Tras Barrikadazz

Posted July 25, 2008 by dylan_miner in Events

I am in Oaxaca teaching a course about art + social justice. Some of the folks I am working with have an opening tonight for a show called 'Tras Barrikadazz.' The arts community is super rad here, although it reminds of Santa Fe in many ways. Once I get back, I'll upload some of the flicks of street art here in Oaxaca.

TRAS BARRIKADAZZ/ BEHIND BARRICADES
July 25th, 8pm,at the former “Azomalli” Gallery (A. Gurrion #110, next to Sto. Domingo)
Oaxaca de Juárez, Oaxaca.
This project has been created by three artistic destruction troops: LA PIZTOLA, ZZIERRARREZZIA, and ZAPE. These three agitators will release their most recent visual strategy, consisting in the use of conventional media, and also developing the concept of ¨STRUGGLE¨ on different materials and substrates. (screen-printing)
Traces of the confrontation with this gallery will be shown, ¨Keeping a cool mind and an overflown heart¨/ ¨Manteniendo la mente fría y el corazón desbordado. (Intervention art and graffiti in the three rooms).
For more information visit the following links :

http://trasbarrikadazz.blogspot.com
http://lapiztola.blogspot.com
http://colectivozape.blogspot.com
http://zzrrzz.blogspot.com

Film Screening in the Mission

Posted July 23, 2008 by k_c_ in Events

For Justseeds readers in the San Francisco area, I came across this event on the FecalFace site!

An outdoor screening of The Last Zapatistas, Forgotten Heroes a documentary by Sarah Perrig & Francesco Taboada Tabone will presented by Artists' Television Access and Workers International League

Thursday, July 24, 7pm
ar Carlos Club
3278 Mission St(& 24th)
Free
barbecue and drinks, 8:30 pm showtime, free

The film is

is the chilling testimony of the soldiers who fought beside their General Emiliano Zapata in the 1910 Mexican Revolution.

Almost one hundred years later, these survivors of the legendary Liberation Army of the South reveal a truth not to be found in any book. They speak of the failure of the Revolution and of today's neoliberal governments, of the agrarian and ecological disaster threatening their country and of imminent civil war if the Zapatista ideals they represent continue to be ignored.

These men and women are chapters of unjust history, abandoned wisdom, banners for Mexico's underprivileged .... they are the Forgotten Heroes.

You can see the trailer over at the films website

NYC Benefit for Earth First Roadblock

Posted July 22, 2008 by k_c_ in Events

The In Our Hearts folks have been having a bunch of events at John Bosch, a house in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn.

In Our Hearts is a New York City based anarchist network made up of autonomous collectives, groups and individuals who share the goal of building a culture of resistance in the City and beyond.

Their Wednesday, July 26th event is "An Anarcho-Punk benefit for Roadlock Earth First! and their efforts to stop I-69 (the NAFTA Super Highway) in Indiana."
Bands include:
Revolutionary Youth(from Georgia)
Whack
(A) Truth
Mutual Assured Destruction
Kulturkampf
Expendable Youth (Chicago)
Moral Degradation

At John Bosch
744 Willoughby Ave, Brooklyn

Read the rest of the entry »

Last Chance to See Out of the Shell Of The Old!- Music @ 1026

Posted July 21, 2008 by erik_ruin in Justseeds/Member Projects

OUT OF THE SHELL OF THE OLD MUSIC NIGHT & CLOSING PARTY!
Friday, July 25th 7pm
SPACE 1026
1026 Arch St, Philadelphia

Donations will benefit our friends at the Shoe Shop to help them deal with the lingering repercussions of their harassment by the police dept. and L&I. For more info on their case look at PhillyIMC.
This will be the last chance to see the Justseeds exhibit and purchase cheap art as the show comes down the next day. SO please come on down, support some good people and listen to some fine music by-

DAN BLACKSBERG is a trombonist who is working to expand the range of the trombone in jazz and improvised music. A native and resident of Philadelphia, he has been seen all around town with such local musicians as Jack Wright, Toshi Makihara, Sonic Liberation Front and with Bobby Zankel's Warriors of the Wonderful Sound. He has appeared in concerts produced by Bowerbird and the Ars Nova Workshop. In addition, Dan has performed with Anthony Braxton (the premiere of Composition 19 for 100 tubas), Taylor Ho Bynum, Joe Morris, Mike Pride, Nate Wooley, Katt Hernandez, Daniel Levin and Joe Maneri in many venues in New York and Boston.

ASHLEY DEEKUS is a percussionist and composer who holds a dynamic approach to her marimba playing. A career beginning with Canadian rock artists, to a place in the NY/PA improvising community, to the local “anything goes” scene. Beautician by day, musician by night, she currently pursues her studies in various traditional folk musics without excluding jazz, classical, or contemporary dance. Some artists she has worked with are; Pauline Oliveros, Neil Feather, Matthew Welch, Katt Hernendez, Jack Wright, Evan Lipson, Dustin Hurt, Do Make Say Think, Broken Social Scene, Feist, Gina Fererra, Nicole Bindler, and Susie Ibarra. Performs with: Alokli (West African ewe drumming ensemble) West Philadelphia Orchestra (traditional Balkan explosions) The Old Goats (traditional Brazilian).

JOSHUA MARCUS is a singer/songwriter/banjo-player who lives in Philadelphia, PA and has produced nine recordings under different bands and monikers in the last nine years, including Fan of Friends. This spring Marcus released his newest recording, Reverse the Charges, on Chicago's Contraphonic and Philadelphia's High Two record labels. Joshua is currently working on a collaborative project to produce a folk recording dealing with current U.S. social and environmental justice struggles.

Hope to see you there! Thanks to all the wonderful folks who've helped out & participated in the exhibition and events!

Handmade Nation Silent Art Auction Fundraiser: July 19th

Posted July 17, 2008 by icky in Events

Faythe Levine owner of Paper Boat Botique in Milwaukee WI is having a Silent Auction to raise money to complete her film Handmade Nation.

Silent Art Auction Fundraiser: July 19th
Poketo Headquarters
510 S Hewitt #506 Los Angeles, CA 90013 (5th floor)

You can check out some of the work here.

Pete from justseeds has some work available as do familiar names such as: Mike Brodie, Jill Bliss, Lisa Congdon, Nikki McClure and the Sumi Ink Club to name a few.

here's a little about the Documentary:
About Handmade Nation:
"Handmade Nation: The Rise of DIY Art, Craft & Design" is a independently produced and financed documentary about the indie craft community, slated for a 2009 festival release. Over the course of it's production Handmade Nation has received national press including multiple mentions in the New York Times, American Craft Magazine and was a "blog of note" on Blogger.com.

In addition to to the documentary, Handmade Nation the book will be released by Princeton Architectural Press, in November 2008. Written by director Faythe Levine and co-author Cortney Heimerl, the book features 24 makers as well as 5 essays from community members. Pre-ordering information will be available at the event.

This Sunday at Space 1026- Radical Art Discussion Night

Posted July 14, 2008 by erik_ruin

Please join us in Philly this sunday for our 3rd event in conjunction with the Out of the Shell of the Old exhibit at Space 1026!

SUNDAY JULY 20
7 PM
DISCUSSION NIGHT
SPACE 1026
1026 ARCH ST.
FREE!
We'll be using short presentations by 3 local artists as a jumping-off point for a room-wide discussion around the whats, whys and hows of radical art.

THEODORE A. HARRIS is a poet, muralist and collagist born in New York City and currently residing in Philadelphia, PA. As a muralist he has been painting with the Mural Arts program of Philadelphia since 1983. In addition to being exhibited in one-man and group shows from coast to coast, Harris's work has appeared in numerous publications, including Long Shot, The Hammer, Unity & Struggle, AAR, and the important anthologies Role Call: A Generational Anthology of Social & Political Black Literature and Art and In Defense of Mumia.

NAIMA LOWE writes, performs, directs, studies, makes movies, teaches, lives and loves in Philadelphia, PA. She’s currently working on creative and curatorial projects that focus on her favorite things: Queers, people of color, the art they make, and the worlds they devise. For more detailed information visit her website

BETH NIXON builds puppets, masks, piñatas, parades, pageants, magical lands and other spectaculah, on her own, and in collaboration with other humans of all ages. She comes from Rhode Island, lives in West Philly, and travels frequently to places where building, performing or
facilitating opportunities arise. Mostly she uses cardboard, "science", and the imagination. She specializes in beasts and is investigating The Utopian Performative… Beth believes in the power of bike helmets, cornstarch, tide pools, emacipatory pedagogy, and snacks. She is the creator of 'So Many Dynamos' a calendar of illustrated palindromes for 2008.

Forthcoming- a Music Night and Closing Party on Friday uly 25- a music show benefitting the folks at the Shoe Shop, whose home was taken away by L&I , with Dan Blacksberg and Joshua Marcus, and Ashley Deekus.

