The Dadaists did it. Warhol did it. Artists from Negativland to Kanye West do it. Appropriation is an artistic practice in which a previously existing form, image, or sound is reused, resulting in a strangely familiar, yet altogether new creation.
The Festival of Appropriation, presented by mnartists.org and curated by Some Assembly Required's Jonathan Nelson and l'etoile magazine's Kate Iverson, November 2–30, at the Soap Factory, 518 Second Street NE, Minneapolis, features works defined by the inspired selection and manipulation of found materials drawn from mnartists.org. On view will be visual, audio, and video works by collage, assemblage, and mixed-media artists. A free opening-night reception takes place at the Soap Factory on Friday, November 2, 7 pm–12 midnight, featuring a live performance by renowned hip-hop producer and collage artist Steinski.
In addition to the exhibition, the festival includes a film screening and an art lab at the Walker Art Center, as well as a specially curated feature on the mnartists.org Web site and in November's access+ENGAGE e-magazine focusing on the art of appropriation.
Jonathan Nelson
Jonathan Nelson is an artist, curator, and producer, focused almost exclusively on collage, with forays into radio, visual art, theater, writing, and installation. His nationally syndicated radio program (Some Assembly Required) is a weekly radio art show, featuring the talents of audio artists who appropriate sounds from their media environments. His work as Escape Mechanism has been featured in numerous publications, including WIRE Magazine and City Pages, which picked Escape Mechanism as one of its "Picked to Click" artists in 1999. Assembling a group to perform live in that year, Nelson performed at venues such as the Walker Art Center and the First Avenue Mainroom, and released a CD of live recordings in 2004.
Nelson now focuses his sound collage project on installation, studio work, and collaborations with other artists. His 2005 collaboration with Jerome Fellowship recipient Abi Basch ("Fear of a Fuhrer") resulted in an Austin Critic's Table Award for "Outstanding Original Score," and his 2001 collaboration with The Tape-beatles, Wobbly, and Steev Hise was released by Dutch label Staalplaat in 2002. Nelson's sound installations have been presented at venues such as the Blue Theater (Austin, TX), the Rochester Art Center (Rochester, MN), The Soap Factory, Rosalux, and Density Studios (Minneapolis, MN). His visual work is on permanent display at Patrick's Cabaret in Minneapolis.
Kate Iverson
Curator Kate Iverson is arts editor for l'etoile magazine, a local art and style publication and Web site. An award winning art photographer, Iverson also co-owns Digital Crush Photography and is Marketing Director for the nationally syndicated radio show "Some Assembly Required," heard locally on 770 Radio K. Closely involved in the local art scene, Iverson volunteers on the Board of Directors for the Northeast Minneapolis Arts Association (NEMAA) and is also a board member at Altered Esthetics Gallery. -- www.walkerart.org
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