QMAil: July 2006

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With July comes warm summer nights and with them come Passport Fridays, the QMA's annual outdoor international film, music and dance series. Every Friday in July and August we'll take you to a different locale – Mexico, Korea, Brazil, Guinea, India, China and the Middle East – through fantastic live performances by local musicians, choreographers, dancers and troupes, each evening capped by a feature film as the sun goes down. Imagine a relaxing picnic under the stars with the majestic Unisphere glowing behind you as you enjoy these free journeys around the world. Come to one and you're sure to return. July also brings with it the presidential election in Mexico, something that will certainly effect us all in the years ahead, and if you're looking for some context to put it all in, our summer exhibitions, all related to Mexico, are the perfect solution. Enjoy the last week of Open Routines: Recent Projects by Pedro Lasch (closing July 9), the ongoing ABCDF: Portraits of Mexico City (through September 17), and the soon to be opened projects of contemporary Mexican artists Diego Medina, Dulce Pinz—n, Graciela Fuentes, and Carlos Amores as well as Propia Visión (Our Vision), a collection of work by 19 Mexican immigrant artists (opening on Friday, July 21). It's a busy month, but one that offers you plenty of ways to enjoy a few relaxing hours in the galleries, in the park, or both. And please note that we've adopted our summer hours until Labor Day. See you soon!

June masthead: Dulce Pinzón, Hulk (detail), 2004-05. C-print mounted on Sintra. Courtesy of the artist

CURRENT EXHIBITIONS

Mexico Ahora! — Propia Visión (Our Vision)

Opening Reception, Friday, July 21

With so much political attention being given to the issues of “securing” our borders, the QMA presents a series of artists projects and an additional photography exhibition by Mexican artists, each providing more food for thought. Propia Visión (Our Vision) highlights the work of nineteen participating photographers, who responded to an open call to collaborate in this ground-breaking exhibition. As the title suggests, Propia Visión focuses on what they, as Mexican photographers who have lived and worked in New York, experience in their daily lives.

In addition, four Mexican artists, Diego Medina, Dulce Pinzón, Graciela Fuentes, and Carlos Amores will each present their work, highlighting both the creativity and struggle of these Mexican artists and the reality of immigrants living in an American culture that many find filled with racism, prejudice, inequality, and hypocrisy.

Participating artists: Martirene Alcántara, Eugenia Arias, Mónica Aspe, Brenda Campos, Margarita Carmona-Carriedo, Alejandro Esquiliano, Mayra García, Mary Teresa Giancoli, Enrique González Ibarra, Pedro Lasch, Ángel E. López, Israel Lucas, Edgar Márquez, Gabriela Mendoza, Julio Ortega, Cristian Peña, Paulina Perera-Riveroll, Elvis Sol’s, Javier Soriano.

Enrique González Ibarra, Carrying the Virgin of Guadalupe, Mexican Independence Day (Fiestas Patrias), Jackson Heights, NY, 2004. Silver gelatin print, 11 x 14 in.

ABCDF: Portraits of Mexico City

through September 17, 2006

As the third-largest city in the world, Mexico City and its 22 million inhabitants are exposed to an infinite amount of stimuli that encourages a free and playful interaction of imagery unique to this sprawling locale. ABCDF: Portraits of Mexico City features some 165 photographs, video pieces, prints, engravings, animations, short films and objects capturing the true experience of living in this energetic and enigmatic metropolis. Arranged alphabetically, ABCDF literally provides the ABCs of Mexico City, or Distrito Federal, from abasto (supply), represented by Nestor Quiñones' photomural (measuring 12' x 22') of mountains of the empty produce crates that supply the city, to Zoom, a series of six satellite images that capture the urban sprawl. What lies in between is a journey through the wonderfully enchanting, the less-than-desirable, the tragic and completely joyous, all combining to create the first in-depth survey of daily life in the largest city in North America. Features work by Francis Alys, Miguel Calderon, Ximena Cuevas, Silvia Gruner, Gabriel Kuri, Yoshua Okon, Daniela Rossell, Sabastian Romo, Pedro Reyes and Daniel Guzman and others.

Rury Fischelt, Intestine, 2000. Lenticular Photograph, 48 x 48 in.

