A Suspension of Disbeliefs

iTOMB: Supporting Our First Amendment Rights

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 15:55:37 PDT

You have the right to speak freely, but that right must be defended:)

And so the battle wages on - as if expressing oneself should be a battle:(

In 2011, according to the New York Times, the city "cracked down" on vendors of art and performers in city parks by issuing sommonses to performers for accepting donations for whatever their art might have been - singing, dancing, playing an instrument or reciting Shakespeare. An Orwellian nightmare? The Fascist's boot? No, this is America, and not just any America. This is America in New York City - a city that prides itself in its production and consumption of all things artistic - Broadway, Carnegie Hall, The Met (both of them), MoMA and more.

But those vaunted institutions and their presentations have been pre-approved by the powers that be and certified not to be the Naked Cowboy - but so long as he stays in Times Square and doesn't gallup up to Central Park, even the Naked Cowboy is legal NYC entertainment - and entitled to his dollar. It's only those performers in the parks that are the problem - maybe because the city can't pick and choose the performances they get and doesn't get a percentage of their bucket - a King's ransom for sure.

Ronald L. Kuby, a civil rights attorney involved in the 2011 proceedings, described the practice of fining minstrels and the like as such: "This is a heavy-handed solution to a nonexistent problem,”, he said.

And so we have the right to speak freely it seems, just so long as we are not being compensated for our thoughts. And therein lies the rub. If our thoughts are so interesting as to elicit a buck from a passerby, the city would like a cut. They'll approve and even pay for all sorts of artistic Tom-foolery, like turning the Columbus statue into a trailer home velvet Elvis, if it brings in a buck. But all those pesky park buskers - "Do they bring us a buck?", the city asks. Probably more than any Bloomocrat (kind of like a Belieber) could know. Without street performers New York wouldn't be the cultural Petrie dish that millions of tourists come to experience every year.

In 2011 the edict was for performers to stay away from statues, benches and monuments in city parks. "Why" is another question. Fast forward to today and the most recent amendment to the park rules tells performers to just stay away - period - from city parks in their entirety.

The New York World reports: "Since 2010, the city has steered art, book and other “expressive matter” vendors in parks to specific locations: along the curb, away from park furniture like benches and at least 50 feet away from a monument. In Union Square, Battery Park, the High Line and parts of Central Park, they may work only in designated vending areas.

Now singers, rappers, jugglers, dancers and contortionists — even human statues — will have to join them, if they perform in exchange for a fee or a donation."

But there are only so many 'designated' spots available, marked by a plastic medallion in the pavement - and those are already taken. And so without additional designated areas, the message to performers is simply this: "Go away. Or we will put you in jail".

And artist Robert Lederman knows. He's been arrested nearly 50 times since the 90s for promoting his art, yet has never been convicted. Conversely, he's counter sued for false arrest and become a cultural icon and cottage industry for artists rights.

“They did affidavits and testified orally in my case claiming that because of the ruling they had no choice but to take entertainment and street performers out of the park rules, and now they are putting them back in. They are going to get sued about this by every performer.”, he said about the current amendment, which effectively bans performing artists from city parks.

iTOMB's contribution to our city's public art malaise. Stephanie 03.28.13

But with our work on iTOMB, I'm confused. Can I really be fined or jailed in America for providing people the tools to express themselves in a public space? I'd better consult with Ai Wei Wei about what it's like to do a few weeks in a government re-education camp.

Our performance is executed by everyone and everyone loves it in a space that everyone payed for. What's wrong with the picture this all paints? Time, the Parks Department, the cops, artists, the public and the courts will tell. But for now there are just a couple of things that we can do to bring our plight to a higher light:

1) Contact New York City Parks Commissioner, Veronica M. White, and tell her that you support performers in our parks. This will make your voice heard to those who are serving you.

2) Tweet or Instagram with your iTOMB photo, "I like iTOMB @HighLineNYC". This will let park admin know that iTOMB is much more a community service than a business. News about our 501(c)3 non-profit application, soon.

I'm working on a game plan and petition for all performers and preparing for the very likely eventuality that I will be cited and possibly arrested for helping the masses think, but in the meantime, I'm advocvating one or two of the above.

On a more personal note, I am including below, a copy of Todd Rundgren's career retrospective concert with the Metropole Orchestra in Amsterdam last year. Having created the world's first artist based music subscription service, and even allowing fans to re-configure his music into user friendly compositions, Todd has evoked the spirit I try to bring to iTOMB. The spirit that we are all born free to create and that not creating, and sharing our visions with the society at large, would be the greatest crime of all.

