Anne Pasternak
Public Art and Media: From Spectacle to Political
Date 11/24/08
Affiliation Artistic Director, Creative Time, New York City
Abstract
Monday, November 24, 7:30 - 9 pm, 160 Kroeber
** Free and open to the public
For the past 14 years, Anne Pasternak has been President and artistic Director of Creative Time, the New York City arts organization that creates unconventional opportunities for artists to activate and engage urban spaces. Recent new media projects
include screenings of Mark Tribe's "Port Huron Project" in Times Square, David Byrne's "Playing the Building", and Jenny Holzer's "For the City" light projections at Rockefeller Center.
Other Creative Time projects have included exhibitions and performances in the historic Brooklyn Bridge Anchorage, sculptural installations at Grand Central Station, sign paintings on Coney Island, skywriting over Manhattan, as well as the twin beacons of light that illuminated the former World Trade Center site six months after 9/11. Over the past decade, Pasternak has also worked closely with artists Christo and Jean-Claude, Doug Aitken, Laurie Anderson, Gary Hume, Vik Muniz, Takashi Murakami, Shirin Neshat, Steve Powers, and Cai Guo Qiang. Pasternak will describe current trends in public art practice and
Creative Time's curatorial strategies.
Bio
Anne Pasternak, the President and Artistic Director of Creative Time, joined the organization in the fall of 1994, with the goal of presenting some of the most adventurous art in the public realm. Creative Time has been commissioning and presenting innovative art in New York City since 1972, introducing millions of people every year to contemporary art while making sure it plays an active role in public life. Under Pasternak’s direction, renowned projects range from exhibitions and performances in the historic Brooklyn Bridge Anchorage, sculptural installations in Grand Central Station’s Vanderbilt Hall, sign paintings in Coney Island and skywriting over Manhattan to the Tribute in Light, the twin beacons of light that illuminated the former World Trade Center site six months after 9/11. Pasternak has been committed to initiating projects that give artists opportunities to innovate their practice, preserve public space as a place of creative expression, and respond to timely issues. Over the past decade, she has worked closely with such artists as Doug Aitken, Laurie Anderson, David Byrne, Jenny Holzer, Gary Hume, Vik Muniz, Takashi Murakami, Shirin Neshat, Steve Powers, Cai Guo Qiang, and many many more.
In addition to her work at Creative Time, Pasternak curates independent exhibitions, consults on urban planning initiatives, and contributes essays to cultural publications. She lectures extensively throughout the United States and Europe, and she served as a guest critic at Yale University and continues to teach at the School of Visual Arts.
Before leading Creative Time, Pasternak studied Art History at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst as an under graduate, and pursued her Masters in Art History at Hunter College in New York City (albt). She worked as the Director of the Stux Galleries in Boston and New York and later as the Curator of Real Art Ways in Hartford. She currently lives in New York City with her husband, artist Mike Starn, and daughter, Paris Starn.
-- As of 11/24/08