Clarina Bezzola’s “When I Walk Alone in the Streets” greets visitors at the Austrian Cultural Forum (photo by twi-ny/mdr)
Austrian Cultural Forum
11 East 52nd St. between Madison & Fifth Aves.
Wednesday, October 19, free, RSVP required at 212-319-5300 ext222, 6:30
Walls and Bridges festival continues through October 28
Beauty Contest exhibition continues daily through January 3, 10:00 am – 6:00 pm
www.acfny.org
www.wallsandbridges.net/en
Featuring works by twenty international artists, “Beauty Contest” examines the ever-evolving nature of what is considered beautiful in today’s society. Pieces by Cindy Sherman, Kalup Linzy, Rashaad Newsome, Anna Jermolaewa, Katarina Schmidl, Evangelia Kraniot, and others look at the concept of beauty from a multitude of different angles, often incorporating humor to make their point. For example, it’s hard not to initially smile upon first encountering Clarina Bezzola’s “When I Walk Alone in the Streets,” which greets visitors to the Austrian Cultural Forum with an enormous hand and teeth, but there’s more to it than just its big, bold colors. On October 19, dance writer Gia Kourlas will host the panel discussion “Human Beauty and Its Social Construction” at ACFNY, with François Chaignaud, Jon-Jon Goulian, Silke Grabinger, and Gressett Salette talking about beauty and its preconceptions, followed by a performance by Chaignaud and Grabinger. The event is part of the semiannual Walls and Bridges festival, ten days of “transatlantic insights” gathered this time under the theme of “Infinite Affinities.” The festival continues through October 28 with such programs as “The Actual Lives of Catherine Millet and Robert Storr” at FIAF on October 20 (free, 7:30), “Screening Identities: Danny Glover in Conversation with Manthia Diawara” at the Invisible Dog on October 22 (free, 3:30), “Please Kill Me: A Punk Musical Show” by Mathieu Bauer at the Invisible Dog on October 23 (free, 6:30), “Sonic Affinities: A Piano Performance by Jay Gottlieb” at the New School on October 24 (free, 8:30), and “The Space-Time Continuum: What the Future Has in Store for Human Beings” with Étienne Klein at the New York Public Library on October 26 ($15-$25, 7:00).