A Song About A Man In A Box & A Thousand Artists At The Edge

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Mon, 18 Feb 2013 20:34:21 PST

Nothing Much Happened Today In insert city name here . That's a blog post title I used frequently at The Wild Wild East Dailies, because just when you think that nothing's going on, there's a lot going on.

For me, this cold weather has revealed its share of surprises. First up, Steve Baldwin of Occupy music fame has penned and recorded a song about me and iTOMB called "The Man In The Box". With the actual event of Occupy Wall Street now working on being nearly two years old, many of us long for the days of Zuccotti Park - the days when thousands of us actually lived in a city park and exercised our first amendment rights every day. This song not only brings us back, but reminds us of why we went there in the first place. It was fun! And so, not like the next place I visited.

Andrew Purchin and aThousandArtists.com put together quite the bash for the Inauguration, an installation of artists dressed in white jumpsuits and orange hats just making art in public:) Quite the freeform expressionist ignoring of an event devoted to near nazi-like propaganda. But it was still great fun - like Occupy without the cops! Check out Andrew's review of the event here. As part of my participation, I wrote a few stories for Mike Felber and his soon-to-be-launched new art magazine, At The Edge.

At The Edge will have it's launch party at the Empire Room, and yes, that's at the friggin' Empire State Building, and iTOMB and I are planning a mass paint-in - except they're real worried about us getting paint all over the place:) At The Edge has gained national distribution for Mike's ArtistsInTheKitchen.org first print and web publication and the launch party looks to be just the way to kick things off . If you are interested in attending (it's free) click the launch party link above and sign up. Things will be happening until the wee hours and should be quite fun.

So that's what's not happening. Pretty good for a winter the groundhog said would be already over:( Again, nothing much happened in New York today.

iTOMB: Bringing the First Amendment to the People - Inauguration 2013

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Sun, 27 Jan 2013 22:31:42 PST

iTOMB on the Mall in Washington D.C. 01.21.13

My thanks to those who helped get me to D.C. this week. It was a bit of a crazy time with all the buses being booked, but me and iTOMB made it just fine and joined up with A Thousand Artists for the installation that brought art up through the people, as opposed to all the propaganda that was being trickled down from the top. It was a lovely day and we all loved it in our Tyvek 1000 Uniforms and orange hats. A thousand artists turned out to be more like twenty-something but it didn't matter. Thousands of attendees enjoyed our show and a great number painted their own dedication to the ceremonies. Art speaks louder than words.

Constituents painting the future.

Urgent: Help Us Exercise Our First Amenment Rights at The Inauguration

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 21:59:00 PST

The People Listening...Oil on Canvas 2009 by Andrew Purchin

Breaking news: I just received a note from a friend in San Francisco regarding the project "A Thousand Artists: Inauguration 2013" and I apologize for the lateness, but this is just the sort of thing that I would like iThink Outside My Box to be involved in, in the future. The trouble is, the future is tomorrow. Literally tomorrow.

"Four years ago, Andrew Purchin set up his easel in the nation's capital to capture the crowd on Inauguration Day. He painted alone. When he returns Monday, he will be one artist among many. 'It was incredibly moving in 2009. It was the best day of my life,' said the 50-year-old Santa Cruz artist and psychotherapist. 'But it will be second best after this year's inauguration."

The website for the event is here.

With no political agenda, not for nor against the President or any government, but much more in the spirit of allowing art to be a conduit through which people can express themselves publicly, the message of iTOMB fits perfectly with Mr. Purchin's event.

"'The inauguration seems like the best place to magnify the importance of art, especially when the arts are so underfunded,' he said. 'If everyone had some sort of creative outlet, our society wouldn't be as crazy as it appears to be these days.'"

And so I would like to join in. Not unlike the crazy trip I made a few years ago to see Todd Rundgren in Amsterdam - leaving from Munich, this will be a rush - but I won't hitchhike this time:) Buses and trains will be available Saturday night and that will get me there for a full Sunday and beyond for the Inauguration on Monday.

The best way to help would be to send contributions via Western Union with David E. Carlson in New York City, marked as the recipient.The budget is $500 - there and back.

The second best way is to use the PayPal button in the sidebar - but that takes a few days and I wouldn't see the donation until after the event.

