2010 September : EXIT

TARYN SIMON – CONTRABAND

Posted on 2010-09-27

Contraband is Taryn Simon’s new series of portraits depicting various items confiscated at Terminal 4 at JFK Airport. It provides an in-depth and curious look at what happens when one culture encounters another. Simon spent five mostly sleepless days at the airport, photographing over 1,000 contraband objects ranging from the relatively unsurprising (counterfeit designer bags, bongs) to the flat-out strange (cow-dung toothpaste, insect larvae). While many of the photographs’ subjects are shocking, they open a discussion about the material values of different cultures and what happens when one set of cultural beliefs is dominated by another. Though the series portrays contrasting cultural values, the repetition of some items demonstrates the universality of certain societal norms, such as the mass-market appeal of cheap, knockoff material goods.

Opposite – DVDs (Lost, Season 4. pirated), Taryn Simon

Exhibition runs through till December 31st, 2010

Lever House Art Collection
390 Park Avenue
New York
10022
USA

www.leverhouseartcollection.com

NIKON P7000

Posted on 2010-09-27

Need an alternative to the Canon G-Series, Nikon has released the Nikon P7000. 10.1 megapixels and a 7.1 optical zoom, the camera also lets you record 720p high-def video.

www.nikon.com

NEW PHOTOGRAPHY 2010

Posted on 2010-09-27

New Photography 2010 presents four artists, Roe Ethridge, Elad Lassry, Alex Prager, and Amanda Ross-Ho, whose photographs mine the inexhaustible reservoir of images found in print media and cinema. Ethridge takes his pictures in “editorial mode,” directly borrowing from commercial images already in circulation, including outtakes from his own illustrational magazine work. Lassry defines his practice as one consumed with pictures, meaning with generic images lifted from consumer society, such as Hollywood publicity stills and design illustrations.Ross-Ho’s hand-drilled sheetrock panels lined up with found pictures and mural-scale images of studio residues renegotiate the various stages of the creative process. Prager takes her cues from pulp fiction and the fashion images of Guy Bourdin to construct filmic narratives starring women disguised under synthetic wigs, dramatic makeup, and retro polyester attire.

Opposite – Susie and Friends. 2008, Alex Prager

Exhibition runs through till January 10th, 2011

The Museum of Modern Art
11 West 53 Street New York
NY
10019

www.moma.org

THE HOLE IN 3D

Posted on 2010-09-27

Back from the 80’s, director Joe Dante whose scare fest films, The Howling, Piranha and Gremlins shivered many a teens spine, delivers a suspense thriller that explores the fears and secrets buried deep in the human mind.
17 year old Dane and his 10 year old brother Lucas move with their mother from New York City to the sleepy little town of Bensonville. For Dane the only exciting thing about their new town is the beautiful girl next door, Julie. But then everything changes when they find a sinister bottomless hole under a locked trap door in the basement. When the hole is exposed, evil is unleashed. With strange shadows lurking around every corner and past nightmares coming to life, the trio will have to come face to face with their darkest fears to put an end to THE HOLE.

www.theholein3d.com