this week in lectures, signings, panel discussions, workshops, and Q&As

ART AT A TIME LIKE THIS: LIVESTREAM CONVERSATION WITH JERRY SALTZ

Jerry Saltz will discuss his new book and the state of art during the age of corona in live online conversation (photo courtesy Jerry Saltz)

Who: Jerry Saltz, Barbara Pollack, Anne Verhallen
What: Book and art talk with Jerry Saltz
Where: Livestream (email info@artatatimelikethis for password)
When: Friday, April 17, free, 4:00
Why: Rock star art critic Jerry Saltz’s latest book has come along at just the right moment. How to Be an Artist (Riverhead Books, March 2020, $22) guides you through the creation of art — by anyone, regardless of talent and skill — espousing a dedicated work ethic, something that many of us are paradoxically demonstrating more than ever now that we’re stuck at home. “I have tried every way in the world to stop work-block or fear of working, of failure. There is only one method that works: work. And keep working,” Saltz, the Pulitzer Prize-winning senior art critic for New York magazine, writes in the book. “Every artist and writer I know claims to work in their sleep. I do all the time. Jasper Johns famously said, ‘One night I dreamed that I painted a large American flag, and the next morning I got up and I went out and bought the materials to begin it.’ How many times have you been given a whole career in your dreams and not heeded it? It doesn’t matter how scared you are; everyone is scared. Work. Work is the only thing that takes the curse of fear away.”

On March 17, Barbara Pollack and Anne Verhallen launched Art at a Time Like This, a website that features the work of a different artist every weekday, focusing on the question “How can you think of art at a time like this?” Among the participating artists are Ai Weiwei, Mickalene Thomas, Jacolby Satterwhite, Lynn Hershman Leeson, Dread Scott & Jenny Pollak, Marilyn Minter, and Dan Perjovschi, presenting new and older paintings, photographs, and videos, all of which illuminate in some way the crisis we are facing together, the onslaught of Covid-19, which has shut down galleries and museums around the world.

how to be an artist

A social media icon, Saltz will join Pollack and Verhallen on April 17 at 4:00 for a live online conversation about the state of art on a planet in lockdown. “Jerry Saltz is a natural for livestream because he is the completely accessible art critic, dedicated to reaching all kinds of art lovers, from the aficionado to the art-curious,” Pollack told twi-ny. “His new book puts forth the insane idea that anyone can be an artist, or at least artistic. Of course, people love him for this!”

As someone who has been writing about art for nearly twenty years, I’ve been forced to reconsider how we all experience art during this pandemic, looking at it onscreen, right next to Facebook, Google, and my day-job site. Obviously it’s not the same, and I have to admit I at first had trouble adjusting, but I’m getting more used to it every day. But can you critique a work of art you’ve seen only online, not in person? When viewed in real life, you can sense a painting’s texture, its physical presence; a photograph can envelop you and shake your surroundings loose; and videos can beam out from unique sculptural installations. But when is the next time any of us is likely to step foot in a gallery or museum in the five boroughs (or elsewhere)? What will things be like once they do reopen? Will crowds descend on MoMA and the Met like they did before corona?

In his October review of the new MoMA for New York magazine, a piece entitled, “What Does the New MoMA Mean for Modernism? And What Was Modernism Anyway?,” Saltz wrote, “Here’s how art has already moved on. Modernism is now just part of art history to artists, and not even the only or best part.” How will art move on after Covid-19? What will become part of art history? I can’t wait to hear what Saltz has to say about what will become of art’s future.

HUMP DAY WITH HAMPSHIRE: Featuring Emily Hampshire, Michelle Visage, Ross Mathews, and Katherine Moennig

Newly minted talk show host Emily Hampshire is obsessed with her bitmoji

Who: Michelle Visage, Ross Mathews, Katherine Moennig, host Emily Hampshire
What: Hump Day livestreamed talk show benefiting the Actors Fund
Where: The Actors Fund YouTube page
When: Wednesday, April 15, suggested donation, 2:00
Why: Schitt’s Creek might be over, but you can still keep getting your Emily Hampshire fix on Wednesdays during the pandemic with Hump Day with Hampshire, a livestreamed talk show hosted by Hampshire, who played everyone’s favorite motelier, Stevie Budd, on the Canadian comedy. On April 15 at 2:00, Hampshire, who also starred in 12 Monkeys, Made in Canada, and Blood, will be joined by singer, author, and radio and TV personality Michelle Visage (RuPaul’s Drag Race, Strictly Come Dancing), author and podcaster Ross Mathews (The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, RuPaul’s Drag Race), and actress Katherine Moennig (The L Word, Ray Donovan). In addition to virtual interviews, be on the lookout for such games as “Show Us Your Junk (Drawer),” “What Is Your quarROUTINE,” and “Phone a Friend Roulette.” The series is a benefit for the Actors Fund, so if you can, please donate, although you don’t have to in order to watch and enjoy.