In either case, I would love your support to have iTOMB attend "A Thousand Artists: Inauguration 2013". Things have been a little trying in the Big Apple this winter, and I know the project would benefit from a little airing out and quite possibly national exposure in advancing the people's creative voice in our national dialogue. God bless America.

BTW: I just heard from Andrew, the organizer, and he's keen to have iTOMB at the event:-)

OWS: Where iTOMB Began

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Wed, 16 Jan 2013 03:02:50 PST

Outside Trinity Church on Occupy's first anniversary 09.17.12

Nearly every day, people ask me where the idea for iTOMB came from and I tell them it began as an activist platform for me at Occupy Wall Street (OWS) in New York in 2011. Above I appear at Occupy's first anniversary, in front of Trinity Church last year with the anniversary poster to my left.

Click here for an interview I did on that day with New Tang Dynasty TV in Taiwan. Pay special attention to the clips before my cameo as the police arrest and harass regular citizens for exercising their right to free speech. God bless America.

And God bless news outlets like this who show the world that our free country is not all it advertises itself to be. But we're working on that:)

.

For 2012, Thank You...

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Thu, 27 Dec 2012 17:54:26 PST

iTOMB Javiera (Chile) II 12.23.12

As the year softens to a close I look at the little painting above and all I can say is, "Thank you". Thank you all, for as long as I shall paint, I will never make a one like the one above. Look at the fire in that sky:-) And thank you Javiera. This one was made just days before Christmas and since then the rain has been bad and things just too cold to do any painting at all. So, this may well be the last great painting at iTOMB in 2012. And so be it. It has been a great year.

Since beginning as an activist vehicle for Occupy Wall Street, I Think Outside My Box (iTOMB) has seen an organic growth into a vehicle from which over 1200 artists have been inspired to etch their own thoughts on a little 3" X 3" canvas - all from a simple request, stated over and over by people watching me paint, that said "Hey, can I paint too?" And so iTOMB was born again - a place where everyone can have their shot at spontaneous self expression. A place where peace, and a little snippet of New York City skyway, can be a place of respite, of reflection and of creation. All wildly different. All widely original.

My thanks also to Ronnit Bendavid-Val and all the staff on The High Line - without who's gracious work and space, iTOMB would never have grown to the community project it has now become.

On Christmas Eve, all my painting supplies were stolen from the rolling mobile studio I use for iTOMB. It a bag, atop the cart, all paints, rulers, glues and all manner of gear with which we all use to paint were unceremoniously lifted by someone who thought they needed the stuff, or value, more than I - and maybe they did. But I doubt they will be put to use by so many for as much expression as I have seen this past fall at iTOMB. Should you wish to make a donation to help me replace supplies and to build an even more functional display space for the over 500 real artworks that have been entrusted to me, please find the PayPal button in the sidebar and help out with any amount.

And still I thank you. In 2013, I will work to make iTOMB a non-profit foundation and hope to see the concept spread from New York to as far as an idea will go. And with your help, I'm sure that's to infinity :-) Peace.

"What do I get if I win?"

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 08:19:35 PST

iTOMB. Tala (Syria) 11.24.12 (not the girl described below)

"What do I get if I win?", the little girl asked as she sat down eagerly to paint her little square. "Well, nothing", I said laughing, "It's not a competition." - as her father looked reassuringly at me, smiling warmly as well at my answer.

Yet so goes the state of education in America and dare I say, much of the rest of the world as I have seen it ... see the whole story here.

iTOMB and NEST+m: New York's Premier K-12 Public School for Gifted and Talented Students

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Fri, 23 Nov 2012 19:45:58 PST

iTOMB - NEST+m, Anon 10.27.12

"Amor et reverentia pro scientia (love and respect for knowledge): It is our hope that every student works and lives by these words. - NEST+m is a New York City Department of Education city-wide coeducational school for Gifted & Talented students, grades K to 12. We offer an academically challenging curriculum designed to produce young scholars who are distinguished by their intellectual capabilities, communication skills, capacity for leadership, ethical values, and readiness to contribute to the betterment of the world at large.

And so reads the website of NEST+m. On October 27th, iTOMB was pleased to be a guest at the school bringing inspiration, freedom of thought and a boatload of cardboard and paint for student expression. Read and see the whole experience here.

iTOMB: Tiny "Gates"?

