thegrrr.net

The website for The Great Rebel Raft Regatta is now live
http:///www.thegrrr.net
xx

Autonomous public art workshop, Madrid

Autonomous public art workshop, Madrid

A course about unsanctioned art in public spaces: urban intervention, graffiti, postgraffiti, free muralism, creative activism, outsider public art

http://apaw.javierabarca.es/

Bye bye

Everybody merz sometimes

ANTIBOTHIS - Occultural Book Anthology Volume 2.

ANTIBOTHIS - Occultural Book Anthology Volume 2.

We are proud to announce that the ANTIBOTHIS book anthology volume 2
will be out soon, this time including Erik Davis with a text/
interview with the infamous onthological anarchist Hakim Bey.
Erik Davis wrote the cult book "TechGnosis".
Interviews with Boyd Rice, Antero Alli, Orryelle, Aesthetic Meat
Front along with texts from Carl Abrahamsson ( Cotton Ferox, ex:
WhiteStains ), Chad Hensley ( editor of Esoterra Magazine and
Apocalypse Culture contributor ), Vadge Moore ( member of Cthonic
Force and Peter Sotos, Boyd Rice and Monte Cazazza collaborator ),
Vincent Alexzànder, Stefan Szczelkun.
Andrew Mckenzie from Hafler Trio, Nigel Ayers ( Nocturnal
Emissions ), Brian Dean ( Anxiety.com ) and Magus Coyotel Leyba are
also contributors, along with tactical media collectives Center of
Tactical Magic and Critical Art Ensemble.

The cd compilation available with the ANTIBOTHIS volume 2 will
include, so far, (changes may occur ) O Yuki Conjugate, Controlled
Bleeding, Simon Crab (ex: bourbonese qualk), Enkidada ( former member
of Psychick Warriors Ov Gaia/Exquisite Corpse), Cotton Ferox,
Aesthetic Meat Front, Astro, Orryelle, Strings of Consciousness,
Hybrids, Kawabata Makoto ( Acid Mothers Temple ), Post Human Tantra.
Along with the book/cd anthology others cds will be offered.

So far others artists show their interest and commitment in to
contribute for upcoming anthologies such as: Master Musicians fo
Joujouka, Ray Kurzweill, John Zerzan, Joe Ambrose, Z´ev, Aki Nawaz
( Fun-da-Mental ), Stewart Home, Terre Thaemlitz, Crimethinc, Lob
( instagon ), Monochron ( vienna art group ), B-Eden ( Pyromania
Arts, ex:Psychic Warriors Ov Gaia ), Aragorn 23, among others.

"Antibothis offers 112 fat pages of food for thought, a veritable
feast of heretical initiations and countercultural discourse,
offering both options for personal spiritual development and
alternatives to the alienated, atomised, deracinated and homogenised
consumer culture of today, which sits poised on the brink of economic
and ecological devastation. Mainstream culture is the problem –
Antibothis is striving to be part of the solution".
Simon Collins, Judaskiss, U.K.

"beautiful production"
V.Vale, Re/search Books, u.s.a.
"seems like the next step after re/search and apocalypse culture".
yorek.com

"so many people have the will to say but not the will to do! You Do".
Chad Hensley, Esoterra magazine, u.s.a.

"a global village guerrilla strategy, a campaign against the
illusions of ego/media"
b-eden ( pyromania arts foundation), Germany

"great work"
Dedroidify, Belgium

"...Entre littérature expérimentale, engagement politique et démarche
artistique où le collage et le détournement ont une grande place..."
M.c.d magazine, France

"very impressive work"
Foolish people, u.k.
Please take a look at www.myspace.com/urculture

www.antibothis.com

Contact :
p.o. box 2274, 1107-001 Lisboa, Portugal
through ANTIBOTHIS thiscover :

essence not existence, exclusivity not uniformity, subversion not
subservience, expression not suppression.

ANTIBOTHIS is a collection of book anthologies featuring texts,
interviews showcasing a variety of ideas that are a genuine
alternative to the dogma of conformity, the commitment to disconnect
the cables of corporhate coolonization, disinverting cultural reality
through the dissemination and dispersion of alternatives vortices of
information and infinite chaotic propaganda, speculation, simulation,
stimulation, to revolutionize the dynamics of life in a total process
of cultural transformation, reclaiming our guts and revolt in the
name of imagination in opposition to a toxic life of low awareness,
herd mentality and programmed though, infecting human minds and alter
their behaviour.

