy Johnson sit down with curator, writer, and former museum director Laura Raicovich to discuss her new book Culture Strike: Art and Museums in An Age of Protest. We do a deep dive with her not just on the subjects in the book, but her latest project, The Art and Society Census. Relevant links below. 

  • Culture Strike: Art and Museums in An Age of Protest, VERSO
  • The Art and Society Census, HYPERALLERGIC AND THE BROOKLYN PUBLIC LIBRARY
  • Deinstutitional Research Team. (A project William Powhida worked on mentioned in the book.) LINK
  • StrikeMoMA LINK
  • The Whitney Staff letter central to the Kanders' protests. HYPERALLERGIC
  • A good policy-based companion for Laura Raicovich's project. THE PEOPLE'S CULTURAL PLAN
  • A non-profit with a board structure worth promoting as a positive example. RECESS
  • Back story on Laura Raicovich's resignation from the Queens Museum of Art- ARTNET NEWS
19 May 2020Revolution for the Family: Heather Bhandari and Nikki Columbus on Pandemic Parenting, art, and Activism 01:52:29

This week on Explain Me, co-hosts William Powhida and Paddy Johnson talk to arts organizers and activists Heather Bhandari and Nikki Columbus about the challenges for mothers during the pandemic, and the challenges for arts workers seeking to make changes to a system that no longer works for them. 

Of the family-focused topics discussed we take on pandemic screen time for kids (Bhandari describes DinoTrux as terrible for kids, but a necessary evil), what to do if your toddler licks a bodega door, and disrupted schedules that make it impossible to find or look for work and require long and often unusual hours. 

On the subject of organizing we discuss several projects spearheaded by Bhandari and Columbus respectively designed to pave actionable paths for artists. 

Finally we discuss Frieze New York, and contrast their dubious charity efforts during the fair to the more collective NADA art fair model that works towards a sustainable model for everyone. Show links below. 

The Art World Conference 

Forward Union 

Art/Work, Heather Bhandari and Jonathan Melber 

N+1, Free Your Mind, by Claire Bishop and Nikki Columbus

Art+Work+Place, Emergency Session I, Veralist Center

Art+Work+Place, Emergency Session II, Veralist Center

Museum transparency Newsletter (Read about all the layoffs and other bad news that’s happening in the museum world right now—of which there is a ton.)

The Model Model: Ethical Actions by Arts Organizations in the time of COVID-19 (Read about the good news and exemplary work by arts organizations.) 

Obama Commencement Speech

#graduatetogether2020 (twitter hashtag) 

Frieze Art Fair (May 8-15th) 

NADA Fair (May 20-June 21)

10 Mar 2020Explain Me: We're Baaaaaack!01:25:52

 

 

Welcome back to Explain Me! In an effort to produce content a little more regularly we're trying something new: no editing. This means a little more baseless speculation, and off the cuff commentary, in return for actual podcasts! Yes! In this episode we discuss news, art, and trends seen at The Armory, Spring Break and The Independent. Highlights include: The Armory

  • News! They're moving to the Javits Center! Speculation about what that means.
  • Adrian Wong with animal spiritual guide Lynn Schuster at Carrie Secrist Gallery
  • Austin Lee at Jeffrey Dietch
  • Kumasi J. Barnett at Ryan Lowell Projects
  • Dominic Chambers at Anna Zorina Gallery
  • Matt Bolinger at Zurcher 
  • Hannah Wilke and Cassils at Feldman Gallery

Spring Break

  • Gallery Cubed's Nathan Sinai Rayman
  • Emily McElreath and Evan Pepper's show of work by Jeila Gueramian
  • Chambliss Giobbi’s A Room with a View
  • Carlos Rosales-Silva

The Independent

  • Galerie Jocelyn Wolff's Miriam Cahn
  • Various Small Fires's Jessie Homer French
  • Andrew Edlin Gallery
  • Colored pencil and pastels
21 Jun 2022Defining Contemporary Kitsch: Part 2 of The New York Art Fairs00:47:24

What does contemporary kitsch look like? In this episode, Paddy and William use a discussion of the art fairs and New York gallery scene to lead a defining of the term. From its generic definition of objects described to be in poor taste because of excessive garishness or sentimentality, to the current nostalgia driving a tasted for recycled art movements, all kitsch lacks in originality. 

Listen in for the whole conversation. 