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Fri, 16 Nov 2012 16:24:00 PST

One Tiny Gate: Anon.V. 10.20.12

My apologies the last few weeks all. Things became hurricane based for a week with no power and the High Line closed and they have been slow to return. Our collection of small paintings continues to grow and is now nearing 1000. Who knew? As thankful as I am to all the painters out there, I am more thankful to you for just making me feel like a king on a daily basis. Often I have said, that never have I had a job where people thank me for what I'm doing all day. My days at iTOMB are truly gratifying because of all of your spirits.

To read more about what makes it akin to The Gates", a massive art installation by Christo and Jeanne-Claude in Central Park in 2005 click here:)

iTOMB Partners With the Pasos Peace Museum

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Fri, 26 Oct 2012 21:02:16 PDT

David and iTOMB for the Pasos Peace Museum at the Riverdale Arts Festival

On October 14th, iTOMB began a new chapter in Interactivism by working with the Pasos Peace Museum to activate a new fundraising effort for the museum. Named, "Be the Change You Wish to See", the effort featured myself and iTOMB painting with children and adults alike for the afternoon at the Riverdale Arts Festival in the far North Bronx, New York. Working with museum board member Lisa Brandon-Colon the iTOMB concept was used to bring an interactive element to a festival that otherwise mostly consisted of displays of art with little chance to actually make any. "Your activity is great.", said Lisa and the afternoon produced more than 30 paintings, all brilliant in their own interpretation but more importantly, important because of the experience they provided their creators.

This Saturday I am pleased to bring iTOMB and our special brand of Interactivism to NEST+m, New York’s premier K-12 public school for Gifted & Talented students for a Halloween Festival - and don't think I'm not just a little scared, about letting NYC's best and brightest show me up just a little:-) Nah, but 500 smart kids can be a little spooky even without the costumes, right? Should you know of an event or organisation that could use the spirit, activity and creative fun of iTOMB, please let me know. As Frankenstorms approach and the weather turns less hospitable, we're ready to head indoors and keep the brushes and ideas flying.

The High Line, NYC - ©Above It All

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Fri, 26 Oct 2012 21:00:20 PDT

David Everitt-Carlson and iTOMB, The High Line, NYC. Photo: Will O'Mailley

Last week a journalist asked me to describe the High Line, the New York City park built on an old abandoned elevated railway where I execute iTOMB, in three words. ©Above It All, I said. She smiled, and I thought that would make a lovely promotional line for the park. I'd be very happy to see the line used in that way.

iTOMB: See the best of the week 10.01.12

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Thu, 18 Oct 2012 20:26:56 PDT

iTOMB.Yeheli (12) (Israel) 10.05.12

The week of 01 October produced not only more pure genius but some genuine emotion as well. Above, my favourite from our painting sessions on The Highline in NYC for the week.To read and see the slideshow of bests, see iThink Outside My Box.

iTOMB: © Interactivism Now Comes to You!

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Fri, 05 Oct 2012 07:54:43 PDT

The original iTOMB 10.06.11 Zuccotti Park, NYC

Wall Street Journal

From activist statement to interactive family experience, months have passed since the NYPD surrounded me in Zuccotti Park and Union Square in 'iThink Outside My Box' (iTOMB) and eventually arrested me for that First Amendment activity:) All charges were subsequently dropped and I'm now in the business of counter suing the boyz in blue for false arrest and confiscating all my artworks and belongings. Too much fun:) But having passed our first anniversary, Occupy survives as an activist octopus of varying actions and iTOMB continues as performance art, activism and interactivity.

Now I've moved the whole enterprise to The Highline at 22nd St. and have had nothing but positive responses from the staff and visitors. Aside from just me working, now anyone can paint a picture and boy do they paint! See this selection of the best of September's work by visitors to iTOMB.

Benji 10.01.12

Through visitor and fan suggestions I am now making the © Interactivism of iTOMB available for school, social organisation and corporate programmes. That means I can travel anywhere in the 5 boroughs and set up a painting exercise for all ages at a very reasonable fee. Prices start at just $150 - and with my mix of performance, humour, painting and encouragement a few minutes behind the brush brings a welcome break to virtually all ages. Can you think of any schools, companies, orgs or programmes where this would work well? Let me know. I'm excited to bring the box on the road and share the experience with as many people as need a dose of creative juice. Otherwise, check out the rest of the site and see all the things we're up to.