ARTIST CLEARED OF ALL CHARGES IN PRECEDENT-SETTING CASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 11, 2008

CONTACTS:
Email: media@caedefensefund.org
Dr. Steven J. Kurtz: (716) 812-2968
Lucia Sommer, CAE Defense Fund: (716) 359-3061
Edmund Cardoni, Hallwalls Contemporary Arts Center: (716) 854-1694

ARTIST CLEARED OF ALL CHARGES IN PRECEDENT-SETTING CASE
Department of Justice Fails to Appeal Dismissal
Kurtz Speaks about Four-Year Ordeal

Buffalo, NY--Dr. Steven Kurtz, a Professor of Visual Studies at SUNY at
Buffalo and cofounder of the award-winning art and theater group
Critical
Art Ensemble, has been cleared of all charges of mail and wire fraud. On
April 21, Federal Judge Richard J. Arcara dismissed the government's
entire
indictment against Dr. Kurtz as "insufficient on its face." This
means that
even if the actions alleged in the indictment (which the judge must
accept
as "fact") were true, they would not constitute a crime. The US
Department
of Justice had thirty days from the date of the ruling to appeal. No
action
has been taken in this time period, thus stopping any appeal of the
dismissal. According to Margaret McFarland, a spokeswoman for US
Attorney
Terrance P. Flynn, the DoJ will not appeal Arcara's ruling and will
not seek
any new charges against Kurtz.

For over a decade, cultural institutions worldwide have hosted Kurtz and
Critical Art Ensemble's educational art projects, which use common
science
materials to examine issues surrounding the new biotechnologies. In
2004 the
Department of Justice alleged that Dr. Kurtz had schemed with
colleague Dr.
Robert Ferrell of the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public
Health to illegally acquire two harmless bacteria cultures for use in
one of
those projects. The Justice Department further alleged that the
transfer of
the material from Ferrell to Kurtz broke a material transfer
agreement, thus
constituting mail fraud.

Under the USA PATRIOT Act, the maximum sentence for these charges was
increased from five years to twenty years in prison.

Dr. Kurtz has been fighting the charges ever since. In October 2007, Dr.
Ferrell pleaded to a lesser misdemeanor charge after recurring bouts of
cancer and three strokes suffered since his indictment prevented him
from
continuing the struggle.

KURTZ SUMS UP END OF FOUR-YEAR NIGHTMARE

Finally vindicated after four years of struggle, Kurtz, asked for a
statement, responded stoically: "I don't have a statement, but I do have
questions. As an innocent man, where do I go to get back the four
years the
Department of Justice stole from me? As a taxpayer, where do I go to get
back the millions of dollars the FBI and Justice Department wasted
persecuting me? And as a citizen, what must I do to have a Justice
Department free of partisan corruption so profound it has turned on
those it
is sworn to protect?"

Said Kurtz's attorney, Paul Cambria, "I am glad an innocent man has
been
vindicated. Steve Kurtz stared in the face of the federal government
and a
twenty-year prison term and never flinched, because he believes in
his work
and his actions were those of a completely innocent man. Clients like
him
are a blessing, and although I have had many important victories,
this one
stands at the top of the list."

As coordinator of the CAE Defense Fund, a group organized to support
Kurtz
from the beginning of the case, Lucia Sommer sees the end of the
prosecution
as bittersweet, and like Kurtz, is thoughtful about the broader
significance
of the case: "This ruling is the best possible ending to a horrible
ordeal--but we are mindful of numerous cases still pending, and the
grave
injustices perpetrated by the Bush administration following 9/11.
This case
was part of a larger picture, in which law enforcement was given
expanded
powers. In this instance, the Bush administration was unsuccessful in
its
attempt to erode Americans' constitutional rights."

Referring to the international outcry the case provoked, involving
fundraisers and protests held on four continents, Sommer said, "The
government has unlimited resources to bring and prosecute these kinds of
charges, but the accused often don't have any resources to defend
themselves. This victory could never have happened without the
activism of
thousands of people. Supporters protested, vocally opposed the
prosecution,
and refused to let it go on in silence. And without their efforts at
fundraising, Kurtz and Ferrell would not have been able to defend
themselves
from these false accusations."