ABCDF: Portraits of Mexico City at the Queens Museum of Art has been made possible by the generous support of: CONACULTA: Mexico's National Council for Culture and Arts. Jacques and Natasha Gelman Trust, Control Bureau, Fundacion Televisa, SRE: Mexico's Ministry of Foreign Affiars, The Mex-Am Cultural Foundation, Inc., The Consulate General of Mexico in New York, Mexican Cultural Institute of New York, Cuervo Tradicional, Mexicana Airlines, Tortilleria Chinantla, Dasein Foundation, Jarritos, Corona, Villacero Group, and Vitro.

More information about ABCDF: Portraits of Mexico City is available here.

Open Routines: Recent Projects by Pedro Lasch

Final weeks — Closing July 9, 2006

Artist, educator, activist, and cultural organizer Pedro Lasch was born in Mexico City in 1975 and lived there until he moved to New York at the age of 19. Since 1999, Lasch has focused on creating multiple art initiatives that bridge the local concerns and interests of recent Latino immigrants in Queens and beyond with the current state of international politics. Open Routines: Recent Project by Pedro Lasch reflects the artist's preoccupation with the theory and practice of socially engaged art through a series of public interventions within the flow of the everyday. The four works shown in Open Routines, spanning an eight year period, have generated engaging ways to link contemporary art to the Latino community located within the Museum's immediate neighborhood. Three of the four projects involve direct exchanges and collaborations with various communities in Queens. Most of the pieces refer directly to the relationship between the U.S. and Mexico, and reflect cross-class and cosmopolitan perspectives.

Pedro Lasch. Media Defacements - Part 1, 2004. The Dance of Mirrors (Naturalizations Series), 2003. Video stills from Naturalizations Series, duration: 3:00 mins.

Open Routines: Recent Projects by Pedro Lasch and emerging artists projects at the QMA are supported by the Lily Auchincloss Foundation, Inc., The Greenwall Foundation and the Jerome Foundation.

More information is available here.

Jeff Chien-Hsing Liao: Habitat 7

through August 20, 2006

Jeff Chien-Hsing Liao, Iron Triangle, Flushing, 2004. Duratran, 40 x 96 in. Courtesy of the artist.

For millennia, civilizations have laid their roots along the fertile banks of major rivers to reap the rich natural resources. From the Nile to the Amazon and Yangtze, the river basins have become the birthplaces of new cultures and societies. Today it is the manmade arteries that serve as the spines of new communities and none in New York has become home to a more diverse system of societies than the culturally rich soils that surround the #7 train. In his first solo museum exhibition, Taiwanese-born, Queens-based photographer and winner of the 2nd Annual New York Times Magazine “Capture the Times” Photography Competition, Jeff Chien-Hsing Liao, examines the various enclaves that exist on the route between Times Square and Flushing. Jeff Chien-Hsing Liao: Habitat 7 features 30 of Liao's large-scale panoramic images - some measuring 8 feet in width - printed on Duratrans and installed in lightboxes surrounding the QMA's historic Panorama of the City of New York, inviting not only a reconsideration of the ways in which modern societies evolve around the river basins of today, but also the deep breadth and depth of the communities that have developed along a single subway line.

Jeff Chien-Hsing Liao: Habitat 7 has been made possible by the generous support of the Council for Cultural Affairs, Taiwan, R.O.C. in collaboration with the Taipei Cultural Center, TECO in New York, JGS, Inc. and Crystal Foundation.

More information is available here.

Local Words: An Interactive Installation by Sol Aramendi

Final weeks – closing July 9, 2006

The Artzone, the Museum's interactive family-friendly art space, has been transformed into a living room by Queens based artist, Sol Aramendi. The walls are covered by photographs taken by students participating in a photography workshop offered in Spanish at Local Project Art Collective. Echoing the concept of ABCDF, the students used the structure of the alphabet as their guide to identify local words that help define the essence of Queens. The installation also includes a video installation where visitors take a subway ride of ethnic diversity through images of immigrant women pronouncing the letters of the alphabet in different languages. Visitors can be part of this installation by sharing their own stories and images of Queens through a series of writing and drawing activities. On Sundays, visitors can have their portraits taken, and add their recorded testimonies to the constantly evolving installation.

SPECIAL EVENTS

Passport Fridays, International Outdoor Film, Dance & Music Series

Every Friday evening in July & August, 6:30 - 10 pm

Leave your baggage at home and bring a picnic blanket out to Flushing Meadows Corona Park for the QMA's Passport Fridays Free International Outdoor Film, Dance and Music Series. The weekly outdoor festivities feature dance performances by participants in the QMA/TOPAZ Arts Dance in Queens Residency Program, and continue with a live concert and film screening from one of the many countries that fuel Queens' cultural & artistic vitality.Mexico,Korea, Brazil, Guinea, India, China & the Middle East are on yourall-inclusive summer itinerary.
In Case of Rain: All events will take place indoors, inside of the museum. No raindates!