Slow Dancing to Slayer

Posted July 10, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

Tod Seelie, a friend of Justseeds and a Miss Rockaway Armadian, is having a Brooklyn exhibition of his photos in Brooklyn that opens next week. Tod takes photos of just about everything, from street art to street life, parties to political demonstrations, so who knows what'll show up here:

Slow Dancing to Slayer
Photographs by Tod Seelie
July 17th-August 9th, 2008
Opening Thursday July 17th, 7-10pm

Cinders Gallery
103 Havermeyer St.
(Btw. Hope & Grand St.)
718.388.2311

Show Photos - Out of the Shell of the Old

Posted July 9, 2008 by colin_matthes in Justseeds/Member Projects

I am sitting in the airport in Pittsburgh after a workshop with RUST - the Radical Urban Silkscreen Team. RUST is a rad goup of teens making prints in Pittsburgh and they were a blast to work with.

My plane is delayed and I have a few minutes to sort through some photos of the completed Justseeds exhibition at Space 1026 in Philadelphia. Here they are.

Read the rest of the entry »

Thanks and Come Again! Event this Friday at Space 1026

Posted July 8, 2008 by erik_ruin in Justseeds/Member Projects

Well, Out of the Shell of The Old opened last friday at Space 1026 here in Philadelphia. After an exhausting week of building, it all paid off- as an enthusiastic crowd filled the space on a rainy 4th of July evening. Thanks to everyone who came out and made it such a wonderful event and to DJs Merry Def and Mary Mack for the bumpin' tunes...
If you couldn't make it out to the opening, never fear- you have at least three more chances! In conjunction with the exhibit, Justseeds Philadelphia (ok, that's just me) has organized a series of radical art-themed events. The first is a night of performances this Friday-
Puppet Uprising & Justseeds Present
3 MUSICAL NARRATIVES
Friday, July 11, 7pm, Space 1026
1026 Arch Street, Chinatown, Philadelphia
Suggested donation: $5 or less
More info: 267-909-2633 or www.puppetuprising.org.

Featuring FLIGHT by Erik Ruin & Katt Hernandez, Shadows & Violin
THE SOLDIER & THE PHOENIX: a Toy Theater by Shoddy Puppet Company
THE EXCREMENTAL CONTEXT: A Parody of Satire by Reid Books
PLus CHEAP ART from All the Justseeds Artists!

Puppet Uprising teams up with the Justseeds/Visual Resistance Artists' Cooperative to bring 3 MUSICAL NARRATIVES to Space 1026 Gallery in Philadelphia. REID BOOKS (author/composer of "The Nothing Factory") debuts a new one-man-band performance “The Excremental Context,” in which Reid plays prepared guitar, bugle and truck horns while unraveling a satirical yarn. SHODDY PUPPET COMPANY (Leslie Rogers, Lucy Schneider, Michelle Posadas and Morgan F.P. Andrews) premieres “The Soldier & The Phoenix,” a toy theater fable with accordion accompaniment about a soldier’s memories of boyhood, a boy’s quest for chicken hearts, and a chicken’s desire for flight. ERIK RUIN gives an encore performance of “Flight: The Mythic Journey of a Person Displaced,” a wordless and cinematic shadow puppet play featuring a haunting violin and vocal score by KATT HERNANDEZ.
Future events will be a DISCUSSION NIGHT (5/20) with presentations by local artists Naima Lowe, Theodore Harris & Beth Nixon; and a MUSIC NIGHT (5/25) with trombonist Dan Blacksberg, percussionist Ashley Deekus and banjo-player Joshua Marcus, benefitting our friends at the Shoe Shop.
All events at Space 1026, all will have cheap art from Justseedsters available.

INOPERAbLE in Nü York

Posted July 8, 2008 by k_c_ in Events

The folks from Overspray Magazine are having a party at a new graffiti supply shop in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, this Thursday. Here's the info:

„INOPERAbLE in Nü York"
July 10th, 6pm-1am,
Alphabeta, 70 Greenpoint ave. Brooklyn
(Greenpoint Stop on G, or Short walk from Bedford Stop on L)

What you can expect:
* An art show and installation of work by street and graffiti artists you've never seen on this side of the pond.
* Live painting in the huge outdoor back area 6pm to 11pm, featuring Nychos, Maggot, Knochen, Holy Sin, DNM, I Love Ally, & Franke (- 'who?'. follow the link).
* Ultra cheap hot dogs (til Midnight) and BEER (forever), like we promised.
* GRL (yes, graffiti research lab has an Austrian contingent) killin it live with their 'Drip Sessions' at 11:30pm.
* DJ Stereotyp and Boundless' own Tes Uno on the decks, ALL NIGHT LONG.
* Room to dance if you wanna, because you will.
* A silent auction on the artwork.
* Photos by the infamous Texas from the New Pop.
* The flyer image was made into hand screenprinted, numbered posters by Atzgerei, and you can buy one at the party for cheap if the art is too spensi for you.
* It's walking distance from Bedford, really..

All you gotta do is RSVP here and show up. There is a $5 suggested donation.

Graphic Work in SF this week

Posted July 6, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

Graphic Work: Imaging Today's Labor Movement is an exhibition of new labor posters I curated with my friend Zoeann Murphy last year, and it has traveled to San Francisco to be part of Labor Fest 2008!

Here's the details:
Opening Reception for Graphic Work: Imaging Today’s Labor Movement
Monday, July 7, 5:30 PM (Free)
SEIU 1021 Hall
350 Rhode Island, Suite 100
San Francisco

The American labor movement has an amazing history of graphic production, creating some of the most effective political images in the history of this country. However, work and workers, along with the labor movement, are often depicted as experiences of the American past: paintings of Joe Hill, photographs from the early1900s of children working in factories, historic strikes and Rosie the Riveter.

Today’s workforce looks dramatically different from the majority of images used to depict labor. To address this issue we asked innovative artists to create posters that depict contemporary jobs, the people that do them and the issues workers now face.

What we found was startling. Most young politically engaged people don’t realize the American labor movement still exists and if they do they have little or no relationship to it. We found that now more than ever it is important to create new images of labor. The posters here are the beautiful beginning of a new wave of labor art.

Graphic work curated by Josh MacPhee and Zoeann Murphy
Sponsored by the Workforce Development Institute, Bread and Roses Cultural Project of ll99SEIU, and Justseeds.org

Write & Revolt!

Posted July 5, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

Favianna has been completely outdoing herself, and has set up an amazing Reproduce & Revolt release party and show in Los Angeles!:

Write & Revolt!
Exhibit, Art Jam, Book Release Party & Talk

July 10th-August 10, 2008

exhibition and all events at:
Crewest
110 Winston St.
Los Angeles, CA 90013

JULY 10 THURS:
DOWNTOWN ARTWALK
Live Painting & Screenprinting by:
Unification Theory, Favianna Rodriguez and the Yo! What Happened to Peace Crew
6 - 9 PM

JULY 12 SAT:
ARTIST RECEPTION & BOOK RELEASE PARTY
Reproduce & Revolt
A new book by Josh MacPhee & Favianna Rodriguez
6 PM - Book Talk w/Co-Editor, Favianna Rodriguez
7 - 10 PM - Reception

AUG 9 SAT:
CLOSING. 6 - 9 PM
Mike the Poet
Live Painting by Mear

FEATURED ARTISTS:
Archer
Auks
Aybon
John Carr
Edward Colver
Ekundayo
Fear
Gustavo Alberto Garcia Vaca
Mear
Nuke
Plek
Favianna Rodriguez
Siner
Winston Smith
Street Phantom
Thanx
Ween
YO! What Happened to Peace Crew

Seth Tobocman: Disaster & Resistance Release Events

Posted July 3, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

AK Press is putting out Seth Tobocman's (You Don't Have to Fuck People Over to Survive and War in the Neighborhood) new book Disaster & Resistance!!

He has 2 release events planned in NYC:

July 10th
10pm
Bowery Poetry Club
398 Bowery

with music by: Mischief Brew, Actual Facts, Shit Lovin’ Angels, Steve Wishnia and Eric Blitz

admission is $10 or free if you buy a book

AND

July 18th
7pm
Bluestockings Books
172 Allen Street

with Peter Kuper and Fly
music by Steve Wishnia and Eric Blitz

admission is free

Space 1026 Install in Progress!

Posted July 1, 2008 by colin_matthes in Justseeds/Member Projects

Here are some photos of of the first couple days installing at Space 1026 for Out of the Shell of the Old, which opens Friday, July 4th (7-10pm).

A quick preview before I get back to drinking beer and painting over bad decisions.

Activist Video Art 2004!

