Oct 16, 2020 • View in browser

Good morning. ☔ Today, a new take on a classic exhibition that asks “What Is Feminist Art?”, a major donation to social justice organizations, and a curious COVID-19 Recovery Plan out of San Francisco that includes a $1,000 monthly stipend for 130 artists.

– Hrag Vartanian, editor-in-chief

Carrie Mae Weems Takes Over Lincoln Center

Weems’s installation on Amsterdam Avenue, part of her “Resist Covid Take 6!” campaign, includes messages in English and Spanish (photo by James Wang)

Communities of color have been disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Compared to one in 2,150 white Americans, one in 1,020 Black Americans have died from coronavirus.

With a new, sprawling public art installation at Lincoln Center, Carrie Mae Weems wants to help educate BIPOC communities on the impact of the pandemic — and share the facts to prevent its spread.

In Other News

San Francisco’s COVID-19 economic recovery plan will include a $1,000 monthly stipend for 130 selected artists during a period of six months starting early next year.

Filmmaker Brett Wallace has documented the recent rally by Guggenheim’s union protesting the museum’s continued failure to secure a contract with its workers.

The Surdna Foundation has announced that it will pledge $36 million over the next three years to projects that advance racial justice.

The Brooklyn nonprofit art space Art in General has announced its closure after nearly four decades of operation.

The Brooklyn Museum is selling 12 deaccessioned works at Christie’s this week to raise funds for the care of the museum’s collection amid financial strain exacerbated by the pandemic shutdown.

Latest Reviews

Nina Katchadourian’s Tribute to Political “Roads Not Taken”

An intriguing meditation on the flawed two-party system, the power of Katchadourian’s Monument to the Unelected lies in its ability to confront us with alternative histories.

Ksenia M. Soboleva

Revisiting the Question “What Is Feminist Art?”

Building on an influential 1977 feminist exhibition, the Smithsonian’s updated edition takes a more inclusive approach, adding further nuance to the question of how and who gets to define feminist art.

Marisa Crawford

Kimberly Drew Asks: What Should a Museum Look Like in 2020?

In This Is What I Know About Art, Drew uses her own fumbles and triumphs as a frame in which to examine the symbiotic relationship between art and activism.

Allison Conner