Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Virtue

“Stay calm, drink water and wait it out.” -Robert Reich

Sometimes we wait. Life moves quickly, images, moments, days, weeks, months and years flash by us before we can even grasp them. And yet there are times when everything seems to stop. When we must simply wait for what may seem an impossibly long time. In these moments, when there are things that cannot be rushed, it is important to remember that our actions may not change the course or outcome but can have considerable effect on how we ourselves weather a tense time. And although it may seem an eternity while we hold on, one day this time, too, will be nothing more than a blip on the radar of our lives. We will look back and see how quickly things unfolded, despite the long hours in between.

Warren Neidich spoke to us in mid-May of 2020. An artist and a theorist, Neidich felt he needed to act and engage as the pandemic unfolded. What was a vibrant community of artists and patrons suddenly dissolved because of forced isolation. In reaction to this, and inspired by similar alternative exhibitions he and others have created, he fashioned a public exhibition that could be viewed from a car – a drive by exhibition. To hear more, including some of the cultural history of where Neidich lives with his partner in East Fork, Long Island, the inspiration for his drive by public art exhibitions and an in-depth discussion of cognitive capital, listen to the complete interview.

Jana Danilović spoke to us from Serbia where she is in the midst of painting a mural and in fact called us from the site where she descended from scaffolding to talk to us. Danilović was contacted by the team responsible for a festival that had to be put on hold due to the pandemic. In lieu of the festivities, they decided to commission the mural. The wall on which Danilović is painting is around 120 square meters (approx. 1292 sq. ft.) and the mural illustrates the artist’s personal view on what are valuable symbols of culture including representations of dance, music and creation. To hear more about the details of the mural which Danilović admits are tricky to verbalize, listen to the complete interview.

A Few Words to Keep in your Pocket:

Knowing when to fold our hands and be patient is not only a virtue indeed, it is the only way to construct and maintain a civilized world.

Interviews are available on iTunes as podcasts, and for Android please click here. All weekly essay pieces in a shareable format are here. The full archive of interviews here.

Books to Read

What are you reading? Add your titles to our reading list here. Jana Danilović is reading works by Serbian architect and author Bogdan Bogdanović. Books by Warren Neidich can be found here.

Deadlines

Museum of Arts and Design (MAD) is currently accepting applications for its artist studio program which is virtual for the time being. This program encourages interaction between artists and museum visitors and offers a unique opportunity to work with a major museum. Visit the website for full details and to apply. Deadline for studio applications is November 29

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