“I’m Dark Matter! that’s what I am!”

For the next meeting of Happy Friends Reading Club, March 30th at 6pm, we will be discussing a chapter from Gregory Sholette’s 2011 book Dark Matter. Orianna explains:

“why did i pick it? because i think that sholette attempts the first critical history of political and activist art practice. as such the book covers critical art ensemble and also a lot of the territory brought up by brian holmes. however, i think that it is really good to think about in relation to the buchloh article as well, which heavily critiqued not only contemporary curation  but the art object as document. this critique is in stark contrast to our previous readings and to sholette’s arguments about activist practices. i wonder how the practices sholette cites work against or to expose dominant ideologies? but also how these works problematize buchloh’s instance on the autonomy of the art object and subsequently art history? i also wonder how these practices relate to the avant-garde in contemporary chinese art? is it possible to think through an activist art in china?”

You are welcome to join.