July 7, 6:30 - 10 pm

DANCE: Mexicanos Unidos de Queens Children's Ballet Folklorico “Teopchtli”
MUSIC: Barra Libre try to make sense of their eclectic antecedents by blending the fury of rock 'n roll, industrial music, new wave, twisted poetry and parties with sounds as varied as the Velvet Underground and the local mariachi band.
FILM: SANTO CONTRA LA HIJA DE FRANKENSTEIN (Santo vs The Daughter of Frankenstein) (Miguel Delgado, Mexico, 1971, color, 97 min. Starring El Santo, Gina Romand, Ana Elena, Noreña and Roberto Cañedo.) Mad scientist Freda Frankenstein, daughter of the doctor of the same name, kidnaps Norma, girlfriend of the famous masked wrestler turned action star, El Santo, as part on intricate plot to get our hero's potent blood for her beauty treatment. Courtesy of Rise Above Entertainment. Copresented with Cinema Tropical. Free Jarritos sodas will be available.

July 14, 6:30 - 10 pm

DANCE: Mexicanos Unidos de Queens Ballet Folklorico “Nueva Juventud”
MUSIC: Pistolera, a NYCbased band that plays an original brand of pop-folklorico. Drawing from traditional styles of Mexican music the electrifying quartet features the Spanish vocals and guitar of Sandra Lilia Vel‡squez, the driving accordion melodies of Maria Elena, and the unbeatable rhythm section of bassist Inca B. Satz and drummer Ani Cordero.
FILM: MODISTO DE SEÑORAS (Ladies Designer) (René Cardona Jr., Mexico, 1969, color, 85 min. Starring Mauricio Garcés, Irma Lozano.) In Ladies Designer the Mexican Don Juan plays D'Maurice, a haute couturier that pretends to be effeminate in order to seduce his female clientele without raising suspicion. Courtesy of Televisa.Co-presented with Cinema Tropical.

July 21, 6:30 - 10 pm

DANCE: Bollywood Axion Troupe, headed by Pooja Narang, fuses contemporary Western influences, classical Indian dance techniques, the contagious energy of Punjabi bhangra, and the passionate spirit of Hindi cinema.
MUSIC: Performances produced by Overdose Music, including: Members of Stone Forest Ensemble, a Classical/World Music/Hip-Hop fusion group; rapper Chee Malabar; soul/bossa singer Ranjit; and Genius Blaze an Indo-Guyanese Reggae/Hip Hop/Dancehall artist.
FILM: Bunty aur Babli / Bunty and Babli (Shaad Ali, India, 170 min.,Hindi & English with English ST) Rakesh (Abhishek Bachchan) and Vimmi (Rani Mukherjee) meet in Mumbai after escaping the boring lives their provincial parents have in mind for them. Renaming themselves “Bunty” and “Babli”, they set off to make big bucks in ever more bold capers as they travel across the country in this Bollywood homage to Bonnie & Clyde. Copresented with 3rd I NY.

July 28, 6:30 - 10 pm

DANCE: Yana Yu Ballet School is based in Flushing, Queens and teaches traditional Chinese dance forms as well as hip-hop, jazz, and classical ballet to students of all ages.
MUSIC: The Chinese Music Ensemble of New York has grown from a few music lovers to becoming the oldest and largest Chinese orchestra in the United States. The Ensemble has performed at Lincoln Center Out-of-Doors, Alice Tully Hall, Avery Fisher Hall, Town Hall, Asia Society, Carnegie Hall, Newport Music Festival.
FILM: Kung Fu Hustle (Stephen Chow, 2004, China/HongKong, 95 min., Cantonese & Mandarin with English ST) The hugely enjoyable Kung Fu Hustle races across the screen in a colorful collage of various styles. Set in a dilapidated apartment complex called Pig Sty Alley, the action centers around a small time crook (Chow) who tries to swindle money from the locals by claiming to be a member of the sinister Axe Gang.

In addition to the support of members and friends, generous funding for Public Programs is also provided by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, Institute for Museum and Library Services, Ford Foundation, Independence Community Foundation and the New York State Council on the Arts. Passport Fridays is sponsored in part by Jose Cuervo.

