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Art of War

A relevant and exciting exhibit opens at CEPA Gallery tomorrow, Saturday,
June 19th. Art of War, is an ambitious summer exhibition that features
an international group of artists whose work addresses global conflict
through conceptual art. The artworks explore violent tensions around the
world, from the U.S. presence in Afghanistan and Iraq, the Lebanese
Civil War and the Israeli/Lebanese conflicts, the 1995 East Timor
political revolution, and the creation of counter-insurgency schools in
Panama, as well as broader realities such as global terrorism, and the
application of surveillance, interrogation and incarceration.

Martha Rosler will showcase her series titled, Bringing the War
Home: House Beautiful
; an electrifying montage of elegantly arranged
Iraq War photos and living room interiors taken from national magazines.
Rosler poses the question, just how closely tied are advertising,
journalism, politics, sexism, and violence? Since 1967, Rosler has
confronted conflict and in this 2004 work, she has attempted to
re-connect these two sides of human experience – overseas war and
America’s family space.

Also part of this worldly showing is Walid Ra’ad, founder of The
Atlas Group
, an imaginary foundation whose objective is to research and
document Lebanon’s contemporary history primarily through lectures that
include films, photography exhibitions, videos, and a variety of
documents from the group’s archives. One such archive, Files Type A, a
video named after its owner, contains a man who tells his story
of twenty-seven weeks in captivity with five wanton Americans,
desperation and hopeless nights. Although it has not been revealed what
work Ra’ad will exhibit, this artist continually pushes the boundaries
between public and private to capture the attention of all civilians.

Plan on spending a good portion of the evening at CEPA, the two
artists above will be accompanied by the “tactical media practitioner”
Daniel Joseph Martinez, artist and author Tom Nicholson, Trevor Paglen, who
has set out to map the darkest corners of the U. S. national security
apparatus, and multi-media artist Carlos Motta. Motta works primarily
with video, installation and photography, and uses strategies from
documentary film, journalism and sociology to engage with specific
political events in an attempt to observe their effects and suggest
alternative ways to write and read those histories.

These photographs, installations and videos are not graceful
depictions of destruction or  dutiful collages of war hero photos. The
familiar symptoms of this “war condition” include sudden and unforeseen
acts of violence against innocent people; the effect of that violence on
individuals and traditions; the repression of civil liberties;
censorship of the media and the arts; the free-market abuse of limited
natural resources; and the development of protest, counter-insurgency,
and resistance fighters. “We are not putting forward any specific
opinions on global conflict, but rather allowing viewers to see, through
unique expression, the common symptoms of all conflict. Our hope is to
create new launching points for thought and communication that will
allow viewers to gain not conclusions, but insight,” states Sean
Donaher, Interim Executive Director.

Opening Reception
Saturday, June 19, 7 – 10 PM
Exhibition
runs through August 21.
CEPA Gallery
617 Main Street
Buffalo, NY 14203
(716) 856-2717

—-

Laura Duquette is a former ballerina who now dances with words
and punctuation. She has a knack for asking questions faster than the
speed of sound, and her interviews are often off the cuff and personal.
She is Co-Owner of 12 Grain
Studio
, a Buffalo based creative firm that gives typical web design a
kick in the ass.
 

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