weekend links: Herman Melville, desert art, psychedelic backyard BBQs
Nicolas Shake,
Humdrum Catastrophes
(2015).
Image courtesy of The Creator's Project.
Herman Melville's most popular work, Typee, was a largely fabricated memoir that nearly derailed his career, and the backlash led him to perform the nineteenth-century equivalent of defending oneself via anonymous Internet comments. Great essay on fraud, fiction, and theft. (Actually, it's about ethics in whaling journalism.) [Lapham's Quarterly] Artist Cristopher Cichocki's Epicenter Projects features ephemeral, site-specific exhibitions that can be viewed online. For its inaugural run, a group of artists will produce installations along the San Andreas fault line. [The Creators Project]
Six queer feminist artists discuss the importance of community in the evolution of their careers. [Hyperallergic]
Living room shows, long a fixture of punk and other underground scenes, are on the rise in more mainstream music circles. Why? Because we're all getting old and we just want a comfortable place to sit while we drink a local beer and listen to our favorite aging indie singer-songwriters. [Pitchfork]
Author Elizabeth McCracken will judge this year's American Short Fiction short story contest. Submissions are open through June 15. [American Short Fiction]
Artist Adam Sultan playfully recounts the creation of his psychedelic backyard BBQ installation at Austin restaurant Justine's Brasserie. Takeaway: If you're in the market for AstroTurf, don't settle for "artificial turf." [Austin Chronicle]
—Alyssa G. Ramirez