Category Archives for Uncategorized

Today's Autonomedia Jubilee Saint – CEM KARACA

cemkaraca

APRIL 5 — CEM KARACA
Turkish folk and protest singer, street activist.

APRIL 5 festivals:
* Christian PALM SUNDAY.
* Tibet: SUNNING OF THE BUDDHA. Lamas bring buddha statues out of temples of abstract tranquility to enjoy the sun.
* Zurich: SIX RINGINGS FESTIVAL: Boog (Old Man Winter), a giant snowman stuffed with explosives, is jeered, taunted, and then blown up.

ON THIS DATE
1624 — Pocahontas marries John Rolfe.
1800 — Luminous flying ship spotted over Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
1837 — Algernon Charles Swinburne born, London, England.
1856 — Black educator Booker T. Washington born, Hales Ford, Virginia.
1906 — Hipster, flipster musician Lord Buckley born, Stockton, California.
1926 — H. L. Mencken arrested in Boston for selling The American Mercury.
1945 — Turkish rock protest singer, activist Cem Karaca born, Istanbul.
1958 — Castro declares war on dictatorial Batista regime in Cuba.
2006 — “Happenings” event creator Allan Kaprow dies, Encitas, California.

All info courtesy The 2009 Autonomedia Calendar of Jubilee Saints: Radical Heroes for the New Millennium by James Koehnline and the Autonomedia Collective

Trade Artwork for Health Care: Say What?

Anonymous, England, 1828.
Is it possible that artists and musicians will become the next big special interest group in American health care reform? Not by a long shot, but it’s nice to know that there are some benevolent organizations out there that a) actually give a damn about the astronomical number of uninsured artists in this country and b) can do something to take the edge off of rising medical costs. Artist Access, a New York health care initiative based out of the Woodhull Medical and Mental Health Center in North Brooklyn, offers starving artists and undernourished arts support workers access to quality care on a sliding-fee scale, with doctor’s visits ranging from $15 to $60, and prescription medication, from $2 to $22.

But it gets even curious-er. For creatives who can’t even shell out a few dollars towards their next routine check-up, Artist’s Access allows participants to pay in kind, earning “40 credits worth of healthcare services” (according to the program’s brochure) for every hour of performance or artistic activity they contribute to the life of the hospital. That’s forty dollars towards medical care, and, if you add it all up, probably a lot more cost-effective than gigging in most New York bars. Or priceless, if you dig the community service element.

Call 877.244.5600 for more information.

To find out if similar opportunities exist in your area, check out Fractured Atlas, the people behind the nationwide Artists Affordable Healthcare initiative.

BRAVO! SPACE HIJACKERS BRING A TANK TO THE PROTESTS

wowtank

From the Times of London:

“The police stopped an armoured personnel carrier outside The Times offices and arrested all the occupants. It is understood they had planned to join the protests.”

From the Guardian:

“11 protesters who turned up at the protest in an armoured personnel carrier were arrested in connection with the possession of police uniforms and road traffic offences. The latter group are understood to be anarchists known as the Space Hijackers who had come to make their feelings felt through the medium of street theatre.”

Space Hijackers twitter: twitter.com/spacehijackers
Space Hijackers web: spacehijackers.co.uk

From Ecotopia to Solartopia…

“Ernest Callenbach (Ecotopia, 1975) and Harvey Wasserman (Solartopia, 2007) discuss the role of the visionary novelist in opening public discourse to ‘outside the box’ possibilities. They look at the many elements of Callenbach’s Ecotopian vision have actually come into being (and some that haven’t yet) and explore the catalytic power of realistic hope to shape the present and the future. They agree the time has come to democratically enlarge our vision of sustainable society from local, national and regional spheres to the planetary context. For more info: ErnestCallenbach.com, Solartopia.org”

Courtesy Ecological Options Network

DAILY MAGPIE – April 4th – A Tribute to Arthur Russell at Le Poisson Rouge (N.Y.)

On the 17th Anniversary of his passing, original collaborators and friends of Arthur Russell will be playing his songs in a tribute to his life’s work. Performances will span from dance tracks such as “Go Bang!” to more experimental and minimal compositions for cello and other instruments. Read more below.

Date & Time: Saturday, April 4th, 10:30PM (Doors at 10PM)
Venue: Le Poisson Rouge
Location: 158 Bleecker St. / New York, NY 10012
Price: $12 in advance / $15 at the door (This show is 21+) Buy tickets here.

Le Poisson Rouge presents a tribute to the composer Arthur Russell, who established himself in New York’s vibrant downtown music scene of the 1970s as an eccentric chameleon, creating across and playing his cello in a wide variety of experimental and popular genres. When Russell died in 1992 at age 40 due to AIDS-related illness, his most celebrated output was the collection of leftfield disco records he produced under monikers such as Dinosaur L and Loose Joints, although he left a huge body of work behind him—minimalist chamber music; country-tinged rock from his band the Flying Hearts; meditations for solo voice, cello, and electronic effects—much of which has been posthumously released on record labels such as Audika, introducing Russell’s brilliant, gentle sound to new audiences across the globe.

This concert of live music, held on the anniversary of Russell’s passing, will bridge the gaps between the extremes of his practice, and will include instrumental works, dance tracks, and songs played by an ensemble of Russell’s original collaborators in addition to a few special guests. A dance party follows with DJs and a special late-night performance.
Continue reading →

Today's Autonomedia Jubilee Saint – JULES DASSIN

mar31st_jules

MARCH 31 — JULES DASSIN
Blacklisted, exiled American film noir director.

MARCH 31 holidays and festivals:
* Ancient Babylonia: SACRED DRAMA DAY, in which the King, in the role of Marduk, re-enacts the conquest of Tiamat, the watery chaos. 
* Islamic: MAWLID AN NABI, Muhammad’s birthday.
* BUNSEN BURNER DAY.

ON THIS DATE:
1492 — Ferdinand and Isabella expel all Jews from Spain.
1809 — Russian fantasist writer Nikoloi Gogol born, Sorochinetz, Ukraine.
1855 — Charlotte Bronte dies, age 38 and pregnant, Haworth, Yorkshire.
1926 — British novelist, essayist John Fowles born, Leigh-on-Sea, Essex.
1959 — Tibet’s Dalai Lama, fleeing Chinese repression, seeks asylum in India.
1968 — U. S. Prez Lyndon Johnson announces that he will not seek re-election.
2008 — Blacklisted American film noir director Jules Dassin dies in Athens, aged 96

All info courtesy The 2009 Autonomedia Calendar of Jubilee Saints: Radical Heroes for the New Millennium by James Koehnline and the Autonomedia Collective