Posted June 30, 2008 by dara_g in Events

Half of the People Are Stoned and the Other Half Are Waiting for the Next
Election*
at
Light Industry
http://www.lightindustry.org
Curated by Nick Hallett

Tuesday, July 1, 2008 at 8pm
55 33rd Street, 3rd Floor
Brooklyn, NY

*A line written by Paul Simon for Leonard Bernstein's Mass (1971).

A screening of activism-oriented video, performance documentation, and new
media from 2004.

Read the rest of the entry »

Out of the Shell of the Old-Justseeds at Space 1026

Posted June 30, 2008 by erik_ruin in Justseeds/Member Projects

Throughout the month of July, Justseeds will be exhibiting a brand-new collaborative exhibition at Space 1026 in Philadelphia. As a part of the exhibit, a variety of exciting radical art-themed events will also be taking place.
Out of the Shell of the Old is a unique collaborative installation/exhibition from members of the radical artists’ cooperative Justseeds. Based on the theme of “a new world rising out of the shell of the old”, this show will incorporate built environments, video installation, and printed work to explore both the dark and troubling times we now live in, as well as our hopes for a better, brighter world. Over 10 members of Justseeds will be traveling to Philadelphia from as far as Portland OR and Providence RI to collaboratively create a unique and exciting body of work
WHEN: Throughout July 2008. The opening reception will be on Friday July 4, with DJs and coop members Mary Mack (Pittsburgh) and Merry Def (Providence) from 7-10 pm.
Other events throughout the month will include-
july 11- performance night with "Flight", a shadow puppet performance by Justseeds member Erik Ruin (w/ Katt Hernandez on violin), Shoddy Puppet Company's toy theater performance "the Soldier and the Phoenix" and "the Excremental Context: a parody of satire" performed by Reid Books.
july 20- a discussion night with presentations by local radical artists - filmmaker/performer Naima Lowe, collage artist Theodore Harris, and puppeteer Beth Nixon.
july 25- a music show benefitting the folks at the Shoe Shop, whose home was taken away by L&I , with Dan Blacksberg and Joshua Marcus, more acts TBA.
All events start at 7 pm.
WHERE:Space 1026, 1026 Arch St., Philadelphia PA. www.space1026.org
For further information/interview requests, please contact Erik Ruin-
215.387.0356. rustriot@yahoo.com. www.justseeds.org

Declaration of Immigration

Posted June 28, 2008 by dylan_miner in Events

Just Seed artist Dylan Miner will have work included in the upcoming exhibition Declaration of Immigration.

A Declaration of Immigration is an exhibition that depicts many of the experiences and viewpoints within U.S. immigrant communities. The works of over 70 artists will help visitors increase their understanding of this complex issue by providing
immigrant perspectives that are seldom included in the national debate. As a vital part of the democratic process, artists and community-based institutions play a critical role in any civic dialogue and struggle for social justice. Immigration is indisputably the foundation upon which this country was built. The National Museum of Mexican Art has a responsibility to take a proactive stance, and provide a platform from which many immigrants can speak out – especially at a time in our history, when once again, countless immigrants are being scapegoated and blamed for many of the nation’s problems. This exhibition will launch the Museum’s three-year commitment to immigrant centered programs.

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Reproduce & Revolt release party in NYC

Posted June 27, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

Come celebrate the release of Reproduce & Revolt/Reproduce y Rebélate!

Monday, June 30th, 7-10pm
Bluestockings Bookstore
172 Allen St.
NYC
(One block south of Houston, a block from the 2nd Ave. F train)

A collection of over 500 political graphics, Reproduce & Revolt/Reproduce Y Rebélate contains original art granted by the creators to the public domain, to be freely used on political posters, flyers, and campaigns. A bilingual (English & Spanish) book, it also includes a history of the reproducible political graphic and a design how-to for anyone interested in using the images in this book to help change the world. A powerful collection of graphic work by some of the world’s most active and interesting political propagandists, street artists and socially conscious graphic designers. Over 100 artists from over 25 countries are included!

Many of the NYC based artists will be present, and Josh MacPhee be giving a short presentation about the book.

The Great Rebel Raft Regatta

Posted June 27, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

John Jordan (mover and shaker in Reclaim the Streets, We Are Everywhere and the Climate Camp UK) is helping put together an amazing looking new event/project called The Great Rebel Raft Regatta. It looks and sounds like a more political and decentralized Miss Rockaway Armada, with an invite for anyone and everyone to build a raft and join:

A strange fusion of futuristic flotilla, activist armada and charity raft race floats down the river Medway. Hundreds of rebel rafts of every shape and size are swarming towards Kingsnorth power station, like a giant shoal of disobedient fish with a single aim, to shut down the climate criminals.

Launched from the Climate Camp on the 9th of August, as part of the mass day of Action to stop the construction of the UK's first coal fired power station in 30 years. The GRRR will be made up of a multitude of rebel rafts constructed out of flotsam and jetsam of this overheating world.... There will be pirate ship rafts, musical rafts, desert Island rafts, migration rafts, polar bears floating on ice-berg rafts, apocalyptic rafts, yellow submarine rafts, car wreck rafts, Robinson Crusoe rafts, battle ship Potemkin rafts, Viking rafts, Kontiki rafts, life rafts and love rafts, dark rafts and hope rafts.

9th August, high tide, RIver Medway, Kingsnorth Power Station, Kent
Get a team together < Build a raft of your dreams < Come to the Climate Camp August 3-11th > GRRR Launch >>> August 9th

RUST::: pittsburgh radical youth printshop update

Posted June 25, 2008 by mary_tremonte in Bikes

RUST (Radical Urban Silkscreen Team), pittsburgh's radical youth print collective, is in full swing!
young artist-activists completed their first project, celebrate pittsburgh people's history posters, and have begun a bike poster project, just in time for bikefest. one RUST member created an amazing RUSTy the shark mascot costume!

justseeds member pete yahnke is in town this week as a visiting artist, teaching students the fine art of marmoleum cutting & printing. pete's work can be seen in the windows of RUST for one-week only. this is a great location as it's right behind a bus stop on the main drag downtown, and the work is visible 24-7.

RUST is open to the public tuesday-friday 1-5pm.
wednesday night 5-9pm is youth open studio, open to ages 13-18. print what you want! free!

RUST is a project of the andy warhol museum and artists image resource

www.warhol.org
www.artistsimageresource.org
http://bike-pgh.org/events/bikefest/

Asif Rahman Memorial Ride update courtesy of NYC Street Memorial Project

Posted June 24, 2008 by k_c_ in Events

Memorial bike ride for Asif Rahman on Monday June 23, 2008
Join fellow riders and Asif's family and friends on to remember him and demand a bike lane on Queens Boulevard. Bring flowers and candles.

From GhostBikes.org

On February 28, 2008, Asif Rahman, was doing what he loved to do -- riding his bike on his way back home from work -- when he was crushed to death by a reckless truck driver on Queens Boulevard. He died instantly from internal injuries. The truck driver was not charged or ticketed. Asif's mother said:
"Asif was on his way home after a hard day of work. I was waiting for him to come home. He will never come home. I still wait everyday to hear his voice. But he doesn't come home and say 'hi mom'. He will not say it anymore. He was brutally killed by a reckless truck driver."

Read the rest of the entry »

Allied Media Conference report back

Posted June 24, 2008 by nicolas_lampert in Events

Five Just Seeds members were at this years Allied Media Conference in Detroit that took place from June 20-22 and it is safe to say that this conference never fails to be anything short of amazing. If you missed the conference this year, the AMC website will have extensive documentation that will be updated over the next few weeks. Independent media is the focal point of the conference, but radical art, street art and art collectives where well represented, including the Howling Mob Society, Pocho Research Society, and the Bee Hive Collective. The photo below is of two incredible Detroit organizers Jenny Lee and Grace Lee Boggs and the other photos are of Just Seeds members and friends tabling and acting goofy, as usual.

Anticorporate Film Fest

Posted June 20, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

If you are in Chicago Saturday night, check out this anticorporate film fest. Anne Elizabeth Moore and Vancouver-based activist and filmmaker Franklin Lopez have organized I’m Doing This To Win Your Heart, film festival and a benefit for the AAAFFF and Submedia.TV

Here's the details:
Saturday, June 21, 8 pm.
the Hideout (1354 W. Wabansia)
$7

Charming and radical films about corporate malfeasance and the triumph of autonomous culture from Jo Dery, Conrad Schmidt, Franklin Lopez, Sami Muillenberg, and the Graffiti Research Lab.

Waste to Work

Posted June 20, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

My friend and collaborator Olivia Robinson (from the Spectres of Liberty Ghost Church project) has a new project she's working on with another friend, Daniela Kostova. It's called Waste to Work, and they've been collecting sweat and turning it into batteries! Here's the press release for the opening of the project in Schenectady, NY:

Have you ever thought of sweat as a renewable energy source? New media artists Daniela Kostova and Olivia Robinson will do just that when they perform Waste to Work at 2:00 p.m. Saturday, June 28 at the Schenectady Museum & Suits-Bueche Planetarium.

