http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/ en THEPAPERBAGWRITER Editoral Board Copyright 2008 2008-11-14T21:41:29-05:00 http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/the-populist/jeff-koons-at-versailles http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/the-populist/jeff-koons-at-versailles “Profound” was the word Jeff Koons used most frequently to express his feelings about his Versailles show at the opening day press conference. After viewing the 17 sculptures installed in the castle’s rooms and courtyards, we have to agree. While it’s not a word often associated with Pop Art and… 2008-11-10T03:11:25-05:00 http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/the-theorist/boris-groys-on-the-power-of-art http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/the-theorist/boris-groys-on-the-power-of-art Art has its own power in the world, and is as much a force in the power play of global politics today as it once was in the arena of cold war politics. Art, argues distinguished theoretician Boris Groys, is hardly a powerless commodity subject to the art market’s fiats… 2008-11-10T02:56:31-05:00 http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/articles/music/dungen http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/articles/music/dungen When I first heard Swedish psych outfit Dungen via the 2004 international breakthrough album Ta Det Lugnt, Gustav Ejstes’ lyrics could’ve been as dopey as Neil Diamond’s “Porcupine Pie” for all I knew. Turns out they weren’t, really, but for someone who doesn’t comprehend Swedish that’s simply a safety… Music 2008-11-10T00:21:21-05:00 http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/articles/art-design/elizabeth-peyton-at-the-new-museum http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/articles/art-design/elizabeth-peyton-at-the-new-museum In an art world championed by monumental sculptures and large-format prints, Elizabeth Peyton, painter of small oil portraits and aquatint street scenes, would seem an unlikely success. But such is the mystery and romanticism that shrouds the elusive artists’ career; one that begun in a Chelsea hotel room and continues… Art & Design, Review 2008-11-10T00:14:56-05:00 http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/articles/film-theater/w. http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/articles/film-theater/w. After seeing Oliver Stone’s W., I found myself wishing I had a little more time to think it over before writing a review; then again, I’m sure there are some involved with the film who found themselves wishing they had a little more time to think over the Bush administration… Film & Theater, Review 2008-11-10T00:08:40-05:00 http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/articles/fiction/the-leonoids http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/articles/fiction/the-leonoids Bruce is praying the astronomers are wrong.  They called 2000 a peak year and he saw five meteors all night long.  They called 2001 “super-peak” and he saw hundreds in the first minute.  They’re calling 2002 “off-peak.”  So far he’s seen three in two hours.     “Four,” Bruce… Fiction 2008-11-09T22:28:59-05:00 http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/articles/art-design/after-nature-at-the-new-museum http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/articles/art-design/after-nature-at-the-new-museum In his second major show at the New Museum of Contemporary Art, special exhibition director Massimiliano Gioni unveils his desolate vision of a not-so-distant future that is at once hopelessly romantic and knowingly absurd. With ninety works by twenty-six artists, the exhibition spans three floors and makes use of the… Art & Design, Review 2008-11-09T02:24:54-05:00 http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/interviews/kalle-lasn/ {title_permaguid=interviews} Kalle Lasn is angry…and rightfully so. The world is falling to shit and we’re watching it crumble beneath us. But not Lasn, the Estonian-born editor of AdBusters Magazine, who has rewritten the rules of activism with words with like “anti-preneurship” and “culture jamming.” Every problem has its root and Kalle Lasn believes that our greatest troubles may lie in the way we consume. Through AdBusters Magazine and Media Foundation, Lasn has launched a global campaign for conscious consumption. However, Kalle’s plight has not been an easy one. He has had difficulty buying ad space, his cries obscured by corporate thunder. But through it, he has prevailed and now his cult counts members at over 120,000 strong and his crusade is far from over… 2008-11-09T02:03:32-05:00 http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/articles/comment/new-ideas-for-a-new-era http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/articles/comment/new-ideas-for-a-new-era It has been an exciting couple of weeks. The election of Barack Obama marks the end of an era and the beginning of a new. We here at thepaperbagwriter congratulate President-Elect Obama and the American people, who against all odds (and previous track record) voted with their conscience and overwhelmingly… Comment 2008-11-08T21:06:37-05:00 http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/articles/poetry/for-two-voices-in-5-4 http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/articles/poetry/for-two-voices-in-5-4 a new prophetess dreamed it from the red apex of a carnival cranial plate shift or earthquake buries the ferris wheel across the street waits in bed for your father; wants to check your flight, he insists on sleep subterfuge at… Poetry 2008-11-08T20:59:13-05:00 http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/articles/poetry/fauntleroy http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/articles/poetry/fauntleroy Mamma, him, his father was ill his mother, very ill, shut down fifty percent more abortions left his widowed mamma optimistic in America Grumpy hard-hearted life changes and grandfather’s wishes transforming curves into hard lines … Poetry 2008-11-08T20:39:58-05:00 http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/articles/fiction/mr.-stud http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/articles/fiction/mr.-stud The package comes on a Friday.  There is a five-foot box leaning against my door when I arrive home.  It is not addressed to me but my address is printed sideways on the label, so I bring it in anyway.     I have to use a ballpoint to cut the… Fiction 2008-11-07T21:39:52-05:00 http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/articles/fiction/broken-shoulders http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/articles/fiction/broken-shoulders I want to have a car accident. If I sit in a passenger seat, I want to reach over, yank the wheel so the tires tip, and feel myself roll. I don’t why. I clench my fists, sit on my hands and think to myself, “That’s not right, that’s not… Fiction 2008-11-07T21:09:39-05:00 http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/the-aestheticist/the-aesthetics-of-change http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/the-aestheticist/the-aesthetics-of-change It’s been an exciting week; a new president has been elected and the promise of a new era has restored hope among millions of troubled Americans. When Barack Obama announced his victory Tuesday night to a crowd of teary-eyed spectator he spoke of hope, progress and change. Words that have… 2008-11-07T19:48:48-05:00 http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/the-analyst/prints-prints-prints http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/the-analyst/prints-prints-prints It’s Print Week in New York City and it would seem that the economic crisis has only heightened interest in multiples. At the IFPDA Print Fair at the Park Avnue Armory,  it’s evident that collectors have only curbed their appetite for originals as limited edition prints and editions are stickered… 2008-11-07T19:09:56-05:00 http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/news/pbw-launced/ {title_permaguid=news} Welcome to the new and improved PBW.  Check back frequently over the next few weeks as we launch more and more exciting features and content.  Be sure to sign up for the newsletter as well. 2008-10-16T21:48:23-05:00 http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/articles/art-design/contemporary-prints-and-drawings-at-the-johnson-museum http://www.thepaperbagwriter.org/articles/art-design/contemporary-prints-and-drawings-at-the-johnson-museum Prints and drawings have long ended up on the wrong side of prevailing trends, as they are often overlooked as second-rate works and preliminary sketches. In the new show at the Johnson Museum, contemporary curator Andrea Inselmann makes a spectacular case for the majesty of these primitive practices by exploring… Art & Design, Review 2008-10-04T16:45:51-05:00