Hi Tricia!

Tricia Wang loves NYC and the world! DISCLAIMER: DON'T TAKE THIS BLOG TOO SERIOUSLY!

Sunday, October 16, 2005

A visit to Edward Burtynsky's Exhibit at BMA


Brooklyn Musuem of Arts
Photographer: Edward Burtynsky
Manufacturing #17,
Deda Chicken Processing Plant, Dehui City, Jilin Province, 2005

Kenyatta and I went to BMA to check out Edward Burtynsky's exhibit. He's a Canadian documenting "CHINA" undergoing it's industrial and environmental transformation. We were passing by as the BMA Art Docent was giving a tour, and she points to this picture and says "This is a picture of a Shanghai factory, you see they have big factories now - humongous, and they make things for USA, like toasters. China has many factories like this, and the workers have to work long hours." I felt the art docent, a 70 year old Caucasian woman, paralleled Burtynsky's approach to China - CHINA IS ONE BIG COUNTRY with LOTS OF PEOPLE - WOW! His photographic purpose was to capture the beauty and ugliness of China's environmental wastes. Many of times I think Westerners are shocked that the Chinese are actually doing what Western nations have been doing - however he's looking down upon them for doing so. The introduction to this exhibit was a quote by Burtynsky, "China has been seduced by Western ideals."
I am most annoyed at this approach because it assumes:
1.) China is copying America's ideals, culture and etc - as if they don't have a mind of their own or a culture of their own to foster.
2.) it is bad for China to want to compete in the global economy
3.) that America doesn't have just as many of it's mass factories and environmental wastes. America is so good at hiding it's own mess - we should invite Burtynsky to document our wastes, our factories, our crap.

Nothing annoys me more than "environmentalists" deriding China for it's bad bad enivronmental record. - I don't think Burtynsky did that overtly - but his comments suggested that he felt China has been corrupted. In the minds of Westerners - China is at times portrayed as a land of pure nature filled with citizens clamoring to be more "American."

Playboy...Shoes?



Playboy...Shoes?
Originally uploaded by digitalexistence.
China
Pop culture is a meeting place that highlights many of the tensions and contradicationsin society - it's China's modern mahjong. Playboy manifesting itself as popular women's fashion as commercial consumption is such a great example! This is so funny...
Thank youDigital Existence for taking this photo. DG'sdescript for this photo, "Playboy, as you may or may not know, is the premiere pornographic men's magazine in the U.S. Given the Chinese government's stance on "moral corruption" and outright ban of anything remotely pornographic, it's odd to see Playboy (complete with the bunny logo) peddling their own brand of women's shoes. I suspect most Chinese women who buy these shoes have no idea what the Playboy brand really represents."

The Other Present - Bulldog Necklace

Thanks Emilia for cheering me up with this 25cents Bulldog Bling Bling Necklace from a gumball machine.

I will now proudly wear it concomittantly with my elegant (real silver) vintage red bead necklace. I feel this picture of my necklaces represents the sides of me:
red necklace = unique elegance, curved, soft, refined fashion sense
Bling Bling Bulldog = silly, bulldogish, unpredictable
These two side of me are not paradoxical and can exist at the same time, therefore wearing them together is my own fashion statement!

A Present for Myself


A Present for Myself
Originally uploaded by triciawang.
The minute I saw this necklace at a store in the Upper West Side, I knew there was something special about it. The vintage red bead is a 20 year years old - my favorite part is the curved silver hanging off - it's like the curves of a body - and I love how it sits right between my collar bones.

Beautiful Wedding in Lowereast Side



SANY0094.JPG
Originally uploaded by yatta.
LowerEast Side, NYC
Eli and Mara's Jewsish Wedding at the Angel Oresanz Cultural Center.
My favorite part was the dancing and the Klezmer band - and the part when the bride and groom were lifted on chairs.

The Center used to be an Orthodox Synagogue, but it's now a museum.

Store your Dolls at Manhattan Storage!


Dolls
Originally uploaded by triciawang.
4 Train, NYC
This ad by Manhattan Storage Company is hilarious. Not only because is it a clever ad, but in my brownstone I live above a woman with a 2 floors and 4 bedrooms--she has a whole bedroom dedicated to housing her dolls! She has no children--just an obsession for dolls. And her doll collection FREAKS me out. Imagine a room full of 500 dolls staring at you!

Signs of winter


Signs of winter
Originally uploaded by triciawang.
Dean and Washington St, Brooklyn
The signs (literally) are everywhere - winter is coming to NY soon. Time to get winter clothes out.