Inspired by the significant labor and electric industry histories of upstate New York, Waste to Work explores the transformation of labor into electric power, using sweat as the link. Sweat is the perfect medium: it is an electrolyte that can be used to make galvanic batteries--"waste" that can be harvested from our labors--and remains an extremely personal commodity that holds our scent, essential salts, fats, pheromones.

Kostova and Robinson will use video and an installed cabinet of batteries to illustrate how they developed batteries powered by their own and others' sweat. The power produced by the sweat batteries will illuminate a world map of LED shapes that designate centers of manufacturing and labor.

To create the sweat-powered batteries, the artists combined the practices of scientists and artists. Working with researchers a the Center for Biotechnology at Rensselaer, the artists developed batteries that are powered using sweat they collect in specially designed costumes they wear when participating in different kinds of physical labor.

The sweat-powered batteries are based on galvanic cells, which require two sources of electrolyte medium separated by a thin porous wall to create a chemical reaction with zinc and carbon to produce power. Human sweat is an electrolyte medium and will be used to power the battery.

Directions
Schenectady Museum & Suits-Bueche Planetarium
15 Nott Terrace Hts
Schenectady, NY 12308
(518) 382-7890

Websites:
http://www.iamwhateveryouwantmetobe.com/site/content/waste-work
http://oliviarobinson.com
http://dani.cult.bg

The Streets Are Ours

Posted June 17, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

This just in from Amsterdam:

Pittsburgh Photo Exhibit of Palestine

Posted June 17, 2008 by k_c_ in Events

A Photo Exhibit Hope Under Siege: Pittsburghers in Palestine

Opening Reception:
Thursday, June 19, 2008 6-9PM
at the Shadow Lounge,
5972 Baum Blvd
Pittsburgh, PA

With performances by hip hop artist Rashad Jamaal, folk music by Leslie Addis, slam poetry by local artists, food by Allegro Hearth Bakery, and much, much more!

May 2008 marks the 60th anniversary of what Palestinians call the “Nakba.” It is a date engrained into the minds of every Palestinian, everywhere. The translation means the “Catastrophe,” because three quarters of a million Palestinian women, men, and children were expelled from their homes, massacred ensued, and 531 Palestinian towns and villages were destroyed for what was to become the state of Israel.

For the 60 years of Israel’s existence, Palestinians have been refused the right to return to their homes. Palestinians remain the largest refugee population in the world. Many continue to see the uprooting of their trees, the demolition of their homes, the building of apartheid walls, confiscation of their farmland, and the murder of their family members and friends by the Israeli army.

Over the years, many Pittsburghers have traveled to Palestine to witness and document what is happening on the ground in order to amplify the voices of the marginalized Palestinians and spread the truth through eyewitness accounts of life under occupation, of a hope that is under siege.

Please join the Pittsburgh Palestine Solidarity Committee as they reveal their photographs from Occupied Palestine. Hear eyewitness accounts from Palestinians and Pittsburghers who have seen and experienced life under the gun. View the scenes of hope and the images of despair. Share the truth with the world about 60 years of dispossession and a hope that refuses to perish.

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Prison Nation Opens

Posted June 16, 2008 by jmacphee in Posters

Prison Nation: Posters on the Prison Industrial Complex opened this past weekend in Los Angeles. A show of prison-related posters collected and organized by the Center for the Study of Political Graphics, it contains dozens of posters created around many prison-related issues, from overcrowding to women in prison, political prisoners to racism in the justice system. I've even got a couple posters in the show!

Prison Nation: Posters on the Prison Industrial Complex
William Grant Still Arts Center
2520 West View St.
Los Angeles, CA 90016
Open Daily: 12-5pm
323.734.1164

Even though the opening has past, they have a huge schedule of events planned, if you are in LA, check some of this out:

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Windowblogging in Brooklyn

Posted June 14, 2008 by molly_fair in Events

June 14-21, 2008

My longtime friend and collaborator Sunita Prasad will be participating in a show called Windows Brooklyn. The gist of it is that a bunch of artists are paired with a bunch of shopkeepers in the neighborhood and the shopkeepers give their store window to the artist to do an installation for 10 days.

Sunita's window will be transformed into an interactive LIVE (as in her in the window with a dry-erase marker and some tape) "BLOG". It's called Windowblog, and she will be updating it every weekday at 6pm and every weekend-day at 3pm. The previous days' entries will also be shown on a monitor in the window during store hours, and the text will use the language of the blogosphere to interact in real time with the actual public sphere. The idea is to adapt the mode of personal diary perfected by blogging into a physical performance and topical dialogue in public space. The first entry of the blog explores the word "peace" and peace slogans, in an attempt to reinvigorate the urgent content of a somewhat diluted or disheartened word. I am excited to be taking part as one of her videographers. So get off the internet and come on down to Home Court Furniture at 286 Court Street!

Opening Reception: June 14, Sam's Restaurant 238 Court St, Brooklyn , 3-5pm, cash bar
Art Walk: June 21, 3-5pm, Talk to the artists at their installation locations
Closing Reception: June 21, 6pm, Carroll Park, closing performance by Maya Pindyck and Fletcher Boote

Human Rights Watch International Film Festival

Posted June 13, 2008 by molly_fair in Events

New York, June 13–26, 2008
Walter Reade Theater at Lincoln Center
165 West 65th Street, upper level
(between Broadway and Amsterdam Ave.)

In recognition of the power of film to educate and galvanize a broad constituency of concerned citizens, Human Rights Watch decided to create the Human Rights Watch International Film Festival. Human Rights Watch's International Film Festival has become a leading venue for distinguished fiction, documentary and animated films and videos with a distinctive human rights theme.

The films in this year’s edition of the Human Rights Watch International Film Festival reflect struggles throughout the world—the buying and selling of children in China; the continuing animosity between Pakistan and India; the story behind the murder of a courageous Russian journalist—as well as those right here at home. While many films raise questions, these begin to provide answers as brave filmmakers work on the front lines of international crises to show us the toll of war, the horrors of ongoing conflicts, and the human faces at the heart of it all (including the residents of a Palestinian senior citizens’ home).

Within many of these works is a quest: A filmmaker traces her ancestors’ involvement in the slave trade, human rights activists spend their lives trying to bring dictators to justice, and others bear witness to their crimes. Finally, there are the children: we get a glimpse of the overwhelmed juvenile justice system in Brazil, while from around the world, young people armed with cameras are asking questions and, perhaps, showing us the way to a better future.

Towards Carfree Cities VIII

Posted June 11, 2008 by molly_fair in Events

June 16-20, 2008

Some of the amazing people involved in the NYC Street Memorials Project honoring pedestrians and cyclists, will be heading to Portland for the carfree conference to do a panel discussion-so check it out!

June 19, 2008 4-5:30 pm
Advocacy, Media, and Direct Action: Street Memorials and Successful Collaborative Strategies for Making Change on NYC Streets Moderator: Brooke DuBose, Planner, Fehr & Peers, San Francisco

* Nat Meysenburg, Web Coordinator & Volunteer, NYC Street Memorial Project
* Elizabeth Press, videographer, Streetfilms
* Caroline Samponaro, Bicycle Campaign Coordinator, Transportation Alternatives
* Leah Todd, Press Coordinator & Volunteer, NYC Street Memorial Project
* Peter Meitzler, transportation activist, New York

Milwaukee Zine Fest

Posted June 8, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

Looks like Milwaukee is gearing up for their inaugural Milwaukee Zine Fest from Friday, July 18 to Sunday, July 20, 2008 at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

They're still looking to find people to table and propose activities, showcase zines and related projects. Table registration is now open. Visit www.midwestzines.org for more information and to register your table. Lead a workshop, serve on a panel, read from your zine, or start a discussion. You can get in touch with the organizers here.

Pittsburgh Summer: Youth Radical Print Collective

Posted June 6, 2008 by mary_tremonte in Justseeds/Member Projects

The Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh, Pa is working with 14 to 20 year old artist-activists to form a Radical Print Collective.

This Collective will work with Pittsburgh’s social justice and environmental community to create print materials that illustrate social, cultural and civic achievement milestones in Pittsburgh. The Collective will learn printmaking and design techniques and will use these skills to document Pittsburgh’s activist past and present in an effort to effect progressive social change.

Local and national activist artists from the Justseeds/Visual Resistance Artists' Cooperative will be in residence throughout the summer to work with the youth involved in this project and to create an installation.