 

THE INDEPENDENT

Kenny Schachter at Allouche Benias Gallery 

Renate Druks at The Ranch,

Olivia Reavey at Helena Anrather

 

1-54 CONTEMPORARY AFRICAN ART FAIR

Sanaa Gateja at 50 Golborne

WonderBuhle at BKhz Gallery

 

VOLTA

Michael Foley

 

GALLERIES 

Judith Linhares at PPOW 

JTT Gallery Anna-Sophie Berger and Sam McKinniss

Sky Hopinka at Broadway Gallery 

Paul Mpagi Sepuya at Bortalami 

Nora Turato at 52 Walker Gallery

 

ARTICLES

The Downward Spiral: 59th Venice Biennial by Dean Kissick 

20 Apr 2020From L.A. With Love: Thoughts on Online Viewing Rooms, Museum Layoffs, and More with Carolina Miranda and Michael Shaw01:47:32

29 Jun 2020Institutional failure, Trump's Agenda, and Meme-Driven Conservative Movements: A Talk with Nayland Blake01:47:44

Artist Nayland Blake joins the podcast to discuss the murder of George Floyd at the hands of a white police officer, mass protests, and the resurgence of COVID as the backdrop for public art and how museums are addressing diversity.  Spearheaded in large part by Blake, we discuss all of these issues  through the lens of what people need and how art makers, art workers and arts institutions answer that need. 

We started the conversation with Blake's recent twitter thread on art criticism. 

"Art criticism is the activity of thinking with and through art objects," they wrote. "If you constantly reach for the same few objects to think with, you stagnate as a critic and simply reinforce your own bias." 

Other relevant links mentioned in the show: 

 

Support Explain Me by becoming a member on Patreon

02 Nov 2020Explain Me with Andy Adams of FlakPhoto: From Idyllic Photos to The Surveillance State02:06:50

Image via: Andy Adams instagram

In this episode of Explain Me we talk to Andy Adams (FlakPhoto on instagram), a culture producer and long time digital director. Andy is the founder of FlakPhoto Projects, an international community of photographers that operates in a parallel path to the one Powhida and Johnson come from—the New York based studio and museum world. Andy, William, and Paddy began working online around the same time—2003-2005, so we start our conversation there. We track through the exuberance and possibility we saw online in the early aughts, the economic collapse of the late aughts, and fraught political environment we’re now navigating. Subjects include: The signature Flak Photo style, the ethics of documentary photography, and the the postponed Guston show at the Tate.

 

References and reading:

Instagram: @photographersvote #photographersvote

Two Museums Tried to Sell Art. Only One Caught Grief About it. New York Times

Guston Can Wait. Nikki Columbus, N+1

Contra-Internet, Zach Blas, e-flux Journal

 

14 Jun 2022What The New York Art Fairs Tell Us About Art00:49:47

Art media does a great job at looking forward to art events, yet rarely looks back to reflect on what these happenings say about the cultural moment. In this episode of Explain Me, co-hosts Paddy Johnson and William Powhida do a deep dive into the fairs to discuss the deeply conservative sales landscape we've been sinking into over the past ten years.  

ARTISTS DISCUSSED

Carlos Jacanamijoy’s 2020 ab ex painting “Carminos de Luz” at Harper’s

Laurie Reid’s “Ballast” at Et Al. Gallery

The Baboon Chair by  Margaux Valengin at Pact

Paul Gabrelli’s “Everyday Objects” at New Discretions

Elliot Reed at Anonymous Gallery

Dan Colen at Gagosian

Al Freeman at 56 Henry

Tessa Lynch’s text-based compositions at Patricia Fleming Gallery

Scott Lyal at Migeul Abbreu Gallery

Aaron Garber-Maikovska

Casja von Zeipel’s Celesbian Terrain  

Kevin McCoy’s corporate-sponsored display of Quantum and some generative artworks by Jennifer and Kevin McCoy. 