“I couldn’t ask for a better creative distraction than hosting a show that not only helps raise money for an important cause but also lets me connect with a dream-team roster of guests without having to leave my apartment or even put on pants!” Hampshire, who is utterly charming as host, said in a statement. “There’s such an insane amount of stress in the world right now, and if we can do something a little fun for all the stir-crazy people out there and help the industry, that means everything to me.” You can also catch up with previous episodes; Bobby Berk, Sophia Bush, Annie Murphy, and Adam Rippon appeared on April 1 and Gigi Gorgeous, Noah Reid, Sarah Levy, and Lance Bass on April 8.

OUR BRILLIANT FRIENDS AFTER DINNER BOOK CLUB AND WATCH PARTY

watch party

Who: Ann Goldstein, Michael Reynolds, Alexander Chee, Sarah Treem
What: Live discussion, reading, and watch party to benefit #SaveIndieBookstores
Where: McNally Jackson Zoom meeting
When: Monday, April 13, advance registration required here, suggested donation $5 and up, 9:00
Why: Fans of Elena Ferrante’s novels, which include The Days of Abandonment, The Story of a New Name, and The Lost Daughter, will gather online on April 13 at 9:00 for a book club and watch party hosted by Ferrante’s publisher, Europa Editions, along with City Lights Books in San Francisco, the Elliott Bay Book Company in Seattle, and McNally Jackson Books here in New York City. The event begins at 9:00 with a live conversation and chat about Ferrante’s work and the HBO adaptation My Brilliant Friend, followed at 9:50 by a reading from her latest book, The Lying Life of Adults (Europa Editions, November 2019, $26) and a watch party at 10:00 of episode five of the second season of the series, The Betrayal, which is directed by Italian auteur Alice Rohrwacher, the writer-director of such international successes as Heavenly Body, The Wonders, and Happy as Lazzaro. (Note that the show will not be aired over the livestream but must be watched over HBO.) The discussion features Ferrante’s English-language translator, Ann Goldstein, who will read an excerpt from the new novel; Europa editor in chief Michael Reynolds; writer, professor, and poet Alexander Chee; and writer and producer Sarah Treem (The Affair, In Treatment). The mysterious and elusive, pseudonymous Ferrante will not be participating, of course. Suggested donation is $5 (or more if you can afford it), with all proceeds benefiting #SaveIndieBookstores.

FOCUS MOVIE MONDAYS: MOONRISE KINGDOM (Watch Party with Wes Anderson Q&A)

Sam Shakusky (Jared Gilman) and Suzy Bishop (Kara Hayward) are on the run in Wes Anderson’s delightful Moonrise Kingdom

MOONRISE KINGDOM (Wes Anderson, 2012)
Monday, April 13, free, 5:00
www.facebook.com/events
www.eifoundation.org

As part of Focus Features’ free Movie Mondays livestreaming series, director Wes Anderson will participate in a Q&A on April 13 following a 5:00 watch party for his 2012 gem, Moonrise Kingdom. In such unique films as Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums, and The Grand Budapest Hotel, black-comedy master Anderson has created a bizarre collection of characters who seem to live in their own alternate realities. In Moonrise Kingdom, he has once again assembled an oddball assortment of men, women, and children in a terrifically clever and entertaining fairy tale all its own. Tired of being abused by his fellow Khaki Scouts and dismissed by his foster parents, twelve-year-old orphan Sam Shakusky (Jared Gilman) runs away from Camp Ivanhoe on the island of New Penzance, much to the chagrin of dedicated scout master Randy Ward (Edward Norton). Meanwhile, twelve-year-old loner Suzy Bishop (Kara Hayward) is fed up with her life as well, which she mostly spends listening to Benjamin Britten, reading fairy tales (fictitious stories made up by Anderson), watching the world through a pair of ever-present binoculars, and despising her parents (Bill Murray and Frances McDormand).

Afraid of what might have happened to the children, the local police officer, Captain Sharp (Bruce Willis), gets involved, as does a stern woman from social services (Tilda Swinton) and, eventually, a very different kind of scout, Cousin Ben (Jason Schwartzman). The proceedings are overseen by a narrator (Bob Balaban) who ends up being more than just an omniscient presence. Moonrise Kingdom is an absolute gem of a film, an exciting, original tale about growing up, told in a fabulously funny, deadpan manner that combines slapstick humor with wildly ironic elements, filled with the endless wonders of childhood, although it is most definitely not for children. Newcomers Gilman and Hayward appear wise beyond their years in the lead roles, with outstanding support from an all-star cast, most prominently Norton as the by-the-book scout master on a mission. Written by Anderson with Roman Coppola and featuring a lovely score by Alexandre Desplat, Moonrise Kingdom is one of the best films of 2012, by a director whose imagination never ceases to amaze. Focus Movie Mondays continues April 20 with Kevin Smith’s Mallrats and April 27 with Paweł Pawlikowski’s My Summer of Love.

