June 21st, 2010 - Marisa -
Coney Island – New York City’s answer to a beach, home of the infamous ’shoot the freak’ attraction, the backdrop to the classic cult film The Warriors, and for one day a year, the gathering place of hundreds of mermaids and other bizarre creatures. Founded in 1983, the annual Mermaid Parade is the largest art parade in the U.S., originally spawned as a homage to Coney Island’s Mardi Gras that endured from 1903 to 1954.
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June 15th, 2010 - Marisa -
New York crowds are notoriously hard to please. It’s a byproduct of the dynamism of the city, and works as both a blessing and a curse; on any given night there will be at least three things worth going to, so as an artist you have to work hard, if not harder, than you would in any other place. But once you win us over, oh how we will reward you. And in Dam-Funk’s particular case, we will even pop, lock and break for you (as exhibited by five dudes taking up at least one third of the dance floor with their crazy moves).
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June 9th, 2010 - Marisa -
This week the New York MOOKS Report jumped on a bus and rode two hours out to the neighbouring city of Philadelphia. We were going to a picnic hosted by hometown heroes the Roots, who would be joined by a slew of luminaries that the band picked up along the way. There are not too many times when braving the hellish experience that is the Chinatown bus is warranted, but the thought of seeing Wu-Massacre (Ghostface Killah, Method Man and Raekwon) was reason enough for us.
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May 31st, 2010 - Marisa -
Score! Pop-Up Swap is New York’s version of an Australian swapmeet, with one main difference – there’s only an exchange of money for the entrance fee, after which you come with your trash, and leave with as much treasure as you like. In the words of co-founder Jenny Gottstein, “What’s not to love about a ’store’ where everything is free?”
Held at the leafy BKLYN Yard right by the serene-looking, yet extremely toxic Gowanus Canal in Brooklyn, there was a lot of enthusiastic sorting and piling and gathering going on against the backdrop of DJs, good food and a well stocked bar, with proceeds going to the charity Global Inheritance, a non-profit that facilitates youth activism through music, art and pop culture.
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May 26th, 2010 - Marisa -
WARNING- THIS POST FEATURES NUDITY!
23 year-old artist Ariel Brickman lives the kind of existence that out-of-towners describe with wide-eyed awe as a ‘New York lifestyle.’ Mainly this involves very large wigs, pasties, a lot of glitter, occasionally dressing in drag (and more frequently dressing with a bare midriff) and just downright fabulousness.
One person described Brickman to me as someone “with a very interesting train of thought,” which seems a very accurate statement, seeing as though there is evidence to back it. Her unique thought processes have led the Bushwick-based artist to create live installations featuring herself engaging with innovative concepts by way of colorful costumes and sets. Think a bath full of milk, or many tiny disco balls, and always boobs (a whole lot of ‘em).
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