Pedro Reyes, Alex da Corte, Nayland Blake, Alex Katz, Matthew Wong, 

04 Aug 2020Zombie Figuration Isn't a Thing: A Critical Autopsy with Antwaun Sargent02:06:32

 

In this episode of Explain Me, critic and curator Antwaun Sargent joins us to discuss the effects of the pandemic and Alex Greenberger's Zombie Figuration, a confusing essay that appeared earlier this month in ARTnews. In the first half hour we discuss the disparate effects of the pandemic and general politics. Then we move on to art, zombies,  race,  and why art has limits

 

BIOGRAPHY

Antwaun Sargent is an art critic and a writer who has contributed to The New York Times, The New Yorker, Vice and more, as well as essays to multiple museum publications. His first book, “The New Black Vanguard: Photography between Art and Fashion” (Aperture) is out now. In April he announced a new partnership with Gagosian that will include working on four exhibitions and contributing features to their magazine.  Follow him on Twitter and Instagram

 

LISTENER ADVISORY: In this episode, Paddy Johnson occasionally repeats Antwaun Sargent's words when his audio cuts out. This leads to periodic moments when Johnson and Sargent speak at the same time. 

 

LINKS

EARLY WHITNEY BIENNIAL REVIEWS 

 

Find us on Spotify, Stitcher, and Apple Podcasts

 

29 Mar 2020Explain Me with Jonathan Schwartz of Atelier4 and Magda Sawon of Postmasters01:27:37

Serkan Özkaya's Proletarier Aller Länder (Workers of the World) 1999, Image via Postmaster's Gallery.

In this episode of Explain Me, hosts Paddy Johnson and William Powhida talk to Magda Sawon of Postmasters Gallery in New York, and Jonathan Schwartz, the CEO and founder of Atelier4, an arts logistics company based out of New York. The discussion includes stories and conversations you won’t find anywhere else. 

Schwartz reports that at least one logistics company is currently breaking the law to ship art, and that Fedex trucks are in short supply because they’re being used to transport the dead. 

Magda describes the challenges for galleries which range from financial burdens to the need to better consider the online art environment. 

William and Paddy discuss the financial precarity of artists, writers, and educators. 

As a group we talk about what needs to be done to respond to the crisis and what is being done. We also make the mini announcement that we will be launching a Patreon for Explain Me in the next week or two. More details on that soon!

We’re looking at a radical shift in opportunity, so this conversation includes a fair amount of debate. We’re also doing it over zoom, with William on the phone due to an internet connectivity issue. This isn’t the best recording quality we’ve ever produced, but it might be the most important episode. Please tune in.  

COMING UP: Resources for freelancers and art organizations. What relief is available and how long it will take to get to the people who need it.

14 Dec 2020Explain Me With Art Critic Ben Davis: The Year That Wasn't, Part Two00:58:01

 

Immersive Van Gogh

In this episode of Explain Me, we continue our conversation with Artnet's National Critic Ben Davis as we take stock of 2020. 

In this episode: 

09 Mar 2021The NFT Explain Me with Marina Galperina and Amy Whitaker01:24:12
On this episode of Explain Me we do a deep dive on Non-Fungible Tokens, NFTs, pronounced Nifty, by also N-F-T. Joined by guests Marina Galperina, features editor of Gizmodo, and former curator and writer on digital art, and Amy Whitaker, author and assistant professor of visual arts administration, hosts William Powhida and Paddy Johnson navigate the headlines generating news around this new digital currency, the basic definitions, and the potential and dangers it poses to artists.    Timestamped resources   6' 21'' Explain Me's episode Related Utopias: Bitcoin and the Artworld with Kevin McCoy.   7' NFT definitions and the blockchain    13 Do artists need to care?    21' The Guardian features Marina Galperina's Vine Show.  26' Beeple Mania and aesthetics discussion - Liberal Jon McNaughton or early digital art maximalism in the style of Cliff Evans and Kenneth Tin-Kin Hung?    40' NFT platforms and markets. Massimo Franceschet and Sparrow Read's The Inconvenient Truth About Secondary Markets, Part II  43' Legacy Russell tweets about the toxic white male culture dominating NFT conversation. Follows up with a shout out to QTPOCIA+ and female-identified people engaging NFTs.   44' Who is the face of NFTs? Kenny Schachter. His NFT article on Artnet.    47' Kenny Schachter's "Scam Likely" on Nifty Gateway. 51' Alternatives - Casey Reese's Artist-to-artist exchange with Bitmark.com, Feral File. Goes live March 19. Also relevant: Reese's Medium article, Collecting Art in the Age of Digital Reproduction  57' - NFT and blockchain carbon footprint 1 hour 10' Reasons for optimism 1 hour 16' Art pricing and Greg Allen's Facsimile Objects   1 hour 22' Amy Whitaker discusses valuation and commensuration sociological studies   Read and Watch   Amy Whitaker, A New Way To Pay Artists, TEDXfoggybottom Amy Whitaker and Roman Kraussl, Fractional Equity, Blockchain, and the Future of Creative Work, Management Science, July 2020 Amy Whitaker, Art and Blockchain: A Primer, History, and Taxonomy of Blockchain Use Cases in the Arts, Artivate: A Journal of Entrepreneurship in the Arts. Summer 2019

