Fresh Art International

Fresh Talk: Hattie Mae Williams

American dancer and choreographer Hattie Mae Williams talks about how the abandoned Miami Marine Stadium at the edge of Biscayne Bay has become a mecca for graffiti artists, musicians, dancers, and photographers. Designed by Cuban-born architect Hilario Candela and built in 1963 as a venue for powerboat racing, the iconic stadium was an active community gathering place before Hurricane Andrew damaged its poured concrete structure in 1992. Christian Salazar shot the dance film titled Culture Concrete (2014) that Williams performed with The Tattooed Ballerinas inside the cultural landmark.

Sound Editor: Kris McConnachie | Culture Concrete soundtrack courtesy The Tattooed Ballerinas and Datamouth | Voice of Hilario Candela via the video featured in the exhibition Concrete Paradise: Miami Marine Stadium at the Coral Gables Museum. Produced by the curators Rosa Lowinger and Megan Schmitt together with exhibit designers Little Gables Group.

Fresh Talk: Akosua Adoma Owusu

Akosua Adoma Owusu, an American filmmaker of Ghanaian descent, talks about her film Kwaku Ananse, a standout project in the 2014 biennial exhibition known as Prospect New Orleans. 

Sound Editor: Kris McConnachie Sound Effects: Courtesy, Akosua Adoma Owusu

Fresh Talk: The Origin Story

Curator Cathy Byrd and architecture historian Sarah Rovang talk about the origins of Fresh Art International—what sparked the launch of our website, our Fresh Talk podcast and our digital guide to contemporary art, Fresh Art International NOW.

Rovang, a PhD Candidate in Brown University’s History of Art and Architecture Department, is a contributing editor for Fresh Art International NOW.

Sound Editor: Kris McConnachie

Fresh Talk: Laurie Anderson

Artist Laurie Anderson talks about her new film Heart of a Dog in this episode recorded at The Wolfsonian museum on Miami Beach. The film brings together everything we love about Anderson’s experimental music, visual art, poetry, film, and photography: in her own voice, with her own artwork, animation and 8mm home video, and a score made of her own compositions, she tells an exquisite, heartbreaking story about her little dog Lolabelle.

Fresh Talk: Contemporary Istanbul with Ali Güreli

Turkish art collector and hotelier Ali Güreli talks about the evolution of Contemporary Istanbul, the international fair also known as CI. The regional show that Güreli founded  in 2005 has grown to feature 102 galleries from 24 countries. This November, the tenth fair brought 86,000 visitors to Istanbul.

Sound Editor: Kris McConnachie | Sound Effects: Contemporary Istanbul

Fresh Talk: Oliver Beer

British artist Oliver Beer talks about how he explores the acoustical character of Kiliç Ali Paşa Hamam, a stunning Turkish bath designed more than 400 years ago by the legendary architect Sinan. Inside the hot, steamy, inner chamber of this historic space, a small group of young Turkish opera singers rehearse Beer's composition "Call to Sound." Their public performance will take place for one night only, on the eve of the 14th Istanbul Biennial.

Fresh Talk: Felipe Dulzaides

Cuban artist Felipe Dulzaides talks about FD Plays FD, the multi-media installation he created in memory of his father for the 12th Havana Biennial. For more than four decades—before and after Fidel Castro established his revolutionary government in 1959, the highly regarded jazz musician was active on the Cuban music scene. Our conversation takes place in a penthouse apartment of Edificio FOCSA, the tallest building in Havana.

Sound Editor: Kris McConnachie

When Poland Takes Haiti to Venice

Artist Joanna Malinowska talks about Halka/Haiti, the panoramic film project she and her partner CT Jasper produced for the Polish Pavilion at the 56^th Venice Art Bienniale. Inspired by a little known chapter in Polish history and Werner Herzog's film Fitzcarraldo, they brought the Polish national opera company to the mountain village of Cazale, in Haiti. With Polish performers, and local musicians and dancers, they presented Poland's national opera Halka to the Haitian town's Polish descendants. The film of the performance on view in the Bienniale effectively brings Haiti to Venice.

Sound Editor: Kris McConnachie

Related Episode: Contemporary Psyche on View in Venice Art Biennale

Related Links: Joanna Malinowska, Halka/Haiti, CT Jasper, Fitzcarraldo, Halka 

Fresh Talk: Anish Kapoor

In France, renowned sculptor Anish Kapoor presents his singular work in two landmark settings—the Dominican convent of Sainte Marie de la Tourette and the royal palace of Versailles. He talks about his experiences during the press preview for Lyon's 13th Contemporary Art Biennial.

Sound Editor: Kris McConnachie

Fresh Talk: The Studios of Key West

The Studios of Key West is the latest feature in our series about international residency programs for artists, writers, and musicians. Director Jed Dodds, and residents Josie Sigler, Lori Swartz, and Cara Bonewitz talk about what it's like to create new work on the legendary island that sits at the southern tip of U.S. Route 1.