iTOMB today 10.04.12 The Highline, NYC- Interactive activism:)

iTOMB Work of the Week 09.24.12

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 13:03:42 PDT

Romi (21 mos) 09.30.12

This week iThink Outside My Box is proud to introduce our Work of the Week - but since this a new feature, it's more like a compendium of the best work done in the month of September. See below for the full show. Above, my favourite from our painting sessions on The Highline in NYC until now. Working in a 3"X3" cardboard canvas space, Romi, at 21 months, creates a swirling post-modernist abstract that by most accounts, would be just at home at MoMA if it were 3'X3' or 30'X30'. Remember, there is no age requirement at iTOMB and certainly no skill evaluation to paint. Our current cardboard Rembrandts range from 13 mos to infinity - yet all bring a spirit that truly knows no boundaries. Thank you all, artists, for continuing to amaze me and the viewers of the world:)

Messages From a Box - by Vincent J. Tomeo

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Thu, 20 Sep 2012 08:37:04 PDT

Last Friday, before the onslaught of a three-day Occupied weekend, a man came to visit the i Think Outside My Box project on The Highline here in New York City. Click the link to read the poem he was inspired to write. The reference to Paul Klee is more than welcome:)

S e p t e m b e r 1 6 , 2 0 1 2

M e s s a g e s F r o m A B o x

On the eve of the anniversary of Occupy Wall Street, Han Fei Tzu remains as relevent as ever

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Thu, 13 Sep 2012 19:28:52 PDT

"In particular it (the Legalist Philosophy) emphasized the encouragement of agriculture to provide a steady food supply and of warfare to expand the borders of the state and insure a tough, alert and well disciplined population. It called for the suppression of all ideas and ways of life that impeded the realization of these aims. Vagabonds and draft dodgers, merchants and artisians who deal in nonessential goods, scholars who spread doctrines at variance with Legalist teaching, cavaliers who take the law into their own hands - all were to be unmercifully quashed and the people to be kept in a state of ignorance and awe."

On the eve of the first anniversary of Occupy Wall Street, 09.17.12, I find this passage from Chinese philosopher Han Fei Tzu written over 200 years before the birth of Christ. Han Fei Tzu was a prince in the ruling house of the state of Han. A representative of the Fa-Chia or Legalist school of philosophy he produced a handbook for the ruling King of Han. Ironically the King did not heed his advice yet his adversary the King of Ch'in took Han Fei Tsu's writings to heart and defeated the ruling king (Fei Tzu's cousin), ascending to the throne in 246 B.C.

In this modern translation of Han Fei's basic writings, Burton Watson of Columbia University treads dangerously close to what many feel is the state of our American government today - an administration that spens half of the citizen's tax dollar on the war machine whilst occupying 50% of the entire world's military spending as 28-33 million Americans find themselves out of work. Plans for Occupy's anniversary span over 3 days in lower Manhattan beginning September 15th and ending on the 17th in a grand general assembly in Zuccotti park. We can only hope that revellers, the media and the public in general take this opportunity to refocus America towars a peaceful and profitable future - not the prophecy of a more than two thousand year old failed oriental philosophy.

Now Anyone Can Sit Outside My Box and Think Outside Their Box

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Wed, 12 Sep 2012 09:17:54 PDT

Beginning last month, I Think Outside My Box (iTOMB) has gone Interactive - enabling anyone to sit outside my box and think outside their box, painting their thought of the moment. Given that each person works with exactly the same materials, paint and a 3"X3" piece of cardboard, I find it enlightening just how different each person's interpretation is. What makes up your box and how do you think outside of it?

©cupy T-Shirts Now Available on Ebay

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Tue, 28 Aug 2012 09:32:41 PDT

Scan this QR code and order the ©cupy T-Shirt from Ebay.

Only 7 left of this original limited edition design.

Occupy's Next Top Model Sports Our LImited Edition T-Shirt

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Wed, 08 Aug 2012 13:09:58 PDT

No expense was spared on our t-shirt model - not a single penny

Appearing tan rested and ready to paint, our model sports the Occupy t-shirt in moss green on brilliant white. 100% cotton (s/m/l/xl) available as shown or in purple, red or black in shades that match the box colours. $30 + shipping and handling. Please send email to order with your size/colour specs and delivery address.

Limited Edition Occupy T-shirts Now On Sale!

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Thu, 26 Jul 2012 07:25:38 PDT

Occupy T-shirts. Red, Green, Black, Violet on White. S/M/L/XL 100% heavy weight cotton

.