Amy Whitaker, Hannah Grannemann, Artists’ Royalties and Performers’ Equity: A Ground-Up Approach to Social Impact Investment in Creative Fields, CMSE Vol 3, no 2, pg 33-51. Memo Atkin, The Unreasonable Ecological Cost of #Cryptoart, Dec 14 2020 Rea McNamara, How Crypto Art Might Offer Artists Increased Autonomy, March 2, 2021

 
07 Nov 2017An Interview with Kenny Schacter: There's No Bubble in the Art Market and No Solution for Struggling Artists01:10:39

Hosts Paddy Johnson and William Powhida talk to art advisor Kenny Schacter about the art market at the upper levels and the art market in the middle and emerging tiers. Our central question: How Trumpian is the Art World. We learn about that, plus Schacter's great love for art and dealers. A word of warning though: some of Schacter's conclusions for struggling artists are bleak at best. 

21 Sep 2021What Does a Return to the Art World Mean?01:59:54

In this episode artist Chloe Bass’s tweet pointing to the hypocrisy of the art world leads to a discussion of labor, the New York art fairs, and unions. 

We discuss:

Max Lankin’s observations for ArtForum on the Armory Fair about how the new digs at the Javits Center improve upon the Piers, which were literally falling into the water.  Funny how easy it is to forget that the Javits Center, just two months ago, served as a mass vaccination center, and the year prior a makeshift hospital for COVID victims. Mostly people were just happy to see each other again. 

Dana Kopel’s piece in the Baffler Magazine, Against Artsploitation, which chronicles the unionization efforts at the New Museum, and the museum executive’s endless gaslighting of employees. 

The New York Art Fairs. We talk about the art at The Armory Show, The Independent, and Spring Break. The work discussed below: 

 

THE ARMORY SHOW

Jeffrey Gibson at Tandem Press Wendy Redstar at Sargent’s Daughters Tau Lewis at Night Gallery Tony Matelli - Maruani Mercier Theresa Chromati at The Kravets Wehby Gallery Jennifer Bartlett at Locks Gallery Kamrooz Aram at Green . Art . Gallery Jose Davilas at Sean Kelly Sara Greenberger Rafferty at Rachel Uffner Susumu Kamijo at Jack Hanley Hayley Barker at Shrine Dontae Hayes at Mindy Solomon Gallery Michael Rakowitz at Jane Lombard

INDEPENDENT

Julian Schnabel at Vito Schnabel Sedrick Chisom at New American Painting Jo Nigoghossian at Broadway Gallery Erik Parker at Ross+Kramer Amy Feldman at Galerie Eva Presenhuber The Ranch

SPRING BREAK

Guy Richards Smit 

Jennifer Catron and Paul Outlaw - curated by Magda Sawon

Chapel - curated by M. Charlene Stevens with work by Sophie Kahn and Colette Robbins

Outliars, curated by Elisabeth Smolarz, work by Angie Waller

Gather Rusted Satellites curated by Amanda Nedham Tristam Lasndwone, Kyle Hittmeirer Nicholas Cueva 

Loren Erdrich

Willa Wasserman

James Razko

Tammie Rubin

Steve Locke

23 Nov 2021Flux Factory Buys Building, Retains Soul01:29:00

How many times have we seen artist-centered communities lose their grass roots identity when they buy property? High profile organizations that have shed their founders vision as they gained visibility such as the New Museum and Meow Wolf serve as cautionary tales. The quality of the work they produce suffers and their poor treatment of employees makes headlines. That's to say nothing of personality-less art complexes like The Shed, which cement the wealth of their funders while meagerly contributing to the city's cultural life.

