New York: Poking Holes in the Veneer of Our Social Media Selves

Looking for a moment of peace amid the holiday Zooms? The Rubin Museum has a few tactile ideas that a

Dec 23, 2020 • View in browser

Looking for a moment of peace amid the holiday Zooms? The Rubin Museum has a few tactile ideas that allow for a little re-centering. In the galleries, exhibitions by Sheida Soleimani, Steve DiBenedetto, and Torey Thornton offer some food for thought in these final days of 2020.If you’re wrapping up some last-minute holiday shopping (who, me?), why not add a Hyperallergic membership to your list — a perfect gift for friends, family, and a great way to support the stories that matter most. (Plus, get a free tote, special discounts, and more!)Happy holidays.– Dessane Lopez Cassell, Editor, Reviews

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Poking Holes in Our Social Media Selves

Torey Thornton, "Chamber Orchestra" (image courtesy Essex Street)

The slippage between self-expression and commodification is one salient subject of exploration in Torey Thornton’s Does productivity know what it’s named, maybe it calls itself identity?, on view at Essex Street through January 9. The show frames a broader problem for artistic production in an image-saturated age: transparency, legibility, and even sincerity are fetishized, but whom does this self-styling serve?

SPONSORED Apply for Graduate Programs in Art History & Criticism and Studio Art at Stony Brook University To be considered for the highest levels of funding and support, applications must be received by January 15, 2021. The last day to apply is March 1, 2021.

Latest Reviews

Tracing Networks of Political Corruption in Sheida Soleimani’s Slick, Hyper-Stylized Tableaux Hotbed zeroes in on the places where these power relations and abuses between the US and Iran make themselves most visible. Cassie Packard

Steve DiBenedetto’s Raw Nerves Whatever the impulse that initiated the paintings, DiBenedetto clearly works everything out on the surface. John Yau

A Participatory Origami Installation

Fold Yourself a Little Serenity With The Lotus Effect, the Rubin Museum of Art invites participants to stop and recenter. Dessane Lopez Cassell

Two New Podcast Episodes

Artist Shahzia Sikander Is Ready for a New Post-Pandemic Reality In this expansive conversation, artist Shahzia Sikander discusses her first solo exhibition in a decade and her hopes for a post-pandemic art world. Hrag Vartanian

From Graffiti to the Gallery, Futura Talks About Art After 32 years, artist Futura is back with a solo exhibition in New York, his hometown where he first developed his reputation as a graffiti writer. Hrag Vartanian

What's Happening?

A new report by the Center for an Urban Future reveals that New York’s immigrant artists and immigrant-serving arts organizations are being hit hardest by the coronavirus pandemic. A series of private WhatsApp chats between members of the Sackler family exposes the Sacklers’ reliance on the museums they helped fund as they attempted to clear their name. The Art & Society Census, a new project launched by the Brooklyn Public Library, is taking stock of changes in culture by hearing from anyone who wishes to participate.

Support Hyperallergic As arts communities around the world experience a time of challenge and change, accessible, independent reporting on these developments is more important than ever. Please consider supporting our journalism, and help keep our independent reporting free and accessible to all. Become a Member

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