Brooklyn Commons: Martha Rosler and Michael Arcega at ISCP

Brooklyn Commons, a new discussion series beginning this fall at ISCP, presents intellectual and artistic pairings between the established Brooklyn-based artist community and ISCP residents. This series puts artists in conversation who have not shared a dialogue in the past and focuses on the vibrant and diverse cultural practitioners living and working in Brooklyn, both long-term and short-term.

Martha Rosler and Michael Arcega will discuss the role of commerce, performance, exchange of ideas, and narrative. Rosler’s work has dealt with issues of class, gender, culture, and politics in everyday life through photographic images, video, performance, and critical writing. In November, Rosler will present Meta-Monumental Garage Sale at The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), which showcases a massive, crowd-sourced garage sale where the artist will be present to negotiate prices. Arcega’s recent project, Montalvo Historical Fabrication & Souvenirs – produced in collaboration with Stephanie Syjuco, utilized a souvenir shop to re-examine issues of commerce, empire, and the repackaging of historical narrative. Arcega is interested in how objects can be metaphors for national identities and how one can investigate socio-political circumstances where power relations are unbalanced from the perspective of a naturalized American.