Dark Matter is a trans South Asian performance art duo comprised of Alok Vaid-Menon and Janani Balasubramanian, a prominent pair of voices operating at the intersection of the arts and activism.
Collective Creativity in the Beginning
Project Row Houses (PRH) is, and has always been, a unique experiment in activating the intersections between art, cultural and historic preservation, affordable and innovative housing, community engagement and development, neighborhood revitalization, and human empowerment.
Urban Landscape as Canvas
The famous pop singer Jolin Tsai (蔡依林 Cài Yīlín) wrote and released a song named “Rose Boy” (official English title “Womxnly”) in 2018, inspired by the story of Yeh Yung-chih (叶永志 Yè Yǒngzhì), also known as “Rose Boy” (méiguī shǎonián 玫瑰少年), whose death has made him an iconic figure in Chinese-speaking LGBTQ communities around the world.
Located within Boston’s historic (brick) core, and using the history of Boston as example, this kinetic, site-specific, public art installation is a humorous commentary on our use and trust of the internet for learning.
Creative Graffiti at the Urban Culture Festival in Germany
By Loredana Loy
A street art project by by KD Key Detail from Minsk, Belarus--created and featured at the IBUg 2013 Urban Culture Festival in Zwickau, Germany.
The project is entitled "Bon Appetit." Images speak louder than words. Links and photos below.
Street artist, graphic designer, and activist Shepard Fairey created this visionary portrait of then Senator Barack Obama in 2008 as a form of grassroots activism to support Obama’s first presidential campaign. Fairey based the work on an Associated Press photograph by Mannie Garcia, which he transformed with his signature high-contrast stencil technique, inspired by the political message and bold graphics of Soviet Socialist Realism.
GrowNYC is a nonprofit that promotes community values through environmental missions. One of GrowNYC's programs is the GreenMarkets, which are fresh produce markets that are set up in various neighborhoods in the city, each one unique to the area. These markets focus on bringing local farmers into the community as well as promoting awareness of seasonal produce in order to limit the environmental damage of importing goods.
Instagram and Zines have become a tool for activists worldwide, and Vienna Rye (@vrye) has amassed over 126,000 followers by promoting education, mutual aid, and advocacy. They are a self-taught visual artist and revolutionary community organizer, which translates into their artwork. Vienna visualized a better world to build it. To do this, they use her art to confront settler colonialism, racism, and patriarchy.
At first glance, it seemed like any other Monday evening in Görlitz, the most eastern town in Germany — where Poland sits just across the river. It was July 31, and a couple hundred people had gathered as part of the so-called Monday demonstrations to protest refugees, the COVID-19 vaccine and the government’s green energy politics.
First cut the banks! In 2012 Bankia declared itself bankrupt and, almost immediately, asked the Government of Spain for €23 billion. The Government accepted, yet that very same week ordered €20,000 million worth of cuts in health and education. It was then that we realized that what they called a crisis was actually a scam. You wouldn’t believe how pissed off we were. So we threw a party, because there is nothing like partying to relieve your anger.
While governmental support for arts and culture is often meager, the Brazilian national government has recently demonstrated great interest in the industry. They've just introduced a "cultural stipend," which provides workers with 50 real (roughly $25) per month for arts and cultural expenses. The allowance covers personal spending on things like movies, concerts, books or museums.
The statistics in regards to older men marrying young girls is mind boggling and disgusting. Every day 33,000 girls are married to older men, denied their rights to education and opportunity and robbed of their childhood.
Many countries around the world find this practice normal, thankfully we do not find it normal here in the United States. More than 91 countries allow girls as young as six-years-old to be married. This is a problem.
Climate protesters in Washington, D.C. were handcuffed on Thursday after they dragged paint on a glass cover protecting an art sculpture.
The incident happened at the National Gallery of Art by the activism group Declare Emergency in an attempt to bring attention to climate change, according to the Washington Post.
A large chair installation work featuring the Chinese name of detained artist and activist Ai Weiwei was set up in Taipei Saturday --the 22nd anniversary of the Tiananmen SquareMassacre -- to call for Ai's release.
Bei Ling, an artist from China who has been barred from enteringhis home country since 2000, used 1,001 empty chairs to piece together the three characters of Ai's name in Liberty Square at 6: 04p.m.
The ad agency Badger & Winters in collaboration with immigrant rights nonprofit organization Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES) installed 20 cages with mannequins representing immigrant children inside across New York City. Each cage had a sign that said #NoKidsInCages and played audio of a child crying.
Mona Haydar’s first single, “Hijabi (Wrap My Hijab)” is an empowering anthem for women everywhere who wear headscarves.
It’s also a sharp rebuke to those who dare to ask headscarf-clad women what their hair looks like underneath, whether they’re hot in there, and whether it feels too tight.
Established in 2015 in the Tennōzu neighborhood of Tokyo, and attracting industry professionals and art enthusiasts from both Japan and abroad, PIGMENT TOKYO has emerged as an art supply store specializing in the materials and tools used in traditional Japanese painting, such as mineral pigments, washi paper, and brushes. However, it’s more than just a store.