Sommer added that the next step for the defense will be to get back
all of
the materials taken by the FBI during its 2004 raid on the Kurtz home,
including several completed art projects, as well as Dr. Kurtz's lab
equipment, computers, books, manuscripts, notes, research materials, and
personal belongings. The four confiscated art projects are the
subject of
an exhibition entitled SEIZED on view at Hallwalls Contemporary Arts
Center
in Buffalo, NY, through July 18:
http://www.hallwalls.org/visual_shows/2008/show_seized.html.

BACKGROUND TO THE CASE

The case originated in May 2004, when Kurtz's wife Hope died of heart
failure as the couple was preparing a project about genetically modified
agriculture for the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art. Police who
responded to Steve Kurtz's 911 call deemed the Kurtzes' art materials
suspicious and alerted the FBI. Kurtz explained that the materials
(legally
and easily obtained basic life science equipment and two harmless
bacteria
samples) had already been displayed at museums throughout Europe and
North
America with absolutely no risk to the public. However, the following
day,
Kurtz was illegally detained for 22 hours on suspicion of
bioterrorism, as
dozens of agents from the FBI, Joint Terrorism Task Force, Homeland
Security, Department of Defense, ATF, and numerous other law enforcement
agencies raided his home, seizing his personal and professional
belongings.
After a federal grand jury refused to charge Kurtz with bioterrorism,
Kurtz
and Ferrell were indicted on two counts of mail fraud and two counts
of wire
fraud concerning the acquisition of of harmless bacteria for one of
Critical Art Ensemble's educational art projects. (Critical Art
Ensemble is
the recipient of numerous awards for its projects, including the
prestigious
2007 Andy Warhol Foundation Wynn Kramarsky Freedom of Artistic
Expression
Grant, in recognition of twenty years of distinguished work:
http://www.creative-capital.org/index2.html.)

The Department of Justice brought the charges in spite of the fact
that the
alleged "victims of fraud"--American Type Culture Collection and the
University of Pittsburgh--never filed any charges or complained of any
wrongdoing, and the fact that in bringing the charges the Department of
Justice was acting completely outside its own Prosecution Policy
Relating to
Mail Fraud and Wire Fraud
(http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/eousa/foia_reading_room/usam/

title9/43mcrm.htm).

***

Rational Rec - Last Saturday

We're about 2.30 min in.

It was a great night.

We're available for bookings...

click here

Utopian Interns for Paths Through Utopias feature film.

The Laboratory of Insurrectionary Imagination seeks two interns to work with us on our exciting latest project Paths Through Utopias.

What is the project? 

Paths Through Utopias has taken us on a 6 month journey through Europe in search of ways of living despite capitalism. Out of this journey will arise a bilingual book/film. See – www.utopias.eu. The book/film will initially be published in France and Britain, as well as receiving a small Cinema distribution/book tour.

What we are looking for?

We are looking for two "enthusiastics" to be part of our radical art activist collective to assist and collaborate with us on the production of the film, a feature length fictional documentary utopian road movie.

It would be beneficial if you have some or all of the following skills. (Please don't be put off if you only have some of the following, as your attitude and energy are just as important as your skills.

• Transcribing experience.
• Spanish and/or French speaking.
• Mac computer literate.
• Some experience in Final Cut Pro (or similar) editing software.
• Research experience including sourcing archive footage, location scouting and casting.
• An understanding of our politics and our collective working methods.
• An ability to work between 15 to 20 hours per week, flexible. (We're happy to work around your other employment commitments.)

We are working on a limited budget but we can offer to feed you during working hours and make a contribution towards your travel.

When and where are the internships available?

30th June - 3rd October - 12 weeks. We are based in the east end of London.

How to apply.

Please send us a cover letter stating why you are interested, what skills you have and which skills you would like to learn and which you would wish to share. Enclose a CV with the letter. 

Email your application to james@labofii.net by 23rd June 5pm deadline for application.

 

There will be an informal meeting with appropriate applicants.

 

Please note that our current working space is not accessible to wheelchair users.