pollock

its Jackson Pollock's birthday, according to google. i thought i would take this opportunity to write about Who the #$&% is Jackson Pollock?.

A pretty entertaining film, and for anyone who enjoys art, worth watching. There's quite a cast of interesting characters. What i found especially interesting was the tension between science and artistic knowledge.

(note that this picture is upside down, based on the way the painting is displayed in the film)

SPOILER (sort of)

I also was pretty convinced throughout the whole thing that this was not a Pollock. It just didn't look like a Pollock to me (as echoed by a number of "experts" in the film). It didn't have the rhythm, the intricacy, the organic feeling. But in the end, science proved(?) me wrong. But here's the real question. This was likely a painting Pollock discarded. And perhaps this is a stretch, but if he discarded it because he didn't like it, it wasn't up to his standards, he couldn't stand behind it, he wasn't proud of it, etc....is it still a Pollock? Is something a Pollock just because his hand touched it? Or is it a Pollock only when he declared it his finished work of art ready for the public to see?

And secondarily, if something is good enough to argue over whether its a Pollock or not, why does the value increase so significantly if it is proven to be true? I guess this is a matter of use value vs. exchange value here. Use value doesn't change (and really, do paintings have much use value at all?). But fetishization & commodification make that exchange value skyrocket. So I guess this leads me to believe that for the art world, it is his, just because it was made by his hand. But I'm not sure I personally agree with this logic. Maybe its just the Marxist in me.

and just for fun, here's my favorite Pollock, which can be found at the art institute chicago. Greyed Rainbow, 1953. I'm still convinced I can dance to its rhythm.

althusser

i'm not sure i really ever totally understood althusser's assertion that ideology is ahistorical until last night at happy hour. i scoffed at the idea that obama is "post-ideological."

el luchador

mamaH called tonight to tell me about an interview with aronofsky on npr about "The Wrestler." I especially liked what he had to say about use of the body as art, but he strayed away from questioning about a fascination with pain, unfortunately.

and this is just awesome!

viva la bolivia nueva!

so the constitutional referendum passed. here's a short write up (en espanol). basically evo says this will end the colonial legacy as well as neoliberalism in bolivia. i'm not sure i totally buy that, but its a step forward.

and i finally (better late than never) found a good english language explanation of the new constitution. though schultz claims he's no expert, his perspective is far more complete and insightful than mine. and in case you're interested, the jesus commercial he mentions can be found below:

dia de la constitution

today's the big day. the one we've been waiting for. the bolivian constitutional vote (you mean you haven't been on the edge of your seat for months over this?). All the "experts" seem to think it will pass. Which I suppose is a good thing, but I worry that this will just lead to further violence.

Today, reuters uk has finally layed out exactly what these changes are. Pretty much since last march I've been looking for some English language coverage of what exactly the changes are. They've been hard to come by. And I've been avoiding the Spanish language coverage partially because i'm lazy, and partially because Bolivian newspapers are notoriously biased (see Daniel Goldstein & Fatimah Willaims Castro, 2006 Creative Violence: How Marginal People Make News in Bolivia. Journal of Latin American Anthropology 11(2):380-407, or my own paper on the portrayal of indigenous women in Los Tiempos--but its unpublished, so I guess its a bit hard to come by...). For example, this radio transcript from a station in Santa Cruz is pretty horrific (here's the translated version). However, as of Thursday (Evo's 3 year anniversary), the Bolivian state now has its own newspaper. While certainly this might counter the views presented by primarily white/mestizo-owned private papers, I wonder how unbiased a state newspaper might be (for once, the socialist in me might be overtaken by the liberatarian?). I guess I just often see state-run media as less than open. But then again, things can't get much worse, so another perspective at least provides some choice.

