Rhymin' Riot XX-style at Yerba BuenaBy Vanessa Carr
Julie Atlas Muz (photo: Karl Giant)
Opening tonight, Fr/28, at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts is The Way That We Rhyme a multimedia group show featuring work by a heavy-hitting line up of contemporary female artists that emphasizes performance and interaction.
Aptly titled, The Way That We Rhyme references a lyric from Le Tigre's "Hot Topic," a lengthy shout out to the feminist foremothers and heroines – from Angela Davis and Gertrude Stein to Kara Walker and Yoko Ono – who have shaped and inspired the current generation. Fittingly, Le Tigre's homage includes Vaginal Davis and Tammy Rae Carland, two artists featured in the Yerba Buena show.
Le Tigre performs "Hot Topic"
Tonight's opening party features San Francisco punk outfit Brilliant Colors and folk-bluesy rockers The Sarees, a DJ set by Erase Errata's Jenny Hoyston, and performances by feminist performance and video art collective Toxic Titties and crazy comedienne extraordinaire Dynasty Handbag, as well as a film screening and interactive projects by a number of the participating artists.
Dynasty Handbag - "The Quiet Storm" By Jibz Cameron, Hedia Maron 2007
But it seems that Saturday – with its full schedule of interactive programs – is the day not to be missed.
Los Angeles performance artist legend and Angela Davis-inspired drag queen Vaginal Davis kicks the day off at noon with a women-only discussion about "the possibility of creating a future feminist state" (RSVP encouraged).
Vaginal Davis performs "Gossips"
From noon to 3 p.m. is an interactive weaving performance by MK Guth. Inspired by the fairytale of Rapunzel, whose flaxen braid represented both her imprisonment and eventual freedom, this performance invites visitors to write a message on ribbons that will be woven into the artist's hair by a group of attendants. At the end of the performance, the braids will be cut and displayed in the main gallery.
From 2 to 7 p.m., Stephanie Syjuco will lead a Counterfeit Crochet workshop, where participants will learn to crochet luxury accessory knockoffs à la Chanel and Burberry.
Starting at 3 p.m. is an "Artists Insight" panel featuring Nao Bustamente, Tammy Rae Carland, Taraneh Hemami, and Laurel Nakadate, who will discuss the significance of personal and social histories, identities, and politics in their work.
MK Guth
At 4 p.m., men can sign up for five minutes of one-on-one private time – a discussion, that is – with Vaginal Davis in her gallery installation. At 5 p.m., there's a screening of videos from LTTR, the queer feminist art journal.
The evening culminates in an evening performance by Nao Bustamante, who was Miss Exotic World and Miss Coney Island in 2006, and Julie Atlas Muz, starting at 8 p.m.
Other artists that are included in the show, which stays open through June 29, 2008, include: Lisa Anne Auerbach, Andrea Bowers, Eve Fowler with Math Bass, Deborah Grant, Miranda July and Shauna McGarry, Leslie Labowitz and Suzanne Lacy, Aleksandra Mir, Shinique Smith, subRosa, SWOON and Tennessee Jane Watson, Jessica Tully, and RiotGrrl zines from the Independent Publishing Resource Center, Portland.
The Way That We Rhyme
March 28 - June 29, 2008
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
701 Mission, SF, 415-978-2700
www.ybca.org
Please consult the YBCA exhibition calendar for pricing information.
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