The Occupy t-shirts are now in and dare I say, they are positively smashing:)

Playing a small joke on the concept of occupying intellectual property, the shirts are made of heavy weight 100% cotton and available in S/M/L and XL. (Sorry XXL-ers but Mayor Bloomberg thinks you should drink fewer sugary sodas.)

All on white, the pastel colours vary from PMS Super Warm Red to Moss Green, Soft Violet and of course, your garden variety Bauhaus Black for the hipsters on the block.

To order please me email with sizes and quantities. $30 each + shipping and handling. I'll return mail to confirm final price and payment (PayPal) details.

Quantities are limited so order quickly. Upon request I will be happy to sign and date each shirt.

Up Against It: Turning Lemonade into Lemons:)

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Thu, 26 Jul 2012 07:58:05 PDT

Paul Cabezas and David Everitt-Carlson, Munch Gallery, 21 July - 'Up Against It' - Photo: Populist

As many of you are aware, all the art requested of me for the Up Against It Show by Munch Gallery curator Billy Miller was lost to mysterious circumstances the week before the show, so at submission deadline time, I had nothing to deliver as promised to the event. What to do? I was essentially out of an exhibition before I ever got in. But in the spirit of struggle as described by Billy and feeling truly up against it, I spent a day or two grousing and then set about coming up with a replacement piece for the exhibition. Quite the job considering the then limited timeframe and the need to relinquish any space that had been reserved for my installation at the show. What to do again.

A thumbnail idea

And the new rules were as such: Come up with an idea that would remain true to the original spirit of over-articulated protest signs and do it with no space available on the gallery floor or walls. Hmmm. The pencil drawing on the left was sent to Billy along with an explanation that 'performance art' had always been part of the concept - I would simply make as many signs as possible to fit on a jacket and wear the art, taking up the exact same amount of space as I would as a participant at the opening. Problem solved. Billy throught it was a good idea as well and we agreed that after the show the jacket could be placed on a hangar and hung from the ceiling with fishing line. Problem solved. Now all I needed to do was make the art. Enough art to have it work both as clothing and as signage meant to communicate.

Full mental jacket

The finished jacket ended up being a thrift store Jos. A. Bank's with all signs relating to the original Occupy Wall Street call for financial transparency and justice. The coat itself contained 22 signs including one on the inside breast pocket with the inscription "Wanna Buy A House?" (Please place tongue firmly in cheek.) Reactions from attendees were certainly mixed, in one way because people were not accustomed to dealing with walking art, and another in that they were surprised and pleased to see humour used in the context of protest. So with all logistical problems solved the only question now to be asked would be, "But is it art?" Up Against It runs through 11 August.

Some things were just not meant to happen

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Sat, 14 Jul 2012 12:30:27 PDT

1 October, 2012 Occupy Wall Street, Zuccotti Park, NYC

In two separate instances this week all of the art that was to be exhibited on the 21st at Munch Gallery has been lost or stolen. I had entrusted the box to the care of a friend who had left it with his apartment building front office, folded and wrapped. In breaking the news to me of its loss he had sent a text to my phone asking for an early morning meeting at Union Square. Upon my arrival his first words to me were, "So how do you feel about the bad news?" "What bad news?", I asked. "The news that your box was thrown out by my building staff", he responded.

I took a minute and went to sit down on the granite steps to the park. Rushing through my head were all the possible ramifications of this event - without the box, does any of the work at all make sense in a gallery setting? How was it that I could save this piece from the riot police during the Zuccotti Park raid in November of last year, only to lose it to sheer negligence in a Gramercy Park apartment building? Why wasn't the package marked? Why didn't building staff know of its importance? WTF? I was furious with the friend and dumbfounded by his total lack of responsibility in the matter.

Answers to too many questions would lay pending the next day events. A piece of history was gone. And too many other opportunities with it.

The next day I spent the better part of the day on the computer doing general office work and trying to make a plan B for the gallery show. It wouldn't matter.

I had left my mobile studio with the Occupiers at Union Square, a place where it had been safe and watched over since our arrival in March of this year. Apparently, a rain had fallen in the early evening and Occupiers had packed up and moved their tables to dry shelter. My mobile studio, containing the remainder of the artwork was left behind and not to be found when I returned to the park. It remains lost along with the original box and may be decorating a city landfill somewhere. Nicely I hope.

