Please join me for this private viewing of "Something out of Nothing". I have a work in this exhibition and this is your opportunity to meet the other artists and curators and get a private tour of this excellent exhibition by No Longer Empty.
This Sat. Nov 14th at 7pm The Invisible Dog 51 Bergen st Brooklyn $100 donation
Buy your tickets here for Evening with Curators & Artists
November 7th, 2009 at 7pm @ The Invisible Dog
Your
donation of $100 helps No Longer Empty in its mission to create a new
form of public art by utilizing empty storefronts and properties around
the city as venues for art.
Your
gift will help support our organization in tangible ways- $100 funds
our print costs, $100 will cover the cost of installing lighting, $100
goes towards purchasing materials for our children's workshop, $100
allows us to rent chairs for our panel discussions and so forth.
Most important, your donation is an investment in New York City and
helps us make sure that No Longer Empty is a destination for the arts
for years to come.
To make this event intimate and meaningful for the patrons, artists and curators, we have limited tickets being sold.
To receive a tax deductible donation, please make your order here
The Numbers installation will be on view for the Chashama Film Festival. A collaboration withChristina deRoos, Numbers highlights human costs of the conflict in Iraq and Afghanistan that are rarely reported in mainstream media.See photos of the process of installation as well as the final result here.
The
installation consists of flag draped coffins and numbers stenciled on
paper then covered with bubble wrap. The width and placement give
viewers a choice between walking across and popping bubbles or making a
small but extra effort to jump across and avoid interacting. This
parallels the ability those of us in the United States have to avoid
witnessing the impact of the government policies carried out in our
name. It requires a bit of effort, although not much, to avoid the
messy reality of our ongoing policies in Iraq and Afghanistan.
*****
Numbers used include:
32,907 Weight in tons of bombs dropped by the U.S. Air force in Iraq & Afghanistan through 2007
6129 American and coalition military casualties in Iraq & Afghanistan
120 American military casualties since Obama was inaugurated on Jan. 20, 2009
46% The percentage of air raid casualties that are women are girls
766 The number of journalists and academics that have been killed in Iraq
1395 The number of contractor employee deaths in Iraq
102,083 Documented civilian deaths from violence in Iraq (Estimate is 93,552-102,083)
39% The percentage of air raid casualties that are children
>100 thousand The number of American military wounded
$7500 The amount the U.S. Army paid to two children whose mother was killed inside a taxi
that ran a checkpoint. Both children were also in the taxi, and were
shot and injured.
Thank you to Iraq Body Count, AntiWar, andiCasualties for maintaining databases that make these and many more numbers readily available.
*****
Popping bubble wrap generally evokes enthusiasm from people regardless of age. With Numbers,
the excitement of walking, jumping, or otherwise popping bubbles is
tempered by the reality of stepping on representations of victims of
violence.
Numbers
also presents an opportunity for participants to reflect upon the
myriad impacts of war, including responses to loud or surprising
sounds, such as the pops of bubble wrap. For child and adult survivors of war, loud noises can trigger intrusive memories, nightmares,
hallucinations or flashbacks, sometimes resulting in exaggerated responses. As one Iraq veteran explains, "any little noise and I'd jump out of bed and run around the house with
a gun."
In the same way, the sound of an airplane flying overhead can cause
stress for survivors of aerial bombings, while it is of no consequence
to others.
Lastly, Numbers
is provides a visual reference point for the ongoing violence as the
total number of bubbles in the installation is approximately the same
as the total number of tons of bombs that have been dropped on Iraq and
Afghanistan to date.
Numbers On view Thursday, October 22 - Monday, October 26 Part of the Chashama Film Festival Final Cut Lounge 679 Third Avenue (at 43rd St.) One block from Grand Central Subway: 4,5,6,7