But these types of cultural outcomes are a choice and not an inevitable destiny, a reality made clear in this episode's interview with Flux Factory's Nat Roe. In his role as residency Executive Director, Roe recently secured $5 million from the city to purchase the building the organization has been working out of since 2009. Additionally, the organization will now operate a new satellite location, Flux IV, a the 3000 square foot ground floor gallery space on the ground floor of Gotham Point’s South Tower building. At no point in our discussion did we talk about significant changes that needed to be made to Flux's DNA to make this acquisition happen. Rather we talked about the importance of sound proofing their building so they don't disturb the neighbors.

In the midst of LIC, a homogenized tech-enclave for Manhattan commuters, this grass roots artist organization and residency program will now serve as a permanent beacon of creative energy for the community.

Can the DCLA support other smaller arts organizations in New York by helping them purchase real estate? Nat Roe gives us the skinny, going full wonk on city policy, while offering a history of Flux Factory and its place in the New York City arts landscape.

  SHOW LINKS   Help Launch Flux Factory's new venue, Flux IV    The Western Queens Community Land Trust—artist Jenny Dubnau is a co-chair of the board.    NY Times Tribeca Art Galleries, June   NY Times Tribeca Art Galleries, October article    How many times have we seen artist-centered arts organizations lose their NYC Club Scene debt? New York Times   Secret Project Robot    NYC Commercial Rent Law 
14 Dec 2020Explain Me with Art Critic Ben Davis: The Year That Wasn't, Part One01:34:12
"Immersive Van Gogh"

In this episode of Explain Me, we take stock of the year in art with Artnet's National Critic Ben Davis.

What happened in the art world in 2020?  We ask this knowing that we obviously have not seen a lot of art or attended anything remotely like a normal opening. But, a lot happened this year, even if we experienced it all at a distance.

We know that, with the vaccine slowly rolling out now, the art world will return, but what are the implications of the pandemic for the art world this coming fall and beyond?

In part one of this episode we discuss: 

The few upsides of the pandemic.

Ben Davis on Phillip Guston Show Postponement

Baltimore Museum Deaccessioning, two opposing views.

Three Tech Companies Locked in a Battle to Capture Your Attention With the World’s Best Immersive Van Gogh Experience. Brian Boucher, Artnet

The Boundless Optimism of BTS, Esquire

06 Jun 2018Explain Me: Bags of Cash Help New Galleries00:46:38

In this episode we discuss how the Frieze Art Fair's failing air conditioning units won't help global warming, sales strategies for emerging artists, and galleries that have come and gone. 

07 Jun 2018Explain Me, Part II: Doug Aitken New Era, Worst Show of 201801:01:45

In Part II of Explain Me, William Powhida and Paddy Johnson discuss the difference between relational aesthetics and social practice, the whims of the auction market and the perilous affect it can have on artist careers, and Doug Aitken's train wreck of a show at 303 Gallery along with a handful of truly remarkable shows. Those shows listed below.  

Doug Aitken at 303

Painted in Mexico 1700-1790 at The Met

Huma Bhabha at the Met

A Luta Continua The Sylvio Perlstein Collection

Mel Chin at the Queens Museum

#OE2018

Jacolby Satterwhite at Gavin Brown

On Human Limits at Present Company

Ander Mikalson

*Plus we throw Dan Colen under the bus. 

01 May 2018Related Utopias: Bitcoin Economies and the Art World01:33:34

This week on Explain Me, William Powhida and Paddy Johnson talk with artist Kevin McCoy about Blockchain, Bitcoin and the Monegraph. This episode is your ultimate bitcoin/blockchain/monegraph explainer. 

Links: 

Monegraph

Seven on Seven, 2014

Public Key/Private Key

Reading List: 

China, Crypto-Currency, and the World Order Tribute and Tribulations - http://wdwreview.org/desks/china-crypto-currency-and-the-world-order/ Digital Denominations - http://wdwreview.org/desks/china-crypto-currency-and-the-world-order-part-2/ Clone Wars - http://wdwreview.org/desks/china-crypto-currency-and-the-world-order-part-3/

A modern classic Hito Steyerl - If you don’t have bread, eat Art! http://www.e-flux.com/journal/76/69732/if-you-don-t-have-bread-eat-art-contemporary-art-and-derivative-fascisms/   Does Digital Culture Want to be Free? How blockchains are transforming the economy of cultural goods http://www.academia.edu/33838249/Does_digital_culture_want_to_be_free_How_blockchains_are_transforming_the_economy_of_cultural_goods   Thanks to Explain Me sponsor, Superfine
17 Jul 2018Explain Me: The Case for Taxing the Hell Out of Peter Brant01:11:13

In this episode of Explain Me William Powhida and Paddy Johnson discuss the horrific business practices of Peter Brant and Interview Magazine, a fundraising campaign at University of North Carolina so misguided that firing is in order, and the latest headscratching Creative Time project. To help us discuss all of this, and how the new tax code will affect artists accountant and painter Hannah Cole joins us.  

