Art at Green-Wood Cemetery (Brooklyn, NYC)
The notably arts-friendly Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York City has hosted a number of artistic installations including works of sculpture, dance, poetry, photography and ritual.
Art
“The Existential Void of the Pop-Up ‘Experience'”
Art critic Amanda Hess writes for the New York Times on the phenomenon of themed pop-up “museums”, “mansions” and “laboratories” that function mostly as Instagram selfie backdrops: The central disappointment of these spaces is not that they are so narcissistic, but rather that they seem to have such a low view of the people who … Read more“The Existential Void of the Pop-Up ‘Experience’”
The Temple of the Heart at Burning Man 2023
Concept art for the planned Temple of the Heart at Burning Man 2023, including the Rose Altar which will feature wooden commemorative roses created by community members. More at the Temple 2023 website.
Brendan’s Death Ceremony (“Mary Kills People”, Season 2, Episode 6)
The popular Canadian drama series Mary Kills People centers on the life and work of Dr. Mary Harris (Caroline Dhavernas), who covertly operates an illegal medically-assisted suicide business with her partner Des Bennett (Richard Short). Both are willing to risk their freedom due to their conviction that people should be allowed to end their own … Read moreBrendan’s Death Ceremony (“Mary Kills People”, Season 2, Episode 6)
“The Arts of Dying”
In this 2018 episode of his Expanding Mind podcast, author, scholar and speaker Erik Davis interviews conceptual artist Lindsay (now Scarlet) Tunkl about confronting death, therapy as art, pre-apocalypse counseling, humor, and her book When You Die You Will Not Be Scared to Die.
“Beyond Granite: the Future of the Public Square”
A short video preview of the upcoming Beyond Granite project, which will invite visionary artists to create special commemorative works, performances, and installations on the National Mall and throughout the District of Columbia.
“The Contemplative, Unnerving Beauty of the Sandy Hook Memorial”
Jesse Dorris writes for The New Yorker on the newly-unveiled permanent memorial for the six teachers and twenty young children killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14, 2012: The memorial’s spatial poetics—the balance between circular pathways and blocks of granite, its enduring engravings of names in stone and perennials for texture and color … Read more“The Contemplative, Unnerving Beauty of the Sandy Hook Memorial”
A Memento Mori Mirror, Circa 1670
Thanks to Morbid Anatomy founder Joanna Ebenstein for sending me this photo of a 17th century memento mori mirror from Aargau, Switzerland. The motto on the plinth reads “memorare novissima”, which translates as “remember the last”.
“… with hope that this assemblage of rubble would become a shrine …”
My new article for OnlySky Media is a memoir of my year-long experiment in public art/memorial: In 2015 I moved to Rogers Park, and during the Summer Solstice of 2021 was inspired to join the Artists of the Wall project. I painted my roughly four-foot section of the wall a midnight blue, and upon that field … Read more“… with hope that this assemblage of rubble would become a shrine …”