For more information, contact Mary Tremonte at tremontem(at)warhol.org, 412-237-8356

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Lesbians of Color-Women Against Violence

Posted June 6, 2008 by molly_fair in Events

Brecht Forum Gallery
451 West Street
NY, NY 10014

June 6th - July 6th, 2008
Opening:
June 6th 6:30 PM - 10:00 PM

This exhibit focuses on violence against lesbians of color and the lesbian love that empowers them. The artists are sending the healing energy of their art to lesbians of color here and around the world who are being stigmitized, rejected, imprisioned and killed. Besides the daily stress of racism and colonialism, lesbians of color have to deal with homophobia, like verbal abuse, hostility, being labeled sinful by religious leaders, lack of marriage rights and partner benefits, not being represented in many women's organizations, community ostracism, sexual harassment, partner violence, discrimination in jobs and housing, families trying to take away children or withdraw support, incarceration in mental hospitals or jails, being trafficked, raped, tortured, or murdered..

The exhibit seeks to expose examples of violence against lesbians of color from African, Asian/Pacific Islands, Latino/Carribean. Native American, and Near/Middle Eastern ancestry and assert the right of lesbians of color to a life with dignity and acceptance without fear of attacks on their spirits and bodies.

At the opening reception there will be loc poets, singers and musicians celebrating loc love and resistance to all forms of violence.

Reproduce & Revolt SF release party!

Posted June 6, 2008 by jmacphee in Books & Zines

San Francisco artists celebrate the release of Reproduce & Revolt, an extensive collection of contemporary political graphics collected from around the world, featuring today's most exciting street artists, poster makers and graphic designers.

WHAT: An art jam and book release party featuring live printmaking, music, and refreshments.

WHEN: Wednesday, June 11, 6-10 pm

WHERE: CounterPULSE, 1310 Mission St. (near 9th), San Francisco, CA 94103

WHO: Reproduce & Revolt Co-Editor, Favianna Rodriguez, Taller Tupac Amaru (Oakland), San Francisco Print Collective (SF), Political Gridlock (Alameda), and Chaman Visions (Los Angeles)

On the evening of Wednesday, June 11th, artists, activists, and art lovers will gather to celebrate the release of the new book, Reproduce & Revolt. Activism depends on design to capture imaginations and spread a message. Reproduce and Revolt not only documents some of the best activist design work of the past few years, it shows readers how to do it themselves. Political artists from the Bay Area will host an evening of live poster printing, political art displays, and other art making to promote a message of social justice.

Reproduce and Revolt features the work of artists from over a dozen countries. The collection contains hundreds of high-quality illustrations and graphics about social justice and political activism for use on flyers, posters, t-shirts, brochures, stencils, and any other graphic elements of social causes. The graphics are bold, easy to reproduce, and available to reproduce without permission. The book offers clear instructions on how to utilize the images to improve the effectiveness of visual campaigns. It also contains a short history of political graphics, highlighting the vital and powerful role that graphics have played in social movements all over the world – serving as tools to inspire, mobilize, and transform communities.

Print Art Show- Portland

Posted June 5, 2008 by icky in Events

Hey we're having a print art show this sunday (one night only) in honor of some friends being in town from Mexico City. We'll slowly be putting some of their work up in the justseeds store as well, so if you live elsewhere keep your eyes peeled.

Hola! Este domingo(unica noche) estamos organizando una exposicion de
grabado en honor a algunxs amigxs que nos visitan desde Mexico DF. Tambien
pronto pondremos algunas de sus obras en la tienda de justseeds, y si no
vives cerca de Portland y no podras asistir mantente conectadx y checa la
pagina.

The show is as 5205 NE 19th in Portland OR
Sunday June 8th starting at 7PM
near bus-lines #8 & #72
we'll have some refreshments, not sure what else
see you there!

Climate Camp UK Workshop

Posted June 5, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

This just in:

THE FUTURE IS NOT WHAT IT USED TO BE - A weekend of Creative Construction for the Camp for Climate Action Caravan - East London 14th-15th June.

From Saturday 14th to Sunday 15th June, we are holding a weekend workshop to begin the process of building the creative elements of the Camp for Climate Action's Caravan. The Caravan (27th July - 3rd August) is part of of the build up to this years Climate Camp and will be traveling by foot, sea and bike from Heathrow Airport to Kingsnorth power station where the Camp will be set up.

The workshop builds on a creative brainstorm held in May, where 30 people began the process of developing ideas for what the Caravan might look, feel, sound like as it crosses London. Many ideas came from this event and this coming weekend workshop aims to narrow down these and begin to work on the practical application of a few of them.

The event is not just for those who attended the May event, but open to all who have time to dedicate to turning the caravan into a beautiful inspiring radical journey across London in search for climate justice. The workshop will be focused on practical project, making, planning and plotting. We are asking participants to work up proposals for projects that they might want to work on or build affinity groups around. These should be brought to the event and/or sent to the caravan organising e-list. Please bring any materials/tools that might be needed to begin working. Please bring food to share on both days

Saturday the workshop begins at 10am (sharp) til 6pm. There may be evening activities organised, such as film night etc....On Sunday the workshop continues from 10am to 5pm

Venue address: 22 Smeed Road, Hackney Wick, London E3 2NG

Reclaiming the "F" Word

Posted June 5, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

The Center for the Study of Political Graphics, a great archive and resource for studying political posters, has just put together a new show:

Reclaiming the “F” Word: Posters on International Feminisms

June 3 - July 3, 2008

Opening Reception:
Saturday June 7, 2008 2-5 pm
Panel Discussion: 3 pm
Panel will include some of the exhibition’s artists and curatorial team.

Special Film Showing:
Monday, June 16th, 2008 at 2 pm
I was a Teenage Feminist, a film by Therese Shechter
(see description of film below)

California State University
Northridge Art Galleries
18111 Nordhoff Street
Northridge, CA 91330

Summer gallery hours are Mon – Fri 12-4 pm
There is no admission charge.
Parking is $5.00.
For further information call 818.677.2156.

Reclaiming the “F” Word refers to women’s movements in the plural—to feminismS—to acknowledge and honor our similarities and differences. The national and international posters in this exhibition reflect a deepening awareness that women’s struggles, women’s leadership and women’s activ¬ism throughout the world challenge oppressive conditions in diverse and creative ways.

Posters from Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, North and South America explore class, race and gender as they show women at the forefront of struggles for human rights and social change. Powerful graphics depict diverse feminist issues from the suffragettes to the activism of the 1970s to today. The family unit, childcare, labor, ecology, trafficking and violence are just some of the topics covered. Posters show women organizing against the Viet Nam War and against Apartheid in South Africa. They decry the ongoing murders of women in Juarez, Mexico and use of rape as a military weapon in Darfur, Sudan. Reclaiming the “F” Word will broaden the definition of feminism, and inspire women and men, of all ages, to be proud to call themselves feminists.

Stencil Nation release parties

Posted June 4, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

Russell Howze, long time maintainer of the site StencilArchive.org has just released a new book on street stenciling called Stencil Nation. He's having a couple release parties this weekend in the Bay Area, if you're there, check them out:

1>>
Stencil Nation: Graffiti, Community, and Art
Book Release Party and Stencil Art Exhibit

Friday, June 6
7 PM to Midnight
Revolution Cafe
3248 22nd St. (at Bartlett)
SF, CA 94110
(415) 642-0474

Free

Artwork on the walls until June 30

Confirmed participating artists:
Adam5100 (San Francisco, CA)
Amy Rice (Minneapolis, MN)
Chris Stain (NY, NY)
Janet "Bikegirl" Attard (Toronto, ONT)
John Fekner (Bayside, NY)
Josh MacPhee (Troy, NY)
Klutch (Portland, OR)
PaperMonster (Madison, NJ)
Scott Williams (San Francisco, CA)
Peat Wollaeger (St. Louis, MO)
Tiago Denczuk (Portland, OR)
and Street Art Workers (SAW)

Come celebrate the Manic D Press release of Stencil Nation: Graffiti, Community, and Art by Russell Howze. Autographed copies of the book will be for sale by the author at the night of the exhibit opening. The author will also feature slide shows of the Stencil Archives, with over 10,000 photographs of international stencil art. Stencil-making materials will also be available upon request. Proceeds of the art sales will benefit the artists as well as help fund the upcoming Stencil Nation book tour.

2>>
Stencil Nation Budget Gallery
Cheap art that anyone can afford!

Saturday, June 7
Noon to 4 PM
The sidewalk in front of Al's Comics
1803 Market St. (at Octavia)
SF, CA 94103
415-861-1220

Free

Celebrate the Manic D Press release Stencil Nation: Graffiti, Community, and Art by stopping by author Russell Howze's TAG (Temporary Autonomous Gallery) on the sidewalk in front of Al's Comics. Munch on crackers and cheese while choosing a cheap piece of hand-made stencil art to take home and hang on your wall. Autographed copies of Stencil Nation will be available for sale too.

Proceeds of the art sales supports the Stencil Nation Book Tour and the Budget Gallery Project.

