Christina Mazzalupo plans for the end of the world in apocalyptic exhibit in Chelsea (photo by twi-ny/mdr)
Mixed Greens
531 West 26th St. between Tenth & Eleventh Aves.
Through January 5, free, 10:00 am – 6:00 pm
212-331-8888
www.mixedgreens.com
www.christinamazzalupo.com
If you’re reading this, then most likely the world did not come to an end on December 21, 2012, as supposedly predicted by the end of the ancient Mayan calendar. That would merely be the latest in what has been a long line of individuals and organizations wrongly proclaiming that the end is here. New York–based artist Christina Mazzalupo has compiled an extensive collection of these prophets of the apocalypse throughout history in her latest solo exhibition at Mixed Greens, “Prognosis: Doom.” The rather obsessive Mazzalupo has created wall boxes filled with toe tags detailing in tiny lettering and pictures such purveyors of doom as Cotton Mather, Helena Blavatsky, Edgar Cayce, the Amazing Criswell, Jim Jones, and John Wesley, along with such potential methods of destruction as asteroids, famine, plague, alien invasion, bioterrorism, and global warming. In one corner she has drawn the site-specific mural “And the Sea Was No More: Dependent and Independent Variables,” listing several things that might help one survive the apocalypse, from glowsticks, burn cream, and duct tape to fiskars, armor, and bio-transport modules. She also examines news reports that exaggerate and sensationalize events and includes a pair of videos, one in which she visits a Brooklyn mother who has turned her basement into an extremely well stocked fall-out shelter, while the other blasts a dizzying array of apocalyptic words at the viewer while Harry Partch’s “Delusion of the Fury” plays on the soundtrack. It’s all very funny as well as fascinating, although those with a deep-seated fear of death might not agree. “Presently, the belief that humanity itself is playing a role in its own demise is being taken more seriously,” Mazzalupo writes in an artist statement. “The question arises of whether this shift in mentality is in fact the ‘apocalypse’ we are presently facing. Can a greater awareness and awakening be in store?” Mazzalupo’s show is certain to entertain, educate, and, perhaps, make you go out and buy some supplies just in case one of these myriad predictions ends up having even the tiniest kernel of truth in it.
After collaborating on a number of works by such auteurs as Mauro Bolognini and Federico Fellini, poet and novelist Pier Paolo Pasolini made his directorial debut in 1961 with the gritty, not-quite-neo-realist Accattone (“scrounger” or “beggar”). Somewhat related to his books Ragazzi di vita and Una vita violenta, the film is set in the Roman borgate, where brash young Vittorio “Accattone” Cataldi (Franco Citti) survives by taking crazy bets — like swimming across a river known for swallowing up people’s lives — and working as a pimp. After a group of local men beat up his main money maker (Silvana Corsini), he meets the more naive Stella (Franca Pasut), whom he starts dating with an eye toward perhaps converting into a prostitute as well. Meanwhile, he tries to establish a relationship with his son, but his estranged wife and her family want nothing to do with him. Filmed in black-and-white by master cinematographer Tonino Delli Colli, Accattone is highlighted by a series of memorable shots, from Accattone’s gorgeous dive from a bridge to a close-up of his face covered in sand, many of which were inspired by Baroque art and set to music by Bach. Written with Sergio Citti and featuring a production assistant named Bernardo Bertolucci, the story delves into the dire poverty in the slums of Rome, made all the more real by Pasolini’s use of both professional and nonprofessional actors. Accattone is screening December 14 and 27 as part of MoMA’s “Pier Paolo Pasolini” series, a full career retrospective that runs December 13 to January 5 and includes such special events as “Recital: An Evening Dedicated to Pier Paolo Pasolini the Poet” at MoMA on December 14 and the Sunday Sessions program “Pier Paolo Pasolini: Intellettuale” at MoMA PS1 on December 16 with Paul Chan, Ninetto Davoli, Emi Fontana, Barbara Hammer, Alfredo Jaar, Lovett/Codagnone, and Fabio Mauri. In addition, there will be a number of other Pasolini celebrations around the city, including the December 13 seminar “Pasolini’s Languages” at the 
“I consider myself more of a chess player,” Ai Weiwei says at the beginning of Never Sorry, Alison Klayman’s revealing documentary about the larger-than-life Chinese artist and dissident. “My opponent makes a move, I make a move. Now I’m waiting for my opponent to make the next move.” Over the last several years, Ai has become perhaps the most famous and controversial artist in the world, primarily since he participated in the design of Beijing National Stadium, known as the Bird’s Nest, for the 2008 Summer Olympics, then denounced the Games on political grounds. Ai gives director, producer, and cinematographer Klayman, making her first full-length film, remarkable access to his personal and professional life as he gets physically abused by Chinese police, prepares to open major exhibits in Munich and London, and visits with his young son, Ai Lao, the result of a tryst with Wang Fen, an editor on his underground films. Klayman speaks with Ai Weiwei’s devoted wife, Lu Qing, an artist who publicly fought for his freedom when he disappeared in 2011; his mother, Gao Ying, who spent time in a labor camp with her dissident-poet husband, the late Ai Quing; and such fellow Chinese artists and critics as Chen Danqing, Feng Boyi, Hsieh Tehching, and Gu Changwei, who speak admiringly of Ai’s dedication to his art and his fearless search for the truth. A round man with a long, graying bear, Ai is a fascinating, complicated character, a gentle bull who openly criticizes his country because he loves it so much. He is a social media giant, making documentaries that are available for free on the internet and revolutionizing the way Twitter and the blogosphere are used. Ai risks his own freedom by demanding freedom for all, calling for government transparency before and after he is secretly arrested, not afraid of the potential repercussions. And he is also a proud cat lover — more than forty felines regularly roam around his studio — eagerly showing off one talented kitty that has a unique way of opening a door. Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry shows Ai to be an honorable, supremely principled human being who has deep respect for the history of China and a fierce determination to improve its future, no matter the personal cost. Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry is being shown on December 12 at 7:00 as part of MoMA’s annual series “The Contenders,” consisting of exemplary films they believe will stand the test of time, with Klayman on hand to participate in a postscreening discussion; upcoming entries include Steven Spielberg’s Lincoln, Charles Atlas’s Ocean, and Tim Burton’s Frankenweenie. (To find out more about Ai Weiwei’s art, specifically his recent projects in New York City, please follow these links: