The ever-evolving channels of distribution

Last month Sonic Youth released a 'greatest hits' CD (well, sort of - the songs are selected by Radiohead, Catherine Keener, Eddie Vedder, The Flaming Lips, etc.) called Hits are for Squares. It is only available at Starbucks. AC/DC's first studio album in 8 years is available next month, but only at Walmart. Christina Aguilera's greatest hits package, out in November, will only be available at Target stores. The Smashing Pumpkins announced today that their next single will debut on November 14th, on Guitar Hero (Playstation 3, Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii).

This week also saw the announcement that Michael Moore will be releasing his next film, Slacker Uprising, on the web, as a free download. The film looks to share more in common with his second film, The Big One, than it does his hits Bowling for Columbine, Sicko and Fahrenheit 911 (the top selling documentary of all time). The film cost two million dollars to make, and will be released September 23rd.

Wim Delvoye

Wim Delvoye once jokingly remarked that he worked with pigs because they were easier to tattoo than fish. We saw a couple of his stuffed tattooed pigs thru a closed gallery window in Chelsea yesterday. Not sure if they were part of the next show, or being deinstalled from the previous, but they were no longer in the window when we walked by again later.

Today Artforum reports that Delvoye has sold a more recent tattoo work for $228,000 (CDN), to a collector in Germany. The tattoo is on the back of a 31 year old musician from Zurich, who will share in the proceeds of the work. For this he agrees to be exhibited thrice yearly, and when he dies the collector inherits the tattoo from his back.

Films for the Future

To celebrate their 75th anniversary, the British Film institute is asking the general public (and the requisite celebrities) what film they would like to show to future generations. Most propose classics (Hitchcock, Fritz Land, Stanley Kubrick, Martin Scorsese, and Francis Ford Coppola), Pierre Bismuth argues for b-movies, and Ken Loach is on the list as both recommender and recommended. Herzog's Grizzly Man and Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing are the more interesting of the recent picks, though, jeez, the latter is nearly 20 years old now.

I remember after seeing Peter Greenaway's Prospero's Books at TIAF years ago, I thought it would be the perfect film to send into space, as an example of the achievement of cinema, but I can't say I really enjoyed it (unlike Greenaway's Drowning by Numbers, which I love). Not sure what film I'd chose to preserve for future generations. I'll have to go with Jean-Claude Lauzon's Leolo from 1992, which has most consistently been my favorite film.

You can vote here on the existing selections, or add yer own.

Funding Cuts Town Hall Meeting

I'll won't be able to attend, but those in the city should try to make it to the Fuse Magazine sponsored Town Hall discussion tonight, tackling funding cuts, past, present and future. A fall election seems all but certain, and the polls indicate that the Conservatives/Reform might finally get their majority government.

Wednesday, SEPTEMBER 3, 2008 at 7pm.
The Theatre Centre
Wednesday, September 3 2008
1087 Queen Street West, (South East Corner of Queen and Dovercourt)

VVORK

I assume by now that everyone interested in contemporary art has www.vvork.com bookmarked (two 'v's, not a 'w'). This week it seems they're kicking off a series of links to artist interviews and they're starting with a couple of my favorites; Claude Closky and Candice Breitz. Closky is still fairly unknown in Canada (I think it was Michah Lexier who suggested I look into his work, years ago) but Breitz will be back in Toronto next year creating a new work, commissioned by the Power Plant. She came and gave an amazing artist lecture at Mercer Union a couple of years ago, after having her flight delayed for three days, being put up in a hotel that was essentially a brothel and not having her luggage arrive until the 4th and last day of her trip (which, remembering, has me worried about my own missing bag).

Here's another interview, that I enjoyed on the plane yesterday, with Martin Creed.

Convention tonight

Tonight Bush will speak to the Republican Convention via satellite, conveniently preventing any warm embraces like the one to the left. Even Laura Bush thinks it's a good idea for McCain to distance himself from her husband.

The campaign, in an effort to redeem itself after the botched handling of Katrina, will pretend this decision is about putting aside politics and putting Americans first. Let's review McCain's concern for hurricane victims:

In 2005, McCain voted against a commission to Examine Government Response to Katrina. Obama and Clinton both voted in favor, but the motion failed 44-54. He voted against another a year later. In 2005 he voted against investigating waste, fraud and abuse in awarding non-bid contracts for the reconstruction after the hurricanes Katrina and Rita. That same year he voted against allowing up to 52 weeks of unemployment benefits to an individual as a result of a major disaster under the Disaster Unemployment Assistance Program and against granting Katrina victims access to Medicaid. He was only the 40th senator to visit New Orleans after the disaster, and only after a newspaper suggested it might be a "political liability" for him not to attend.

In 2005, McCain also warned of excessive Government spending In response to Hurricane Katrina: "We also have to be concerned about future generations of Americans. We're going to end up with the highest deficit, probably, in the history of this country." War spending and tax cuts for the rich, are not a problem, apparently.

And on the morning of the disaster? McCain ate birthday cake with Bush.

Toronto, NYC

I arrived safely back in Toronto last night. Hopefully my luggage follows me here later today. Or at least before I have to leave for New York tomorrow morning. We're going for a very quick trip as Roula is participating in a group show in Chelsea, where she'll show the 100 Variations and a stack of lumber.