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Continental Drift Midwest

Posted June 1, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

Friends in the Midwest have been busy preparing a great tour up and down what they have been calling the Midwest Radical Culture Corridor. Starting this coming week they will be traveling from Champaign Urbana, IL to Chicago to Milwaukee to Western Wisconsin. The tour stops at farmers' markets, libraries, art exhibitions, community centers, farmer coops, swimming holes and film screenings! This tour is part of an ongoing project organized by Brian Holmes and many others called Continental Drift. Brian just released a great book of essays called Unleashing the Collective Phantoms on Autonomedia Press.

Continental Drift Through the Midwest Radical Culture Corridor
A CALL TO FARMS!

June 4-14, 2008

CONTINENTAL DRIFT is an invitation to look at our collective existence
on all the relevant scales: the intimate, the local, the national, the
continental, and the global. Continental Drift is a mobile assemblage of
people presenting their projects, observations, experiments, discoveries
and questions, and producing value through social exchange. Continental
Drift through the MRCC is a self-educating tour through our concrete
world and its abstract representations, discovering distant lives in
familiar situations, and embracing the interdependency that links what
is usually treated as separate. Continental Drift is intended for anyone
seeking to locate global forces in daily life and to reorient aesthetic
invention in response to an ethics of equality.

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Threat of Chance closing party

Posted May 31, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

We're having a little closing party for the Threat of Chance show in Brooklyn on Sunday night. If you're around, stop on by!

Threat of Chance (Josh MacPhee/Billy Mode/Chris Stain)
Closing Party
Sunday, June 1st, 7pm - 10pm
Ad-Hoc Art
49 Bogart Street, Bushwick, Brooklyn
(Morgan stop on the L train)

Graffiti Research Lab at BAM

Posted May 30, 2008 by molly_fair in Events

Saturday, May 31
9:30 pm L.A.S.E.R. TAG
midnight screening of GRL: The Complete 1st Season
BAM: Brooklyn Academy of Music
30 Lafayette Av., Brooklyn, NY
FREE!!!

If you love the mad geniuses of the Graffiti Research Lab, you don't want to miss this. L.A.S.E.R. TAG is a Weapon of Mass Defacement (WMD) that gives individuals the power to communicate their thoughts on buildings, using a 60-milliwatt laser and a big-ass projector. They will be using it to scribble on BAM's Peter Jay Sharp Building in Brooklyn.
Then stick around for a free midnight screening of GRL: The Complete 1st Season- the only movie to officially be put on the Dept. of Homeland Security no-fly-list.

From their origins in the trash room of a non-profit in Manhattan to their emergence as the instigators of an international art movement, Graffiti Research Lab: The Complete First Season documents the adventures of an architect and an engineer who quit their day jobs to develop high-tech tools for the art underground. The film follows the GRL and their network of graffiti artist collaborators (and commercial imitators) across four continents as they write on skyscrapers with lasers, mock advertisers with homemade tools, get in trouble with The Department of Homeland Security and make activism fun again. Primarily using video footage from point-and-shoot digital cameras (“The Pocket School”) and found-content on the web, the movie’s visual style draws as much from the art of the power point presentation and viral media as conventional documentary cinema. Narrated by GRL co-founders, Roth and Powderly, The Complete First Season makes a humorous and insightful argument for free speech in public, open source in pop culture, the hacker spirit in graffiti and not asking for permission in general. The film was premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2008. Available 24/7 on The Pirate Bay.

NYC Critical Mass and Al Sharpton!

Posted May 30, 2008 by k_c_ in Events

I'm so pleased to hear about the alliance of Al Sharpton, Nicole Paulttre Bell, and NYC Critical Mass!
Todays ride will be a ride and rally against the murder of Sean Bell by the NYPD, and the recent acquittal of all criminal charges against the officers.
I am super critical of Sharpton's past behavior and statements, yet I'm intrigued by the potential that this relationship can raise awareness about police repression and brutality. I'd pontificate about it more right now, but I got to put new bar tape on my handlebars and get ready for tonights ride!

Kiss ups and Dumbwon show

Posted May 30, 2008 by k_c_ in Events

A quick mention. My really incredible and fun friends Michael and Paul are having a reunion show for their always entertaining "power-pop" band The Kiss Ups tomorrow.

Saturday May 31st, 9pm
Keegan Ales,
20 St. James Street,
Kingston, NY

Also performing:
Dead Unicorn
Guthrie Lord & Keith Abrams

It is the closing party for Paul's art exhibit at Keegan Ales. And a benefit for the co-op rehearsal space, "The Bomb Shelter" If you are in the Hudson Valley (NY) or surfing the web, check them out, they are really wonderful people that I've been hyping and supporting for years!

Portrait of Sylvia Elena

Posted May 30, 2008 by k_c_ in Justseeds/Member Projects

Portrait of Sylvia Elena
by Swoon and Tennessee Jane Watson
May 30 - July 5, 2008
Opening reception: Friday, May 30, 6-8pm

Honey Space
148 11th Ave. btw 21st & 22nd St
New York, New York

Justseeds Collective member Swoon is installing a piece she collaborated on with Tennessee Jane Watson, regarding the Femicides in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico and that occur all along the borders of Central America. This piece is also, currently, in San Francisco at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts.

Spectres of Liberty

Posted May 28, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

Myself, Dara and our friend Olivia have been busting our humps getting ready to realize a giant project we've been working on for over a year, Spectres of Liberty. On this Friday, May 30th, in Troy, NY, we'll be inflating a life size ghost replica of the Liberty Street Church, an important movement center for the Underground Railroad in the 19th century, and one of the first African American churches in Troy. If you are anywhere near the Troy/Albany/Schenectady area on Friday, you should come by, it'll be a once in a lifetime experience!!

Spectres of Liberty
a collaborative project by Olivia Robinson, Josh MacPhee, and Dara Greenwald

May 30th, 2008, 8:30 PM
Liberty Street between 3rd and 4th Streets, Troy, NY

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Skewville's Factory Fresh

Posted May 28, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

I've been a fan of Skewville's wooden shoes (thrown over power lines) for years now, and also continually enjoy their inventiveness in turning everyday urban objects like air-conditioner grates and milk crates into messaging systems. Their work is just fun and enjoyable.

FACTORY FRESH direct from SKEWVILLE

Grand Opening Party
Friday, June 6th 6-9pm

Limited show only till
Saturday, June 7th 1-9pm

Factory Fresh
1053 Flushing Avenue (between Morgan and Knickerbocker)
off the L train Morgan Stop

Skewville will transform this former Brooklyn bodega into a Pop-Art Market for the gallery's grand opening. Skewville has been making great advancements in the experimentation of street stamping technology along with revamping city materials to communicate phrases like “FRESH” and “FAME GAME”.

Factory Fresh is the newest space brought to you by Ali Ha and Ad Devillle formerly of Orchard Street Art Gallery in Manhatten's Lower East Side. SInce 2002 Ali and Ad have shown the art of themselves and the art of fellow artist they met in the global street art scene and in the NYC Community.

Bicycle Film Festival in NYC

Posted May 28, 2008 by molly_fair in Events

May 28-June 1
Bike lovers and cinephiles rejoice- the Bicycle Film Festival begins in NYC tonight! As always the festival features a wide range of international films, shorts, documentaries, music, art, and street parties, and contests. I am super excited that bike advocates and filmmakers Elizabeth Press and Clarence Eckerson Jr. of Street Films are presenting their work and there are films on local activist projects and people such as bike advocate Mary Beth Kelly (wife of Dr. Carl Henry Nacht), ghost bike memorial rides, saving pedicabs, recycle-a-bicycle, and the response to the distasteful DKNY orange bike campaign. Tonight is the event i am most looking forward to- Impossible Hour (1974) by renowned experimental filmmaker Jorgen Leth is screening with a live score by Simone Pace of Blonde Redhead. See you at the movies!

Carnival Mecanique

Posted May 22, 2008 by k_c_ in Events

My fellow "Armadan" Paul Cesewski over in California is an artist in residence at San Francisco Recycling & Disposal Inc. He'll be presenting new mechanical sculptures and game creations.
May 23rd (5-9pm) & 24th (1-5pm)
503 Tunnel Ave. San Francisco

Sensory learning through motion is one the most significant phases of our early development. Physical presence in our environment brings us close to how we develop. The excitement of motion reminds us of learning to move ourselves as we experience our environment for the first time.

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WABA Bike Prom

Posted May 22, 2008 by mary_tremonte in Bikes

If you're in the DC area this weekend, join Just Seeds member Mary Tremonte (DJ Mary Mack) at WABA's (Washington Area Bicycling Association) 1st Annual Bike Prom Dance Party!

DC's first ever Bike Prom will be held at the Black Cat. The Bike Prom is a chance for everyone in DC's cycling community to come together and celebrate their love of cycling. Come early, stay late, and bring a date. Formal wear is not required, but we strongly encourage costumes.