This week also another friend reminded me of the myth of Sisyphus, the mythological Greek character who was doomed to pushing a boulder uphill only to see it roll back down again, over and over and over again. "The struggle itself ... Is enough to fill a man's heart. One must imagine Sisyphus as happy", wrote Albert Camus. These past 10 months with Occupy and 4 different boxes, all lost to one end or another, compares to the myth of Sisyphus. Maybe it's time to think truly out of my box and find a more productive way to spend my time.

'I Think Outside My Box' @ Munch Gallery, NYC, 21 July, 2012

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Mon, 09 Jul 2012 12:19:45 PDT

Panels from Box II, October 2001, Occupy Wall Street, Zuccotti Park, NYC - David Everitt-Carlson

As I have been threatening for the last few months, many of the signs and images you have seen related to my painting at Occupy Wall Street will be featured in a gallery exhibition entitled, "Up Against It" at the Munch Gallery on Broome St. in New York City. Opening reception is on 21 July and the show will run until August 11. Please stop by opening night to meet or at another time during the run to peruse at your leisure. I am pleased to see the work being given a spotlight it was not intended for and happy to see it communicating across boundaries that were not so well defined at its inception.

From top left: Luke Butler, Mark Shetabi. From bottom left: Scott Hug, Carl Ferrero, Mary Nicholson

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MUNCH GALLERY

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Up Against It

The Art of Struggle

July 21 - August 11, 2012

Opening Reception: Saturday, July 21 from 6-8 pm

New York, NY, July 9, 2012 – Munch Gallery is pleased to present ‘Up Against it’, a group exhibition curated by Billy Miller.

The current global financial and political crises have prompted a groundswell of protest worldwide. From Tahir Square in Egypt to Zuccotti Park in NYC; throughout the U.S., Europe and elsewhere; the people have spoken and told their 'leaders' that they demand change. That change has been slow or not at all; and most of those responsible for these crises have yet to be held accountable.

In an attempt to understand the upheavals and social movements of the past, we often look to art as a compass to show us the temperament of the society that produced those conflicts. Sculpture, painting, photography, dance, cinema, literature and performance have all been utilized to reflect the zeitgeist of each era. And from Goya to Gйrricault, Hogarth, Grosz, Rivera, Picasso, Wojnarowicz, et al, artists have felt the call to bear witness to the issues of their times.

Brought together here for a limited time only, ‘Up Against it’ presents an artistic response to the issues of OUR times; interpreted individually and collectively by an assembly of artists of varying backgrounds, politics, and points of view.

Featuring:

D-L Alvarez, Anonymous, Jonathan Berger, Michael Bilsborough, Matt Borruso, Kathe Burkhart, Luke Butler, David Everitt-Carlson, Brendan Carroll, Mavado Charon, Sam Dargan, Pia Dehne, Daniel Derwelis, Eric Doeringer, Peter Eide, Carl Ferrero, Gregory Green, Teenie Harris, Cliff Hengst, Christian Holstad, Scott Hug, Dennis Kane, Brenda Ann Kenneally, David King, Lisa Kirk, Noah Lyon, Michael Magnan, Yeni Mao, Darrin Martin, Rachel Mason, Jan-Holger Mauss, Salvor (Ross Menuez), John Monteith, Glynnis McDaris, Mary Nicholson, Mark Ohe, Gwenaлl Rattke, Nick Rule, Tara Sinn, Superm (Brian Kenny Slava Mogutin), Paul Taylor, Margaret Tedesco, Scott Treleaven, Jan Wandrag

'Up Against It' images

And it's off to Philly we go...

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Fri, 29 Jun 2012 07:43:33 PDT

The Occupy 1st Anniversary Poster color study.

Leaving today and returning to New York on 5th July, I will be attending the first Occupy National Gathering in Philadelphia at Liberty Plaza for the 4th of July. I'm billing it The Woodstock of Occupy. And I hope it is:) So please wish all Occupiers well and please continue to donate to our bus and travel funds. We'll do our best to learn our heritage in Philly and act accordingly;)

Announcing the "I think Outside My Box" soft launch blog

David.E.Carlson@gmail.com (David Everitt-Carlson) — Thu, 28 Jun 2012 14:42:30 PDT

As a way to document the painting work I've accomplished at Occupy Wall Street to date as well as to aid Homeland Security in surveilling that curious man in the box, I'm launching the I Think Outside My Box blog. Please take a gander in its prelaunch state and make sure to subscribe to updates. Warhol rolls onto his stomach as the work presented at iTOMB continues to conquer Union Square and Gotham at large. Next week, Philly. Scary.