Bidoun.org | Everything, ever, online now

December 9th, 2015

by DIS Magazine

ANNOUNCING THE NEW bidoun.org

Offering a detour from the mainstream media’s monolithic narratives surrounding the Middle East, Bidoun magazine has since 2004 been producing writing and interviews as well as curatorial and educational projects that belie current conceptions of the Middle East – as a region, culture, and a fixed idea in the collective imaginary. It has since become a unique and unparalleled voice in questioning how the Middle East can be perceived, understood, and apprehended by insiders and outsiders alike.

Browsing through The New York Times or Art Forum‘s coverage of the Middle East one can stumble upon articles such as ‘Middle East Eagerly Welcomes Trends for Online Deals‘ or ‘Trading Places: the New Middle East Market.’ Contrastingly, finding one’s way around the Bidoun archive yields precious finds such as ‘Thirty-one flavors of death: Ice cream, horror porn, and the idea of Pakistan‘ by Achal Prabhala, ‘Occupy Godhead‘ by Anna Della Subin and ‘Wilkommen in Iraq‘ by Eric Schwab.

Arguably more akin to a ‘Wikileaks dump’ than an archive (dixit Bidoun themselves), one can browse the new site seamlessly and peruse past issues, whose themes span from such topics as Hair, Envy, Kids, Bazaar, Soft Power and Diaspora, to name a few. In the “Collections” section, Bidoun has asked friends and collaborators to provide guided tours of the archive that follow a personal train of thought. Keep a look out for new content and forthcoming guided Bidoun meanderings courtesy Etel Adnan, Lynne Tillman, Orhan Pamuk, and Hans Ulrich Obrist.

In Farsi and Arabic, the word bidoun means ‘without.’ We invite you to immerse yourself in bidoun.org with all of the preconceptions and expectations you may have about the Middle East, and leave without them.

Memes courtesy Babak Radboy.

A Conversation about Ergonomic Futures

Lafayette Anticipation associate curator Anna Colin talks to artist Tyler Coburn about Ergonomic Futures, a speculative project engaged with art, design, science, anthropology and writing. In this interview, Coburn discusses the research, production process and network of collaborators of a multilayered project ultimately concerned with the futures of humankind. Anna Colin: When one comes across your museum seats Ergonomic Futures (2016—) in contemporary art exhibitions—and soon in natural history, fine art, and anthropology museums—they look… [read more »]

November 23rd, 2016

by Tyler Coburn

nils lange + saliva : l’eau des algues

L’Eau des Algues Two alchemists already aware of each other’s Instagrams meet for the first time in a gay sauna. They are swimming; it’s the Hood By Air afterparty in Paris. They are Lukas Hofmann and Nils Amadeus Lange. Months later, they meet again. They are on the edge of yet another steaming pool; it’s the Manifesta Biennale closing event at Cabaret Voltaire. They are performing the perfume titled “L’eau des Algues.” Head notes: Zürich… [read more »]

November 21st, 2016

by DIS Magazine

Toward a Low Key Voting System Where Votes Are Actually Considered | Adrian Massey

While reading A Very Short Introduction to Game Theory, I came across the following passage, “If you want people to vote, we need to move to a more decentralized system in which every vote really does count enough to outweigh the lack of enthusiasm for voting which so many people obviously feel…Simply repeating the slogan that ‘every vote counts’ isn’t ever going to work, because it isn’t true.” I was jarred. For me, anecdotally knowing… [read more »]

November 7th, 2016

by S. Adrian Massey III

Tough Luck | Tyler Reinhard

When life is being super unfair, just do what we all do: suffer the consequences. I wake up and the first thing I do is check my phone. A convenient euphemism for using Facebook’s machine learning techniques to discover which 300 entries are statistically most likely to stand out from the tens of thousands of brain dumps my friends and family have produced over the last 48 hours. Impressed by what Facebook provides, I think… [read more »]

November 2nd, 2016

by Tyler Reinhard

America Is Hard to See: A Guide to not being depressed about US electoral politics this November

In order to make sense of state politics in the birthplace of statistical marketing and the internet, one has to be wary of the effects of these technologies on the country’s popular media. In a time when our news and advertisements are tailored to our pre-recorded political opinions, it can be especially difficult to empathize with differing political views. Likewise, learning about the histories of state politics is not encouraged by platforms that profit from… [read more »]

November 2nd, 2016

by Mohammad Salemy

On self-care and the election | Eva Saelens

We can get together and laugh about it. We can heave sighs and express disbelief, but it’s never enough. This presidential election year has lasted for years, and they sit on citizens like a slick film. We feel touched by an unshakable germ, invaded by a blood-sucker, afflicted by a social cancer, drained of the plump vitality of life and the amazing liberty of choices, and transformed into a cynical, depressed shrivel. After being touched… [read more »]

October 30th, 2016

by Eva Saelens

Swarovski Crystal Meth at National Sawdust

Swarovski Crystal Meth, a collaboration between Ser Serpas, Daniela Czenstochowski and Gia Garrison for the National Sawdust “Selkie Series” performances, curated by Alexandra Marzella. Music composed and produced by Daniela Czenstochowski Poem by Sera Serpas Sound Edit Mateo Majluf Vocals Sera Serpas, Gia Garrison and Daniela Czenstochowski All Images Olimpia Dior i went to the desert con mi mama outlet store shopping is fried onto mi conciensa, big bags, wins bigger losses fragmented lux economy… [read more »]

October 5th, 2016

by DIS Magazine

Hasbeens and Willbees Auction @ Romeo Gallery

Shop items from the most recent Hasbeens and Willbees luxury auction now! Featuring Bjarne Melgaard, Bror August, Women’s History Museum, Lou Dallas, Hermes, Gautier, and more. All photography Dillon Sachs Styling Avena Gallagher Hosted by Rome Gallery NYC

October 3rd, 2016

by DIS Magazine

NHU DUONG SS17 WORK COLLECTION FT. KARL HOLMQVIST

What is a piece of clothing that “works”? Who is working whom? Is the one who poses the one who actually “works” hardest? The S/S 2017 collection of Berlin-based, Swedish- Vietnamese designer NHU DUONG entitled ‘WORK COLLECTION’ plays with the ideas of professionalism, leisure and appropriateness through a range of garments that are inspired by work outfits and hobby uniforms. Overalls, raw denim outfits, kung-fu pyjamas, biker pants, baggy tights and gloves, bomber-jackets, bomber suits,… [read more »]

September 19th, 2016

by DIS Magazine

Preparing to Welcome the Chthulucene | Agustina Zegers

Preparing to Welcome the Chthulucene is a text made up of living exercises to accompany Haraway’s theorization of the Chthulucene and her upcoming book Staying With the Trouble: Making Kin in the Chthulucene. Haraway posits that not only should we name the Anthropocene carefully (including the terms Capitalocene and Plantationocene within its narrative) but that we should also be using this crucial ecological timeframe to move towards a dynamically multi-species, “sym-chtonic“, sym-poietic future: the Chthulucene.… [read more »]

August 29th, 2016