09.04.08
More on Banksy’s visit to New Orleans in his own words on his website here.
09.01.08
This has been circulating like a wildfire all over the net lately so it wouldn’t surprise me if you have heard already, but the infamous street artist Banksy has been busy coating the 9th ward of New Orleans with his signature brand of street art to mark the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina in a way only he could. Once again all of the work is provocative and even more so when you consider that the art isn’t hanging on some gallery wall, it is right there on the street where the floods occurred and people died. The word is he is now on a tour of the south as his work has lately appeared in Alabama. You have to respect him for continuing the force people to think and confront the issues we deny that continue to erode our society. He is a man of the times and he has earned his place in art history for a reason.
As Hurricane Gustav once again pounds New Orleans today and fears are rising that loosened ships may puncture the levies, his work seems all the more timely.
04.08.08
State of Fear
Dan Tague is an artist who isn’t afraid to use his artwork as a vehicle to protest or rather a mirror to hold up to the hypocritical face of American society to force some serious questions as to our motives. His recent work for his exhibition at the Jonathan Ferrara Gallery is no exception. The show is titled, ‘Cash Rules Everything Around Me‘ and involves large scale photographs of American Currency folded to reveal messages involving war and commerce. It’s a simple but genius idea that has conjured iconic images.
Tague lives and works in New Orleans. There is little doubt that the massive fuck up that was Hurricane Katrina has had an impact on his work and perception of his nation. His past show titles are case in point to this fact with titles like, ‘Paradise Lost, In Harm’s Way, Katrina & The Waves, America: Are We Drowning, American Muscle and Natural Disaster.’ It is good to see an artist being so active and using his work as a vessel to deliver his protest to a sad time in American history.