REMARKABULL PODVERSATIONS: “QUEEN MAB” WITH MICHAEL URIE

Who: Michael Urie, Nathan Winkelstein
What: Live discussion of “Queen Mab” speech from Romeo & Juliet
Where: Red Bull Theater’s website, Vimeo, Facebook (and Zoom for up to fifty participants; requires advance registration here)
When: Monday, April 13, free, 7:30
Why: Red Bull Theater’s RemarkaBULL Podversations streaming series kicks off April 13 at 7:30 with actor Michael Urie discussing Mercutio’s “Queen Mab” speech from William Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet with host Nathan Winkelstein, the company’s associate producer. Red Bull specializes in Jacobean and Shakespearean works; Urie (Ugly Betty, Buyer & Cellar) starred in the troupe’s 2017 adaptation of Nikolai Gogol’s 1836 satire, The Government Inspector. The monologue, delivered in Act 1, Scene 4, begins: “O, then, I see Queen Mab hath been with you. / She is the fairies’ midwife, and she comes / In shape no bigger than an agate-stone / On the fore-finger of an alderman, / Drawn with a team of little atomies / Athwart men’s noses as they lie asleep.” Urie portrayed Mercutio in Folger Theatre’s 2005 production of the play, directed by PJ Paparelli. If you want to participate in the live chat, you need to register in advance for the Zoom feed here.

COVID-19 & NEW YORK CITY ARTS AND CULTURE

Since May 2001, twi-ny has been recommending cool things to do throughout the five boroughs, popular and under-the-radar events that draw people out of their homes to experience film, theater, dance, art, literature, music, food, comedy, and more as part of a live audience in the most vibrant community on Earth.

With the spread of Covid-19 and the closing of all cultural institutions, sports venues, bars, and restaurants (for dining in), we feel it is our duty to prioritize the health and well-being of our loyal readers. So, for the next several weeks at least, we won’t be covering any public events in which men, women, and children must congregate in groups, a more unlikely scenario day by day anyway.

That said, as George Bernard Shaw once noted, “Without art, the crudeness of reality would make the world unbearable.”

Some parks are still open, great places to breathe in fresh air, feel the sunshine, and watch the changing of winter into spring. We will occasionally be pointing out various statues, sculptures, and installations, but check them out only if you are already going outside and will happen to be nearby.

You don’t have to shut yourself away completely for the next weeks and months — for now, you can still go grocery shopping and pick up takeout — but do think of others as you go about your daily life, which is going to be very different for a while. We want each and every one of you to take care of yourselves and your families, follow the guidelines for social distancing, and consider the health and well-being of those around you.

We look forward to seeing you indoors and at festivals and major outdoor events as soon as possible, once New York, America, and the rest of the planet are ready to get back to business. Until then, you can find us every so often under the sun, moon, clouds, and stars, finding respite in this amazing city now in crisis.

FIRST SATURDAY: GEOGRAPHIES OF GENDER

Naima Green will discuss her feminist card game, Pur·suit, after which attendees can play with the decks (photo © Naima Green)

Brooklyn Museum
200 Eastern Parkway at Washington St.
Saturday, March 7, free (some events require advance tickets), 5:00 – 11:00
212-864-5400
www.brooklynmuseum.org

The Brooklyn Museum honors Women’s History Month for its free First Saturday March gathering with “Geographies of Gender,” programs dealing with issues of gender, queerness, and color. There will be live performances by Thelma, Christopher Unpezverde Núñez (the autobiographical Yo, Obsolete), Ushamami, DJ Sabine Blaizin, Brown Girls Burlesque (Black Femme Warrior, with Hoodoo Hussy, Chicava Honeychild, Dakota Mayhem, Skye Syren, Genie Adagio, Delysia La Chatte, and Burgandy Jones), Hanae Utamura (A Letter from Future Past [The Pacific]), and Sammus; an artist talk with Naima Green, Caroline Washington, Rin Kim Ni, and Sable Elyse Smith about Green’s Pur·suit, followed by card games using decks with portraits of queer women and trans, nonbinary, and gender-nonconforming people; teen apprentice pop-up talks focusing on gender themes in the Arts of Asia galleries; a curator tour of “Out of Place: A Feminist Look at the Collection” led by curators Catherine Morris and Carmen Hermo; a hands-on art workshop where participants can make textile collages inspired by “Out of Place”; a Belladonna* poetry reading with S*an D. Henry-Smith, Giannina Braschi, and Jesse Rice-Evans; and a night market of Brooklyn vendors with goods made by local women and nonbinary artists. In addition, the galleries will be open late so you can check out “Jacques-Louis David Meets Kehinde Wiley,” “Out of Place: A Feminist Look at the Collection,” “African Arts — Global Conversations,” “JR: Chronicles,” “Jeffrey Gibson: When Fire Is Applied to a Stone It Cracks,” “Climate in Crisis: Environmental Change in the Indigenous Americas,” and more.