curation log

Monday, August 20, 2012

Pussy Riot: Dissent on Trial in Russia

[ In Focus repost ]

In February, four members of a feminist Russian punk-rock band named "Pussy Riot," protesting against President Vladimir Putin's government, walked into the Russian Orthodox Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow. They wore bright-colored balaclavas and performed a provocative song called "Punk Prayer," with lyrics that called on the Virgin Mary to drive Putin away, and condemned the close relationship of the church and the Russian government. Shortly after, three of the women were arrested and detained for months as a 2,800-page indictment was compiled, accusing them of criminal hooliganism and religious hatred. On Friday, the three were convicted and sentenced to two years imprisonment, after a trial widely condemned by outside observers as an attack on free speech. Gathered here are several images from the trial and the reactions of Pussy Riot supporters around the world. [34 photos]

Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, a member of the female punk band Pussy Riot, raises a fist before a court hearing in Moscow, Russia, on August 8, 2012. On Friday, August 17, Tolokonnikova and two other members of the band were convicted of criminal hooliganism and acts of religious hatred for staging a "punk prayer" against Vladimir Putin in a Moscow cathedral last February. (Natalia Kolesnikova/AFP/Getty Images)

Photographer Caleb Charland Wires Apple Trees, Fruit Baskets and Stacked Coins to Create Alternative Batteries

[ Colossal repost ]

Lamp powered by 300 live apples, 2012

Vinegar Battery, 2011

Fruit Battery Still Life (Citrus), 2012

Coin Battery, 2010

Portland, Maine-based photographer Caleb Charland frequently merges art and science with his photographic experiments involving electricity, fire, and magnetism. One of his ongoing projects involves a series of alternative power sources created using fruit, coins, and even vinegar to power the lights in his long exposure photographs. The apple photograph above involved a nearly 11-hour setup as he carefully hammered 300 zinc-coated galvanized nails into apples (zinc reacts with acid in the apples creating electricity, science!) and used copper wiring to transfer the current to a standard living room lamp. Even then, the light was so dim it required a 4-hour exposure during which Charland fended off ravenous deer through the night with an impromptu shaker made from a tin can and wire nuts. You can read much more about the ordeal over on Discover, and here’s a video of the entire project coming together.

Caleb recent launched a new website where you can access a few years of his photography, I strongly urge you to at least look at his Demonstrations gallery. He’ll also have a few prints in an upcoming group show at Brancolini Grimaldi in London this September.

Sunday, July 29, 2012

An Underwater Tree in Jiuzhaigou Valley

[ Colossal repost ]

An Underwater Tree in Jiuzhaigou Valley tree photography

A stunning photograph of a submerged tree taken by Flickr user Melinda while visiting the incredibly beautiful Jiuzhaigou Valley in China. She also runs a great blog with all kinds of beautiful landscape goodness, well worth a visit. (via fasels suppe)

Princess Leia kissing Chewbacca, 1977-1983

[ Retronaut repost ]

… All images (c) Lucasfilm

Saturday, July 28, 2012

Animal Footprint Shoes by Maskull Lasserre

[ Colossal repost ]

Animal Footprint Shoes by Maskull Lasserre shoes art animals

Outliers is an ongoing project by artist Maskull Lasserre (previously here and here) where shoes are outfitted with specially carved rubber soles meant to mimic the footprints of moose, Kodiak bears, deer, rabbits and other animals. The shoes are then worn in the snow leaving the impression to unsuspecting passersby that wildlife has wandered into urban areas including Montreal, Ottawa, Boston, and New York. See much more on his website. (via laughing squid)

The Wisdom of the Group (9 Photos)

[ PND photo of the day repost ]

To celebrate the completion of their MFA program at Yale University, nine students are being honored in the exhibition “Group Portrait, the 2012 Yale MFA Photography Thesis Show,” on view through July 21 at the Ana Tzarev gallery in New York City. Curated by Sabrina Wirth of Wirth Art Advisory, the show includes photos by Peter Baker, Richard Choi, Felix R. Cid, Thomas Gardiner, Pao Houa Her, Katie Koti, Kate A. T. Merrill, Sarah Muehlbauer and Maayan Strauss. The exhibition features work from a book the group put together at the end of the two-year graduate program. Each artist takes a new approach to portraiture, capturing a variety of subjects–from intimate family moments to veterans of war. Tonight at the gallery, from 6 pm to 8 pm, there will be an informal discussion with the artists and art critic Ricky Moody, who wrote the introduction to the group’s photo book.