February 23, 2023
Good morning. ☁️ After winning a second term in office, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis declared the Sunshine State as the place "woke goes to die." Today we report on how his reactionary policies are also killing the arts in the state as fear and self-censorship spread among cultural institutions.
Among our other stories today: a Roman-era dildo, an art gallery in a Los Angeles cemetery, a film with lesbian forest nymphs (something DeSantis wouldn't like), and how TikTok's so-called "corecore" trend has become a conduit for male loneliness and despair.
Lastly, we're pleased to present the writing of our fellow Angelina Lippert, chief curator and director of content at Poster House in New York City. In her piece, Lippert describes her research for an exhibition by the artist Amos Kennedy Jr., a letterpress printer best known for his political posters.
— Hakim Bishara, Senior Editor
TikTok's "Corecore" Is Where Men Scream Their Anguish
The new trend is less about Dada and more about today's global crisis of masculinity. | Isa Segalovich
SPONSORED
Hartford Art School Celebrates Resident Artists Chiraag Bhakta and Genevieve de Leon
New works by the inaugural Whitney Artist-in-Residence and the Georgette and Richard Koopman Distinguished Chair in the Visual Arts will be on view at the University of Hartford’s Galleries. Learn more.
WHAT'S HAPPENING
The phallus-shaped object (courtesy Vindolanda Trust)
Two scholars believe they have identified what may be the first-known Ancient Roman dildo.
The Royal British Columbia Museum has finally repatriated the long-lost Snow family totem pole to the Nuxalk Nation.
An outdoor exhibition was cancelled after a Florida college deemed works about diversity and inclusion “potentially offensive.”
SPONSORED
University of Arizona Presents North American Premiere of Linda McCartney Retrospective
The exhibition celebrates Linda McCartney’s 30-year, barrier-breaking career and her connection to Tucson. Learn more.
ARTISTS & CURATORS
Diaries of a Poster Curator
A great poster cuts through the visual noise of the world and holds its audience’s attention. | Angelina Lippert
LA’s Hottest New Gallery Is in a Cemetery
Artist Nao Bustamante debuted Grave Gallery on a 3-by-7-foot burial plot at the historic Hollywood Forever cemetery. | Matt Stromberg
Keep an Eye Out for These Emerging Chicago Artists
Ground Floor at the Hyde Park Art Center is a sensitively curated selection of works by exceptionally promising young artists. | Lori Waxman
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LATEST IN FILM
Trulee Hall Creates a Paradise of Lesbian Forest Nymphs
In the artist’s first feature-length film, Ladies Lair Lake, the choice to not have children is presented as valid and dignified. | Renée Reizman
Progress Meets Paranoia in Home Invasion
Director Graeme Arnfield describes the notion of “a horror film waiting on your doorstep,” but his film seems to suggest it’s already in the house. | Ben Nicholson
FROM THE ARCHIVE
Alice Neel Didn’t Work Alone
Narratives of her life rarely mention the Alliance of Figurative Artists, emphasizing her individual perseverance and talent instead. | Emily Markert
IN MEMORIAM
Istvan Banyai (1949–2022)
Artist and illustrator for the New Yorker and others | New York Times
Leiji Matsumoto (1938–2023)
Japanese manga and anime artist | BBC
Carlos Saura (1932–2023)
Spanish film director | Guardian