UN 60 Anniversary Discussion Series: UNICEF Then & Now

Sunday, July 9, 2 - 4 pm

United Nations Association – Queens Chapter & QMA invite you to the last of three discussions which revisit the major events that took place while the General Assembly met in the QMA building, which include the the including partitions of Israel/Palestine and Korea, as well as the founding of UNICEF.

Artists Talk & Workshop Series

Saturdays, July 15, 22 & 29, 2 - 4 pm

Meet the artists in our current exhibitions and join them for discussions about their work followed by art-making workshops. You will have the opportunity to ask each artist questions about their work, and then create your own in response to the exhibitions. The workshops will use multi-media techniques in an open studio format. Bilingual program in Spanish & English.

Saturday, July 15, 2 - 4 pm

Sol Aramendi is a filmmaker, photographer, educator, and installation artist interested in concepts of movement and image. Her work reflects notions of homeland and immigration. Participants in her workshop will explore the concept of home through video, collage, and creative writing.

Saturday, July 22, 2 - 4 pm

Diego Medina is a visual artist who is concerned with the way we construct space in social, cultural, and physical terms. Through his art he addresses issues of immigration, identity, and culture. Participants in his workshop will use basic drawing techniques to express issues from their own lives.

Saturday, July 29, 2 - 4 pm

Dulce Pinzon is a photographer whose images reflect the immigrant experiences of Mexican workers in New York City, and tell the story of the important role they play in both Mexican and US economies. Through her workshop participants will get to explore different identities of super hero characters through posing for a portrait with the artist. She is a 2006-2007 Artists' Fellowship recipient of the New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA). This presentation is co-sponsored by Artists & Audiences Exchange, a public program of NYFA.

CINEMAROSA — queens only queer film film series
LGBT Family Day! Sponsored by Gay Parent Magazine.

Sunday, July 16, 3 - 5 pm

That's a Family! (Debra Chasnoff, USA, 2000, 35 min)
A film for kids about family diversity. A highly entertaining documentary that breaks new ground in helping kids see and understand many of the different shapes that families take today. The children who star in the documentary take viewers on a tour through their lives and speak movingly about their unique family experiences, explaining the lives of various families with parents of different races or religions, divorced parents, single parents, gay or lesbian parents, adoptive parents or grandparents as guardians. Courtesy of: Women's Educational Media.

Postcards from Buster & Sugartime! (Jyllian Gunther, USA, 2004, 22 min)
It follows the animated 8-year-old Buster Baxter as he travels across the country experiencing the rich and varied cultures that make up the United States. He records real kids in video “postcards” which he sends to his friends back home. In Sugartime!, Buster travels to Vermont where he learns about maple sugaring and dairy farming while visiting with a family of children who have two moms. The series is designed to help 6-to 8-year olds understand and respect differences and learn to live in a multicultural society.

After the screenings there will be a panel, Q&A session with Angie Acain, Publisher and Editor of Gay Parent Magazine, Greg Miller from Circle of Support and other Queens Based LGBT parents. Light refreshments for parents will be served. While kids enjoy sodas and ice cream pose with your family for a take home portrait.

QMA/Jeff Chien-Hsing Liao 7 Train Photo Contest Show & Reception

Saturday, July 29, 2 - 4 pm

Professional and amateur photographers were invited to enter the QMA 7 Train Photo Contest, capturing the essence of this unique subway line, following the example set by Jeff Chien-Hsing Liao in his current exhibition Habitat 7. Join us for a slideshow of the submissions and listen to Jeff speak about the project that won him the 2nd Annual NY Times Capturing the Times photography competition. The winners of the QMA competition will also be announced and refreshments will be served.

Yellow Ox Mountain, a Film by Miao Wang

Saturday, July 29, 4 - 6 pm

Yellow Ox Mountain is a short documentary that portrays the artistic endeavors and the personal journeys of two such contemporary Chinese artists, Zhang Hongtu (b. 1943) and Zhang Jian-Jun (b. 1955), whose lives and work span from the post-Cultural Revolution political environment of China to today's thriving Chinese contemporary art community of New York. They were determined to escape from the artistic leash imposed by the Chinese cultural control. Each represents a different personal background and experience of the Cultural Revolution, and very different reactions expressed through their artwork. Yet, there is a shared sense of constant cultural negotiations as they concurrently look back to their traditions and forward to the multifaceted creative influences of New York.
Zhang Hongtu will join the director Miao Wang at the screening.

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