17 Apr 2018Explain Me: The New Museum Triennial—Two Critics Perform Their Own Acts of Sabotage00:54:02

In this episode of Explain Me, Paddy Johnson and William Powhida discuss the New Museum Triennial "Songs for Sabotage". Both Johnson and Powhida agree this show has more of its fair share of bad art but only Powhida sees this as a dealbreaker. Debate ensues. The ad in which Pepsi and model Kendall Jenner create world peace gets a mention. 

All images discussed can be viewed on Art F City.  

Thanks to Explain Me sponsor, Superfine

24 Nov 2017Gentrification, Income Inequality and Donald Trump Baby Turds01:27:03

In this episode of Explain Me William Powhida and Paddy Johnson talk about the 450 million dollar Leonardo Da Vinci of disputed authenticity and the Boyle Heights activists who follow artist Laura Owen's from L.A. to New York to protest her non-profit 365 Mission while she visited The Whitney. Activists believe the presence of her gallery will lead to displacement. Additionally, we discuss the following exhibitions: 

Tiger Strikes Asteroid: Didier William, "We Will Win"

The Museum of Human Achievement (in Austin TX)

Five Miles: Nicholas Cueva, "The People Games Play"

Trestle Projects: Tracing Trajectories/Selections from the Hoggard/Wagner Collection 

Microscope Gallery: Anita Thacher, “Anteroom”

Signal Gallery: Rachel Rossin, "Peak Performance"

Present Company: Myeongsoo Kim and Jessie Rose Vala, "Dusk to Dust" 

Denny Gallery: Future Retrieval, Permenant Spectacle

Derek Eller Gallery: Whiting Tennis

 

29 Sep 2018Live From Forward Union: Four Women Who Are Using Art to Change the World01:39:42

It's been a rough news week. Between Thursday's testimonies of Dr. Christine Blasey Ford and Judge Brett Kavanaugh before the Senate Judiciary Committee, and Kavanaugh's near appointment to the Supreme Court Friday, many of us are exhausted. We would like a win for women.  

Sometimes the quickest way to achieve that is to do it yourself. As such, this episode of Explain Me celebrates women who have made waves in the world of art and activism, through a series of interviews with four major figures—Mia Pearlman, Jenny Dubnau, Nancy Kleaver, and Mira Schor. 

In the first half of the show, Mia Pearlman and Jenny Dubnau talk about their work pushing for changes at the city and state level and how being an artist makes that job easier. In the second half, Paddy Johnson and Nancy Kleaver talk about their new public art organization, PARADE, and Mira Schor talks about the history of feminism in art from the 1970's through to today, and her contributions. Stream it. Download it. Listen to it. This one's important.  

 

 

18 Oct 2017Making Monstrosity Visible in Three Parts: Paglen, Ga, and Fast00:58:23

Three shows. Three reviews. The Trevor Paglen exhibition at Metro Pictures is creepy as fuck. We take issue with New York Magazine critic Jerry Saltz's review on the subject. Ellie Ga  at Bureau sensitively touches on the horror of the Syrian refugee crisis. Omer Fast at James Cohen produces some powerful videos about the role of the artist in times of crisis, but they are overshadowed by protestors. They believe his decision to transform the front of the gallery into a waiting room in a Chinese bus station amounts to yellowface. Our thoughts on this and just about everything else. 

04 Dec 2018Museum Board Members Fail Moral Challenges, Museum Exhibitions Exceed Expectations01:08:36

Donna DeSalvo assembles some of Andy Warhol's greatest work for his retrospective at the Whitney Museum, while revelations that Whitney Vice Chair Warren B. Kanders owns a company that sells tear gas used at the border shake museum staff. Soul of a Nation at the Brooklyn Museum looks at the history of political activism, while Jack Waters offers a mix of bag of awe inspiring abject art paired with groan inspiring sculptures and paintings. Jack Whitten at the Metropolitan Museum dazzles, Art and Conspiracy flops, and Amazon is going to drive us all out of our homes. Relevant links below. 