Where: The Black Cat, 1811 14th St. NW, Washington, DC 20009
When: May 23, 2008. 9:30 pm
Cost: $5

Dance all night to the music of DJ's MaryMack(Pittsburgh), Jennder (WABA Staff & Riff Raff) and Vinni Von Blotto (Riff Raff)

YES! there wil be FREE prom photos, so show up early if you want your picture taken.

WABA will also be providing extra bike racks in front of the Black Cat.

Everyone gets a chance to win our raffle prizes donated by R.E.Load Bags, Fabric Horse, Chrome Bags, Microcosm Publishing..

Discounted membership packages will be available that include a free WABA t-shirt and other goodies.

Event: I Shall Create-Death Row Art

Posted May 22, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

I've long been a fan of the art of Zolo Agonia Azania (as well as strongly believing he shouldn't be on death row in Indiana!), which at it's best is a Black Power trip through neo-psychedelia. A bunch of his paintings are going up in a show in Chicago, if you can, check it out:

"I Shall Create": Death Row Art
at Treat Restaurant
Opening Reception on SUNDAY, JUNE 1, 5-7PM
1616 N. Kedzie Ave. in Humboldt Park, Chicago

Celebrate the resistance of death row prisoners -- Renaldo Hudson in Illinois, Kevin Cooper in California and Zolo Azania in Indiana -- who dare to express their humanity on canvas one brush stroke at a time. Select paintings of their work will be on display at Treat Restaurant through mid-July.

Join us at this opening reception to honor the work of these three talented artists. A multi-media presentation will feature:

** a video recording of greetings by Zolo Azania from his cell on Indiana's death row

** readings of essays by Kevin Cooper and Renaldo Hudson

** poetry by prisoners LIVE from their cells via telephone hook-up

hosted by the Campaign to End the Death Penalty, No Death Penalty for Zolo Committee and Treat Restaurant
all are welcome -- donations will be accepted!

Travel Stories and Pretty Pictures

Posted May 20, 2008 by k_c_ in Events

Its that time of the month again. Tomorrow will be the May installment of Jeff Stark's "Where Have You Been?".
If you missed Justseeds member, Swoon, last month, you can check out the images of her Ciudad Juarez trip. Unfortunately not the discussion, for that you must attend.

This month Jeff will interview Jonathan Lamberton on climbing Kilimanjaro, Jessie Reilly on parades in Taiwan, and Ben Mortimer on Russia in Winter.

Wednesday, May 21, 7-8:30pm
Bluestockings Bookstore
172 Allen Street, Manhattan
$5 suggested donation

A Discussion of Social Relations and Social Struggle

Posted May 20, 2008 by k_c_ in Events

A Discussion to Release 'In the Middle of a Whirlwind: 2008 Convention Protests, Movement and Movements.'
Speakers:
Alex Samets fromThe Icarus Project
Esteban Kelly from Philly Stands Up
Harmony Goldberg-Right to the City Alliance Resource Person
Ben Shepard (NYC Activist and Writer)
Malav Kanuga fromBluestockings Books

Friday, May 23rd / 7pm
Bluestockings Books
172 Allen St
NYC

On May 25th, Team Colors Collective, in collaboration with the Journal of Aesthetics and Protest, will launch a one-off online journal entitled 'In the Middle of a Whirlwind: 2008 Convention Protests, Movement and Movements.' To release the journal and contribute to discussions about movement building we are organizing events around the country. In New York City the release event will focus on issues of social relations and social struggle.

Through a discussion of organizing experiences and
analysis of current organizing projects, speakers will
address the following questions:

*What is the capacity of our resistance as it is
currently constituted?
*What role are contemporary social struggles playing
in resistance that is simultaneously creative and
critical of everyday social relations?
*How are contemporary social struggles building power
or using tactics that relate to, and intertwine with,
people's everyday lives?
*How might we further explore and explode these
everyday relations in order to unlock the limitless
potentialities of new social modalities that
reorganize power?

Great Small Works International Festival of Toy Theater

Posted May 19, 2008 by k_c_ in Events

The Great Small Works folks will be having a week full of scheduled events beginning Friday May 23rd. The exhibit portion of the event will include a brand-new collaboration between Justseeds artist Erik
Ruin and sculptor Amy Walsh, a tabletop sculpture depicting urbanism gone awry.

GREAT SMALL WORKS was founded in 1995 as a collective of artists who keep theater at the heart of social life...Drawing on folk, avant-garde, and popular theater traditions to address contemporary issues...[their] productions consistently reinvent ancient, popular theater techniques: Toy Theater, mask and object theater, circus, sideshow, and picture-show (cantastoria)...and seek to renew, cultivate, and strengthen the spirits of their audiences, promoting theater as a model for reanimating the public sphere and participating in democratic life.

Great Small Works will transform St. Ann's Warehouse with its colossal event of miniature proportions. Come see: Six different programs for adult audiences, a program for family audiences, a late-night cabaret for developing work, two symposia, two public workshops for all ages, and an extensive exhibition of both historic and brand-new examples of that elaborate, provocative, arcane and charming form called Toy Theater. Find the full schedule here

Tickets can be found at
St. Ann’s Warehouse
38 Water St.
DUMBO, Brooklyn
Where all events will be held!

Event: World War 3 Illustrated artist's reading

Posted May 14, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

Tonight!!

The Cup and Pen Small Press Reading Series
World War 3 Illustrated Artists
May 14th, from 8-10 pm at Think Coffee in Manhattan, 248 Mercer Street

There will be a fabulous reading featuring slide shows and multimedia by:
Rebecca Migdal
James Romberger
Sabrina Jones
Tom Keough
Fly
Mac McGill

Also featuring: our hostess the lovely Rebecca Alvarez; the vocal stylings
of Breeze; and the accompaniment of Andy Laties on saxaphone, flute,
harmonica and the garden hose!

Here's you chance to pick up an autographed copy of WW3, and be vastly
entertained while sipping java and nibbling cake.

Event: On The Lower Frequencies Book Release

Posted May 14, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

Tonight in San Francisco!!!

Come celebrate the release of
On the Lower Frequencies: A Secret History of the City
by Erick Lyle
out now from Soft Skull Press

On the Lower Frequencies: A Secret History of the City, from the editor of Scam Zine, looks back at the past ten years of fighting the war and gentrification in San Francisco. 272 pages of squatting the ruins of the Dot Com era, illegal punk shows in the streets and shutting down the city in anti-war protests!

Wednesday May 14 at Counterpulse (1310 Mission St. AT 9TH)
San Francisco

Featuring reading and slide show by Erick Lyle

Guest Speakers:
Paul Boden (SF Coalition on Homelessness)
Mary Howe (SF Needle Exchange)
Antonio Roman-Alcala (Alemany Farm)

Art by Zara Thustra and Ivy Jeanne
Photos by Heather Renee Russ (Cutter photozine)

and music by
Shotwell
Black Rainbow
The Judy Experience

A free vegan dinner will be available, as prepared by Leif Hebendal

Dineer/Speakers/Art at 6:00 PM
Bands at 9:00

This event is FREE, FREE, FREE!
Books will be on sale for $15 each.
The new issue of Scam Zine will be available for $3

Chris Marker's Grin Without a Cat Screening

Posted May 13, 2008 by molly_fair in Events

Film Society of Lincoln Center, Walter Reade Theater

May 13, 8:15pm & May 14, 2pm

As part of the celebration of the 40th anniversary of the tumultuous month of May '68 there has been a month long film series of international films that are revolutionary both in form and content- very much a reflection of the time. One of my favorite films by Chris Marker, Grin Without a Cat is finishing up the festival, and is by far considered to be one of the most epic.

Chris Marker's magnum opus Grin Without a Cat is a profoundly challenging meditation on the period from the mid-60s to the mid-70s. Described by Marker as "scenes of the third world war,as the film weaves together images, sounds and themes of protest, defiance, solidarity and mourning to describe a moment when suddenly all seemed possible" and then, just as suddenly, closed. The film begins with the Vietnam War and the various international movements to support the Vietnamese in their struggle. Then it examines the causes of and reactions to May '68 in France before heading to Latin America and the birth (and subsequent death) of Allende's Chile. Essayistic in form, Grin invites dialogue and comparisons between and among the various situations depicted while pointing out those factors that also made each unique.

Montreal Anarchist Bookfair

Posted May 12, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

A couple of us here at Justseeds will be traveling up to Montreal next weekend for the 2008 Montreal Anarchist Bookfair. It's always a really fun event, and one of the few radical/left/anarchist events I've been to that has a lot of other people doing art that show up to table, so I always get to pick up other cool political prints and posters from Montreal artists, French anarchists and Indigenous solidarity activists! Stop by and say hello to us (we'll be up on stage in the back of the event, most likely with the Beehive Design Collective).

Bookfair:
Saturday, May 17th, 10am-5pm
With over 100 vendors plus, films, art, kids activities. introductory workshops and more!

