Day With(out) Art
Fierce Pussy develops an exhibition for World AIDS Day
For this year’s Day With(out) Art, the annual collaborative arts project held on World AIDS Day by New York-based contemporary arts organization Visual AIDS, the group enlisted the queer artist collective Fierce Pussy to develop its centerpiece exhibition. Titled ‘For the Record‘ curated by Risa Puleo, the text-based result examines the ‘what ifs’ of those lost to the AIDS pandemic, utilizing variations of the phrase “if he/she/they were alive today…” to incredibly powerful effect.
Printed on broadsides, the piece mourns the widespread loss of loved ones to AIDS while simultaneously opening a dialogue on the erasure of personal and collective memories from the pages of history. The artists of fierce pussy tapped into the cadences of contemporary culture to place the work in a very present, immediate frame of mind. “If she were alive today you’d be texting her,” one of the sentences reads. “If he were alive today you would have met him by now,” reads another. The pathos behind the seemingly simple set-up is nothing less than astonishing.
In conjunction with For the Record, Visual AIDS is also throwing a series of public events on World AIDS Day on December 1st. Billed under the subtitles ‘Talk, Walk, and Sing’, the events range from artist talks and public forums to a house and disco set at The Rusty Knot in the West Village. Check out the full schedule of events at the Visual AIDS website, and be sure to see For the Record in person at NYC’s Printed Matter, on view from November 23 – December 13.
Don’t miss the opening reception of ‘For the Record,’ Saturday, November 30, 5:00PM-7:00PM at Printed Matter, 195 10th Ave. NY, NY.