SQUARE DOSE

Socially-engaged, multi-disciplinary artist, Sobia Ahmad, is interviewed about how her art stories weave personal narratives from broader spiritual and political experiences. “Landmark” evolved from a vague dream of a monochromatic rice field and its connection to her ancestral homelands. #contemporary #art #monochromatic #homelands #ancestry #migration

Conceptual artist, Yevgeniy Fiks is interviewed about his 2012 series, "Magnitogorsk Guide to the National Gallery of Art." Fiks documents the absurd reality of the connection between the Soviet First Five Year Plan and the Mellon collection of paintings in the National Gallery of Art.

Belgian abstract photographer, Yves Ullens, is interviewed by Dianne Beal about his series, "Pure Nature." Working with his camera in the forest outside of Brussels, the artist captures the essence of the seasons.

Monroe Isenberg, sculptor and multidisciplinary artist, is interviewed by Dianne Beal, curator, about his recent creation "Metaphorical Honey." Conceived in Iceland during his Visiting Artist Fellowship at Lunga School, the work lives and breathes light.

Artist Julie Wolfe, multidisciplinary and conceptual artist, is interviewed by Dianne Beal, curator, about her ethereal cloud series, "Venus, Ozone."

In lieu of a live Penny Stamps Speaker Series presentation, we’ve captured a conversation between artist Gluklya and Dianne Beal (BA REES '79), curator and art advisor of Galerie Blue Square. Gluklya (Natalia Pershina-Yakimanskaya) is a visual and performance artist. Her manifesto states: “The place of the artist is on the side of the weak.” She uses clothing, installations, video, participatory projects, text, and research to develop a concept of fragility. For Gluklya, fragility is interpreted not as “delicate beauty” but as “invisible strength.” Her work explores topics of social exclusion, untapped intuitive knowledge, mind-body connections, violation of human rights, and stereotypes. Considered a pioneer of Russian performance art, Gluklya is a co-founder of the Factory of Found Clothes (FFC) and the group Chto Delat (What is to be done?). In 2012, FFC became the Utopian Unemployment Union, a project that unites art, social science, and progressive pedagogy to give people from all social backgrounds an opportunity to make art together. Today, the artist participates in many international shows including the 56th edition of the Venice Biennale (2015) and Positions #4 at the Van Abbemuseum in the Netherlands (2018-19). She has been awarded numerous art prizes and grants, including a fellowship from the Joseph Brodsky Fellowship Memorial Fund in 2014 and support from the Mondriaan Fund for recent projects. This Penny W. Stamps Speaker Series talk is presented in partnership with the U-M Center for Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies (CREES).