Conference:
Sunday, May 18th, 10am-5pm
A Day of Anarchist Workshops and Presentations!

both at: CEDA, 2515 rue Delisle, Montreal (Métro Lionel-Groulx)

fierce pussy show at Printed Matter Inc.

Posted May 10, 2008 by molly_fair in Events

Printed Matter Inc.
195 Tenth Avenue, NYC
April 5–May 24, 2008

fierce pussy was a New York–based collective of queer women that emerged in 1991 from the ferment spawned by ACT UP. Promoting lesbian visibility and self-defined identity, fierce pussy helped politicize the urban landscape by wheat-pasting posters, distributing stickers and T-shirts, and "renaming" a number of New York streets after lesbian heroines.

Their low-tech aesthetic is exemplified by photocopied posters, which have been reissued in a book published by Printed Matter and are exhibited there above vitrines of related ephemera. Members' childhood snapshots are emblazoned with words like MUFFDIVER and DYKE; the phrase LESBIAN CHIC MY ASS is illustrated with a bathroom-stall-worthy rendering of an ass followed by the words FUCK 15 MINUTES OF FAME. WE DEMAND OUR CIVIL RIGHTS. NOW. Contemporaneous groups such as Queer Nation, Dyke Action Machine, and the aforementioned ACT UP pioneered an activist appropriation of the slick language of advertising, taking a cue from Situationist détournement and the work of Barbara Kruger. fierce pussy's posters share aesthetic kinship with the more punkish 1979 publication Durhing Durhing by Joseph Wolman (founder, with Guy Debord, of the Letterist International), in which random faces are overprinted with Marxist-inflected words.

This kind of contextualization, however, distances the work from the queer bodies that made it, and queer bodies are still not visible enough. Riding that wave of lesbian chic, The L Word now epitomizes self-defined lesbian (with little mention of gender-queer or trans) identity. fierce pussy's book, the most vital part of the exhibition, opens with reprints of three nearly twenty-year-old posters comprising a more diverse spectrum of identities, among them dyke, butch, pervert, femme, feminist, and queer. The pages are detachable and reconfigurable. Just add wheat paste. —Amoreen Armetta

"Shawn Brant is No Criminal" Fundraiser Art Show

Posted May 8, 2008 by molly_fair in Events

Punchclock Printing in Canada is having a fundraiser art show called "Shawn Brant Is No Criminal" in support of Political Prisoner Shawn Brant.

MAY 16-18 at Whippersnapper Gallery

It will feature art by indigenous, and anti-colonial artists including:
Branko, Rocky Dobey, David Morriseau Agata Mrozoski, Michael Comeau, Stefan Pilipa, Fancy Gordon Zero, Riel Manywounds, AJ Withers, Xtofer Cooke, Simone Schmidt, Shannon Muegge, Schuster Gindin, and many more! There will also be a live music show.

Money from the door will go to Shawn's Legal Fund and money from the art sales will go to Shawn or the artist.

Shawn Brant is an activist and spokesperson for the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte in Canada. He faces numerous charges in relation to two instances of rail and highway blockades erected by the Tyendinaga community on June 29, 2007- the Aboriginal Day of Action and in April, 2007. He was recently acquitted of 3 charges of mischief, but still faces charges that could result in serving a minimum of 12 years in a federal penitentiary and will stand trial in 2009. Shawn is being made an example of in an effort to crush the resistance of the Mohawk community.

Read the rest of this entry for an update on Shawn's current incarceration:

Read the rest of the entry »

Prisons Affect All of Us!

Posted May 6, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

Critical Resistance NYC is putting on an exhibition of prisoner art:

Prisons Affect All of Us
May 17th, 1-8pm
Critical Resistance Office
976 Longwood (corner of Beck St.)
South Bronx

The art will also be up until May 31st, and can be seen by appointment by calling Critical Resistance at 718.676.1660.

Bill Daniel's "Mostly True" Book Release and Film Screening

Posted May 5, 2008 by molly_fair in Events

Tuesday, May 6, 7:30 PM
Maysles Cinema
347 Lenox Ave./Malcolm X Blvd. between 127th &128th st.

Bill Daniel will be releasing his brand new book Mostly True, a collection of enigmatic railroad folklore and screening his freight hopping movie Who is Bozo Texino? as well as a grab bag of train subculture shorts.

Many of you may know and love Bill Daniel's amazing film Who Is Bozo Texino?, which chronicles the search for the source of a ubiquitous and mythic rail graffiti sketch of a character with an infinity-shaped hat and the scrawled moniker, "Bozo Texino"- a drawing seen on railcars for 80 years. The film was shot over a period of 20 years and features interviews with hobo graffiti legends Colossus of the Roads, The Rambler, Herby (RIP) and others.

Mostly True is the book companion to Who is Bozo Texino? Styled like a 1930's pulp magazine, the book is an enigmatic compilation of railroad ephemera, a ticket for time travel back to the roots of American rail folklore. The book is a direct product of 25 years of asystematically collecting any scrap of material relating to the ideas of tramping trains, hobo life, and depression-era culture and graffiti (with a small g).

Concrete Alchemy Tour

Posted May 5, 2008 by jmacphee in Street Art / Graffiti

We recently got a note from the Albus Cavus Crew, who are about to embark on their Concrete Alchemy Tour, from May 16-23. 15 graffiti and street artists are heading out on a 5 city tour to show off their skills, but also talk about graffiti and its roles and potentials in communities. What seems to set this tour apart from other graffiti-type events is it's not simply a permission wall, or a gallery show, but a mix of mural painting on the sides of community centers, exhibitions, panel discussions and wall painting. The tour hits NYC, Princeton NJ, Philly, DC and National Harbor MD. Check 'em out.

Crime Against Humanity

Posted May 5, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

My old Chicago roommate David Thibault-Rodriguez is helping organize a series of showings of a new play about Puerto Rican political prisoners, Crime Against Humanity. It is showing in both New York City and Leominster, MA (not far from where I grew up). Info is below:

New York City:
Saturday, May 10, 7:00PM
Clemente Soto Velez Cultural Center
107 Suffolk St., NYC

A play by poet and activist Michael Anthony Reyes Benavides and former Puerto Rican Political Prisoner Luis Rosa, Crime Against Humanity is based on the real life experience of fourteen Puerto Rican political prisoners who spent more than two decades in prison - two of whom are still incarcerated.

Presented by Chicago's Cafe Teatro Batey Urbano
seating is limited so be sure to RSVP
Suggested Donation of $10.00

Leominster, MA:
Monday, May 12, 6:00PM
National Boricua Human Rights Network
First Church Unitarian Universalist
15 West Street, Leominster, MA 01453

"Imagine 27 years of your life living in a space 6 feet by 9 feet. Imagine being confined in isolation with no human contact. Imagine the shakedowns, the strip searches and the complete disregard for your humanity.

Crime Against Humanity brings us into the U.S. prison system in a way no other play has, focusing on the politically motivated use of isolation, selective punishment, sensory deprivation and disproportionate sentances.

By using theater as a tool for resistance, we hope to reach out to those sectors of the population that are often ignored by activists outreach. We want our families, our brothers and sisters and our community to come out and see what these prisoners have endured. We hope to see you there!"

Seating is limited so please be sure to RSVP
Admission: $5-10 Suggested Donation, includes meal
No one will be turned away for lack of funds.

For more information, please contact David: 508 404 4365

Chris Stain photos update

Posted May 4, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

Chris has updated his site with a bunch of good photos from our Threat of Chance show.

Exhibition: Rocky Dobey in Hamilton, ON

Posted May 4, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

Long time political artist Rocky Dobey has an opening coming up in Hamilton, ON Canada. Many of you will recognize his style from many of the alter-globalization protest posters from earlier this decade, including one of the main posters for the FTAA protests in Quebec City in 2001. I've corresponded with Rocky for years, and have been excited to see his work show up on dozens of political posters coming out of Canada over the past decade. He's also part of the great Punchclock Collective, which everyone should check out. His style is completely unique, especially for the political poster, and I really wish I could make it up north for this show!

All That is Solid...Melts into Air
Rocky Dobey
May 9-June 7
The Print Studio
173 James Street North
Hamilton, ON L8R 2K9

Exhibition: The Audacity of Desperation

Posted May 3, 2008 by jmacphee in Events

Dara Greenwald and I (as the Samaras Project) are in an exhibition called The Audacity of Desperation opening in Urbana, IL on May 7th and then in LA in October.

The Audacity of Desperation is an art exhibition, political action, and on-going dialog. This show confronts, expresses and unravels states of desperation. Artworks by activists, artists, enthusiasts, and very concerned people, are made in editions of 100 with the intention of free distribution to audiences. In this way, these artworks will be activated outside of the exhibition space and in domestic spaces, on bodies, clothes, bags, and in public spaces.

First stop: The Urbana- Champaign In