Looks Good (Election Day Special)

BE DOPE. GO VOTE!

Shepard Fairey. Meet Lady Tigra: If you've forgotten the 1980s hip hop duo L'Trimm, visit The Cocoa Lounge blog to watch Tigra (an obvious supporter of Obama) and Bunny in action. You'll be doing The Wop in no time and hey, you might need to brush up on this move for your Obama Victory Dance.

Election Day at Ben & Jerry's: Visit participating shops today from 5 to 8pm, and you'll get a free scoop of ice cream. Worried about calories? Check out Paddy Johnson's shout out to skinny art chicks on Art Fag City.

Sleepover at Storefront for Art and Architecture: An all-night election vigil in the gallery with a live large-screen CNN projection, 5 cable news channels, blogging stations and wi-fi for blog reading (and writing). Event begins at 6pm.

Adrian Piper, "Cornered", 1988. Collection Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago. Bernice and Kenneth Newberger Fund. © 1988 Adrian Piper.

Audrey Chan on Adrian Piper and Barack Obama (excerpt):

"I wrote this essay partly because of a nagging resistance to the idea of Barack Obama as a messiah. I would like the banners of “Hope” and “Change” to be put away soon. They make me nervous. They are too full of potential and of dreams deferred. It makes the moment too fragile. The most important thing that we can ask from a leader is accountability. By focusing primarily on rhetoric, the effective and persuasive use of language and the art of influencing an audience, in the case of Obama and Adrian Piper, my hope is that lessons can be drawn from both of their rhetorical approaches to the subject of race, a subject that is bound to take on new dimensions in the very near future..."

Piper's Cornered is on view in the exhibition USA Today at the MCA Chicago, November 8, 2008 - March 15, 2009.

What Will a New President Do For the Arts?: Writer Morgan Falconer contemplates for the British Times Online.

The Brownie Battle by Anna Winger: In view of Obama's impending win, Winger uses brownies as metaphor for unification in America, writing "...there is room for all kinds of brownies." Making you hungry? Follow this delicious recipe for Marbled Peanut Butter & Nutella Brownies. No time to bake between voting, work and election parties? A spoonful of PB dipped in Nutella is a quick no-fuss substitute.

The First Lady Hopeful and True Blood: In a recent Newsweek article about Michelle Obama's potential to change perceptions of black women in America, Allison Samuels wrote:

"Take HBO's new vampire saga 'True Blood.' Even in the world of make-believe, black women still can't escape the stereotype of being neck-swirling, eye-rolling, oversexed females raised by our never-married, alcoholic mothers. Where is Claire Huxtable when you need her?"

While I'm totally with Samuels on the rest of the article, it seems to me that every character on True Blood is not just a racial, but also a Southern stereotype. I'm not sure how Claire and Denise would figure into this equation. It's true that few shows are smart enough to expose the humor and absurdity of stereotypes and too often black characters are the only stereotypes in sight. No doubt, it's a slippery line to walk. Perhaps I'll elaborate on this in another post, but speaking of True Blood, there's a lovely scene in the sixth episode in which pecan pie is the focal point. My craving for Southern confections usually peaks a few days before Thanksgiving, but having recently returned from Prospect.1 in New Orleans the sugar pangs have already commenced. Here's a recipe for Fig and Pecan Pie. More Southern recipes and baking attempts to come. But right now, TO THE POLLS PEOPLE! TO THE POLLS!