Organized by Barbara London, Associate Curator, Department of Media and Performance Art.
Looking at Music 3.0, the third in a series of exhibitions exploring the influence of music on contemporary art practices, focuses on New York in the 1980s and 1990s. In this dynamic period, imaginative forms of street art spread across the five boroughs, articulating the counter-culture tenor of the times. As the city transitioned from bankruptcy to solvency, graffiti, media, and performance artists took advantage of low rents and collaborated on ad hoc works shown in alternative spaces and underground clubs. Appropriation, also known as remixing, thrived. Approximately 70 works from a wide range of artists and musicians will be on view, including works by the Beastie Boys, Kathleen Hanna and Le Tigre, Keith Haring, Christian Marclay, Steven Parrino, Run DMC, and Joanie 4 Jackie, a video chain letter founded by Miranda July.
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- “U-Matic Medicinema: You want it. You make it. It’s automatic you. The She Makes Movie Phenomenon. Medicinema: Movies for what hurts.” Screenprinting on newspaper, Summer 1997. 15″ x 23″. Designed by Miranda July. U-Matic was a professional video format, and July reclaimed the word to imply “you”-matic, emphasizing the personal. “Medicinema,” derived from July’s own health struggles with her eyes. Thus, “U-Matic Medicinema” were new words that described the curative powers of personal moviemaking. The images silkscreened in black were likely taken from a library book on experimental Eastern European theater or mime.