The CJM Blog

Installation view of The Library of Particular Significance. Photo by Johnna Arnold. Artist Josh Greene's two-part exhibition Bound to Be Held: A Book Show celebrates the relationship between a reader and a book. One part of the exhibition, The Library of Particular Significance (LPS), focuses on instigating social interaction by recasting the gallery as a lending-library of donated "significant" books—a space for dwelling, reading, and connecting. A series of related public programs called In The Library of Particular Significance enlivens the space with read-ins, book discussions, and literary happenings led by special guests. This Friday from 12:30-1pm , Michael Carabetta — Creative Director at Chronicle Books — will be speaking on the secrets of book design. Get to know Carabetta before his talk, including which book he donated to  The LPS and why. _________________________________________________________________________________ 1. In six words, tell us wh...

Installation view of The Library of Particular Significance . Photo by Gary Sexton Photography. Artist Josh Greene's two-part exhibition Bound to Be Held: A Book Show  celebrates the relationship between a reader and a book. One part of the exhibition, The Library of Particular Significance ,   focuses on instigating social interaction by   recasting the gallery as a lending-library  of donated "significant" books —a space for dwelling, reading, and connecting .  A series of related  public programs called In The Library of Particular Significance enlivens the space with read-ins, book discussions, and literary happenings led by special guests, from poets Kevin Killian and Dodie Bellamy to experimental filmmaker Craig Baldwin. This  Friday from 12:30-1pm ,  a unique perspective will be highlighted: the voice of young writers born and raised in San Francisco. Curated by former  Teen Art Connections  (TAC) intern Molly Bond,...

LISTEN: Michelle Tea, Eileen Myles, and Jill Soloway discuss "writing their lives." Award winning writers Michelle Tea ( Valencia , Mermaid in Chelsea Creek ), Eileen Myles ( Chelsea Girls, Cool for You ), and Emmy-nominated Jill Soloway ( Six-Feet Under, Transparent ) all pull from personal narrative in their work —albeit in different ways and to varying degrees. Listen in as they discuss "writing their lives" —and in particular, their female lives and voices —and creating work between  memoir and fiction. Artist Josh Greene's current exhibition at The CJM,  Bound to Be Held: A Book Show , also includes Greene's project  Read by Famous —which seeks donated books from famous or well-established individuals. Tea, Myles, and Soloway all donated to Read by Famous . In a talk on Thursday, May 7, the three writers came full circle to discuss literature, making it in Hollywood, and more. Want more? Listen to the full podcast  here .  _______________...

LISTEN: As the writers dish on their literary crushes. Literary crushes —w e all have them . There's a particular kind of attraction that can develop between a reader and a book, with the writer or a character within it .  Have you ever wondered who writers crush on?  Award winning writers Michelle Tea  ( Valencia, Mermaid in Chelsea Creek ), Eileen Myles ( Chelsea Girls, Cool for You ), and Emmy-nominated Jill Soloway ( Six-Feet Under, Transparent ) dish about their own literary crushes. Artist Josh Greene's current exhibition at The CJM,  Bound to Be Held: A Book Show , also  includes Greene's project   Read by Famous —which  seeks donated books  from famous or well-established individuals: Tea, Myles, and Soloway all donated to   Read by Famous . In a talk on Thursday, May 7, the three writers came full circle to discuss literature, literary crushes, making it in Hollywood, and more. Want more? Listen to the full podcast  h...

The exhibition To Build and Be Built addresses the culture of the kibbutz—Israeli communal agrarian societies in which life, labor, and pretty much everything else is often shared. This series of interviews explores local collectives of contemporary artists and asks the question, is it better to make art together? The collective and friends: Persia, Tori, San Cha, Keith, and Jessica Amaya The Black Glitter Collective, with five core members is creating and producing art collectively and independently with one another. They are Persia, San Cha, Tori, Tyler Holmes, and Vainhein (pronounced “Vane Hane” as in "vanity" and "heinous"). So far Black Glitter Collective has created more art than income, so they all have day jobs. But it would be pejorative to say they are just friends hanging out. They each have separate projects that focus on different artistic directions. And they collaborate on shared projects. Black Glitter is involved in creating music, performan...

Women playing mah jongg in the Catskills, c. 1960. Collection of Harvey Abrams . The familiar exclamations of “crak, bam, dot” accompanied by the shuffling of tiles conjure up memories of lively games played in the suburban living rooms of many Jewish homes from the 1920s through the 1960s—the heyday of the Chinese game mah jongg in the United States. For young Jewish Americans, mah jongg often brings up fond recollections of mothers and grandmothers engrossed in the riveting and social pastime. But mah jongg is not just a nostalgic hobby. The game has experienced a renaissance in the last two decades, fueled by a renewed interest in cultural activities of the pre-internet age like poker and bowling. Cross-generational and timeless, mah jongg has the ability to bring people together to relax and connect, and the game has a rich history in the Jewish American community.

Elaine and Alvin Lustig, Sunset Office, 1949. Collection of Elaine Lustig Cohen. “A man’s house is his art,” Daniel S. Defenbacher, director of the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, proclaimed in 1947: “At least a house is the nearest to art that most men will ever come.” 1 Writing about the Walker’s new Idea House, a full-scale, fully furnished residence intended to persuade Americans to adopt modern architecture and design for their domestic environments, Defenbacher staked out an agenda that was personal and artistic. Built two years after the end of World War II, Idea House featured innovative glass-walled facades, gleaming appliances, smooth plywood furniture, and built-in storage units that captured the nation’s fascination with new materials and technologies. Americans could afford these innovations through an unprecedented postwar economic boom that promised good design for all Americans, especially returning veterans and their families, who, through the recently passed GI...