Andy Warhol at The Whitney Museum

Whitney Museum Vice Chairman Owns a Manufacturer Supplying Tear Gas at the Border, Hyperallergic

Whitney Museum Staffers Demand Answers, Hyperallergic 

Soul of a Nation, Art in the Age of Black Power at the Brooklyn Museum 

John Waters: Indecent Exposure at the Baltimore Museum of Art 

Jack Whitten at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (Closed Dec 2)

Everything is Connected: Art and Conspiracy at the Metropolitan Museum of Art

Amazon Headquarters Will Come to Long Island City: Curbed Explainer

ASAP Pledge Not to Take Crumbs from Amazon

 

 

 

10 Mar 2018Spring Break Part Two: The City and the City (Part Two)01:02:58

In part two of Explain Me William Powhida and Paddy Johnson discuss at the following exhibitions: 

“Secret Identities” The Amazing Blackman and other comics by Kumasi J Barnett. Curated by Jac Lahav

"Freedom School" by Elektra KB

"A Pressing Conference" by Macon Reed. Curated by Helen Toomer

"Bobby’s World" by Bobby Anspach

"Psychic Pharmacy" by Howard Hurst curated by Helen Toomer

"Hard or Soft Option" by Fall on Your Sword. Curated by Amber Kelly and Andrew Gori

“Ours” co-curated by Dominic Nurre and Lynn Sullivan

"Goodbye Columbus" a group show curated by Isaac Aden and Joseph Ayers 

"The Last Equestrian Portrait" a group show curated by Amanda Nedham and Kyle Hittmeier

Images will appear on Art F City. 

 

Correction: In this episode we incorrectly identified a series of protest signs titled "You'll Never Know We Were Here" 

as the work of Sarah Walko. The piece was done by Fernando Orellana. 

 

12 Feb 2019Standing in Quicksand 01:34:30

We cover a lot of ground in this episode of Explain Me. That ground looks something like this: 

02 Oct 2017The Broken Toilet01:05:56

The inaugural episode of Explain Me, an art podcast with critic Paddy Johnson and artist William Powhida! A round of woos and hoos please! Explain Me looks at politics, money and the moral of responsibility of artists working in the art world.

In this episode, we discuss Documenta's massive overspending and near bankrupcy, the closure of Bruce High Quality Foundation University, and a new development along the 7 line describing itself as New York's best installation. We also talk about a few shows we've seen recently in Chelsea, Kara Walker at Sikkema Jenkins, Christian Marclay at Paula Cooper, Tom Friedman at Lurhing Augustine, Franklin Evans at Ameringer | McEnery | Yohe,  Maya Lin at Pace, Robert Motherwell at Paul Kasmin, and Celeste Dupuy Spencer at Marlborough Gallery. Expect opinions. 

09 Mar 2018The Spring Break Art Show: A Good Time Show Disrupted by the Specter of Trump (Part One)00:52:12

In this episode of Spring Break we discuss the fairs in general and where Spring Break fits in, themes, trends, the over all quality of the art, and a few pieces that stuck out for their overall failure. We also asked four participants to give us their elevator pitches for the show. Those guests included: Lynn Sullivan and Dominic Nurre's exhibition "Ours", (artists anonymous), Kyle Hittmeier and Amanda Nedham curated "The Last Equestrian Portrait" (a group show), Kumasi J Barnett "Stop it Whiteman: You're Wrecking the World"  curated by Jac Lahav, and Mark Joshua Epstein and Will Hutnick present "The Songs Make a Space" by the late composer Michael Friedman. 

All images and credits will appear on Art F City.  

 

Correction: In this episode we incorrectly identified a series of protest signs titled "You'll Never Know We Were Here" 

as the work of Sarah Walko. The piece was done by Fernando Orellana. 

21 Feb 2018The Stink of Met Admission Hikes Endures00:48:28

Back in January, William Powhida and I recorded an episode of Explain Me on the Metropolitan Museum of Art's new admission policy. Earlier that month, the museum known for housing some of the world's greatest treasures announced its admission price would no longer remain "pay-as-you-wish". As of March 1st, their suggested admission, $25 will become mandatory for anyone living outside of New York State. Children under 12 get in for free.

