Monday, November 15, 2010, 12:00 PM

In General – It’s a New York Thing

Never heard of Art In General? Well that’s just a crying shame.

Organizations like this are becoming increasingly important, especially when the winds of economic prosperity have shifted. If some artists were starving ten years ago, then this is flat-out, full-on, crunching down on uncooked Top Ramen depression, here. But hey, there’s always hope. Art in General is a not-for-profit arts organization, founded in 1981, that assists up-and-coming artists by providing project production space, presentation space, and materials.

Not bad. Not bad at all.

Whether you’re a hob-nobber, a film junky, a blue-blood, or an artist yourself, it’s places like this that tend to throw little surprises your way. Certainly, everybody knows how to find The Metropolitan Museum, and it’s on a lot of people’s itineraries; there’s just no doubt about it. And yes, please do, go and check it out – it’s a remarkable institution. But don’t forget about these smaller collectives – this is where contemporary art is actually being born.

Drop on by this weekend for another avant-garde event. The location ain’t so bad – at the intersection of three pretty well-known neighbhorhoods (Tribeca, SoHo, and Chinatown) – and if we understand things correctly over here at Brink Headquarters, the performances give the promise of originality. Installations, interpretive dance, autobiographical theater (with karaoke), and live music. This is without mentioning two dimensional art on the walls, booze for those in attendance, and copious amounts of pretentious ‘art talk.’ Come on over and see what happens when your pour booze down the gullet of eccentric performers – it’ll be a hoot.

Saturday, November 20th – the party kicks off at 7pm

Be there, or be…somewhere else.

For more information: click here

photo: American Graffiti

http://www.artingeneral.org/events/1036
Monday, November 08, 2010, 12:00 PM

Here’s a Tip For You

And we’re back from the void.

New editions of BrinkGuide have hit the shelves, and there are more on the way – always more exciting stuff on the horizon. We’ve recently released a couple of new versions, for any of you who may not have noticed. We’ve got Manhattan rolled into the mix, finally, and a couple of others from abroad, for anybody who might be venturing across the pond. If you’re heading out to the UK, BrinkGuide Edinburgh and BrinkGuide Brighton are locked-down and ready for download – London will be available in the very near future.

But here’s a tip for you.

There were plenty of round-table discussions before releasing BrinkGuide to you, and ironing out the details is never a fast and easy process. One of the last things we decided to do that we’re incredibly proud of, however, was to include a section in our guide specifically on tips. In fact, this may have been the last big change we made before releasing the product. Insider information about all of the marvelous cities we cover. Underground clubs, where to find cheep – and sometimes free – food, which alley is the perfect shortcut to avoid that one nightmare intersection. How to pack, what kind of weather to expect, and where to find the best public art.

Damn straight.

Take this for example. Last week was one of the largest cultural events of the year here in Tucson, and the fact is that even some local folks have never attended. It’s downtown, on a Sunday night, and if you don’t live anywhere near the University or keep up with the local magazines, why would you know? But you had better believe that BrinkGuide has the Tucson All Souls Procession covered. Fire, music, costumes, and a whole lot of enthusiasm. We can’t give you a solid release date yet, but we’re excited to be releasing the Tucson edition soon. And just like all of our products, we’re taking time to make sure it has everything you could possibly need to do Tucson the right way.

photo credit: joland