I also must recommend this post from inka cola news, outlining some of the evo scare tactics used in foreign press and contesting the notion of "the two bolivias" (which I myself am guilty of perpetuating--see my paper on the Bolivian constitution as symbol of the imagined community--again unpublished. i just love self-promotion today). Plus, there's a pretty awesome photo accompanying it.

la lucha politico y fisico

i have been contemplating whether to write anything here about (sort of) seeing the first half-non-white (not to diminish this vast step forward) president's swearing in. in fact, last night in a somewhat sleep deprived stupor i even typed out a long blog that i had concocted in my head in a total sleep deprived stupor the night before. it somehow connected anti-pacifism, anarchism, the bolivian water war, marx quotes, and obama emblazoned toasters. and while that might sound amazing, i assure you that after reading it again this morning, you are lucky i never posted it.

writing about politics has never been my strong point. i tend to get carried away and take metaphors to irrational lengths and such. and while i wish to not publicize my own crafty ways of doing this, my old friend entropy posted this in a facebook note on the inauguration, and i just couldn't help but re-post.

* Along those same lines, it was not unlike watching live professional wrestling. The biggest heel heat came for President Bush and Joe Lieberman respectively, while the biggest face pops were for Almost President Obama, Bill & Hillary Clinton, Michelle Obama, Ted Kennedy, Colin Powell, Al Gore, Jay-Z and Diddy, and me screaming enthusiastically for Walter Mondale respectively.*

the funny thing is, in an attempt to keep my nose from getting frostbite on tuesday, i was trying to think warm thoughts. one of which happened to be....i wonder how long before barak starts referring to his homeland security measures as "the people's elbow."

(for more on electoral politics and wrestling, see this earlier post)

el arte y sociologica

i have stumbled upon my new favorite image-related internet site. though time will tell how it might compare to strange maps or information aesthetics, or even the amazing, incredible, inspiring share some candy....sociological images combines my two loves (if one is willing to overlook the inadequacies of sociology as compared to anthropology).

my favorite post (so far...i've only gone through a few) is the second half of stereotypes of nationalities. I guess i'm just a sucker for that simple, graphic kind of art.

more tacos

in a strange twist of fate, paul brooks shows up as my #1 "people you may know" on facebook today.

weird.

tacos tacos, everywhere, tacos

whoa. paul brooks is famous. and if the pantagraph isn't proof, perhaps cnn is:

Watch CBS Videos Online

of course, you can rely on national media all you want, but the real story is at fuw.

colombia

the u.s. just declassified documents which confirm the government knew about para-military activities in colombia as early as 1990. this "war on drugs" is so funny. except not funny at all.

bigotes de nuevo

so, back in november of 2006, the r___ helped make a startling discovery. while watching a commercial for the pursuit of happyness i mentioned how good will smith looked with a 'stache. this was the third time in a week i mentioned someone looking good with similar facial hair. he declared, "nell, you have a mustache fetish."

the next day i began my new job at the latina institute, and ended up at the table across from hector. the only man among the 13 of us (including the board), sporting his amazing mustache. i couldn't keep from chuckling under my breath.

well, 2 years later, i'm contemplating attempting to shake my thing for staches. they're just getting too big. even the nyt is paying attention. more movies and indie bands have followed, along with general public personalities. i'm at a loss. it feels so deeply ingrained, but i hate being subject to such fads. what's a girl to do?

el restarante

the top 5 most interesting dishes offered at Heyworth Restaurant

5. Butt Steak
4. Beef Roll
3. the Belt Buster
2. Fiddle Faddle Club
1. Wing Ditties ("music for your taste buds")

gender, language, epicene pronouns, etc.

one small step forward.

el fin del ano

2008 was a good year. It had its minor frustrations, but no major complaints. And countless amazing moments, but inspired by kj, who was inspired by sherm, here’s a list of the top fifteen 24 hour periods of 2008 (in chronological order)

1. The last day in Tobago

2. The Warden, the Widowmaker, and the Overfiend converge in New York

3. Public Nudity at the Green Lantern

4. Scammellot (May edition)

5. Stroh Day

6. Kickapoo camping

7. A massive night

8. Gordo’s wedding

9. Scammelltoberfest!!!

10. A wedding in Milwaukee

11. Northwestern Reunion

12. Drag Races on my Birthday

13. November 5 at the White House

14. Thanksgiving Weekend

15. Dancing at the Marx Cafe