Given that there's less than two weeks until this policy change goes into affect, we thought it might be a good time to release our discussion and revisit the debate. Because what came out of the debate, was not a picture of an institution starving for more funds, but wealthy museum with a board and President ideologically opposed to the free admission policy. Learning this changed my position, which was one initially in support of a change the museum described as an absolute necessity, to boycotting the museum for the month of March. While the admission increase doesn't affect my cost of admission, it affects that of my family and friends from out of town. It is also entirely out of step with generosity of creative spirit that brought me to this city in the first place.

Over the course of the podcast, William and I discuss a large number of articles and the conclusions drawn by the authors. We go through the points rather quickly, so for those who want them at your finger tips, I've included them below.

Data People

These are thoughts by people we describe as "data driven".

Grey Matter's Tim Schneider. Cites studies that claim cost is a secondary factor to why people visit museums. People cite lack of time and lack of transportation as major factors. Adds the caveat that structural discrimination may account for some of these factors.

Colleen Dilen Schneider. The original blogger who sourced studies that claim cost is a secondary factor to why people visit museums. Expect a treasure trove of studies, over use of bolding and zero caveating. Read at your own risk.

Blogs

Hrag Vartanian interviews Met president Daniel Weiss for Hyperallergic. There's a lot in here, but we discuss the following points:

  • Vartanian notes the museum's well-known $40 million deficit in the intro.
  • Weiss says asking David Koch to pay for the Met's admissions would be inappropriate morally because the wealthy already support 75% of their budget and their current admissions is "failing".
  • Claims a dramatic increase in visitors.
  • Says there has been 71 percent decline in what visitors pay.
  • Says the museum has close to a billion in endowments reserved for operations.

Felix Salmon at Cause and Effect. Looks at the Met's annual reports and finds that Weiss overstates the Met's visitor numbers (which increased by 11.5 % thanks to the Met Breuer opening), and misleads the public about admissions revenue, which has actually increased by 13 %. Concludes that admissions isn't the reason the museum has the deficit. Also, notes that the Met's endowment has risen $170 million a year through investments, of which, over $100 million a year can be used for anything they want. Concludes that the Met won't suffer by making $10 million a year less because they are maintaining their "pay-as-you-wish" policy.

Petitions

The Met Should Remain Free For All. 

Main Stream Media

Jillian Steinhauer for CNN The Met Needs to Live Up To Its History and Its Public

Robin Pogrebin for The New York Times reports that Weiss cites the city's plans to reduce the Met's funding as one rationale for the change.

Holland Cotter at New York Times. New York residents would have to prove their residency by "carding" procedures, which he doesn't like because "it potentially discriminates against  a population of residents who either don’t have legal identification or are reluctant to show the identification they have."

Roberta Smith at The New York Times. Rebukes the position that because other museums charge they should too, saying  "Actually it should be just the opposite. Pay as you wish is a principle that should be upheld and defended, a point of great pride. The city should be equally proud of it. No one else has this, although they should. It indicates a kind of attitude, like having the Statue of Liberty in our harbor. It is, symbolically speaking, a beacon."

16 Oct 2017The Turd of Gentrification Floating in the Pond of Urbanism01:01:31

This week on Explain Me William Powhida and Paddy Johnson chat with Los Angeles Times staff writer Carolina Miranda about David Geffen's $150 million donation to LACMA and the questions surrounding the gift. Will he bequeath his collection to the museum? Later, we discuss the recent gentrification wars in Boyle Heights, a rather strange description of the non-profit 365 Mission and solicit Miranda's advice on must-see LA shows!

29 Dec 2017What Curators Really Think: A Cringe Worthy Report01:07:36

On this episode of Explain Me we discuss a disastrous curator conference at SVA titled "Curatorial Activism and the Politics of Shock", the Miami art fairs, and three shows— "Talon Rouge: Six Mexican Artists Revisit José Juan Tablada and His New York Circle" at PROXYCO, "Johnny Abrahams: Threnody" at The Hole and "Molly Zuckerman-Hartung: Learning Artist" and "Maryam Hoseini Of Strangers and Parrots" at Rachel Uffner. 

21 Aug 2018What it Really Means to be A Mid-Career Artist: A Talk with LoVID's Tali Hinkis01:22:48

In this episode we talk with LoVID's Tali Hinkis about the challenges of being a mid-career artist outside of New York. We discuss how to engage a general audience to getting grants and networking. A refreshingly frank talk about what mid-career actually looks like for artists and what it takes to even get there. 

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