About The Work
When artist Paul Chan visited New Orleans for the first time in November 2006—a little more than a year after Hurricane Katrina—he was struck by the disquieting stillness: no hammer sounds banging in the distance, no construction crews yelling to one another, no cranes visible on the skyline. His immediate response to the city was to imagine an outdoor performance of Samuel Beckett's legendary play, Waiting for Godot. Chan explained, "There is a terrible symmetry between the reality of New Orleans post-Katrina and the essence of this play, which expresses in stark eloquence the cruel and funny things people do while they wait for help, for food, for tomorrow." Chan's production was comprised of four site-specific outdoor performances in two New Orleans neighborhoods—one in the middle of an intersection in the Lower Ninth Ward and the other in the front yard of an abandoned house in Gentilly. The project further evolved into a larger social production involving free art seminars, educational programs, theater workshops, and conversations with the community.
In this photograph, Robert Lynn Green Sr., a resident of the Lower Ninth Ward, holds a sign created by Paul Chan that reflects the first three lines of Waiting for Godot. These signs could be found posted on lampposts throughout New Orleans, acting as an indirect marketing campaign to alert residents of play's performances in the Lower Ninth Ward and Gentilly neighborhoods.
About Paul Chan
From The Magazine
- Art 101: In Their Own Words: 10 Essential Reads Written by Artists
- Interviews & Features: Paul Chan on Erotica, E-Book Censorship, and "Quitting" Art to Become a Book Publisher
- Interviews & Features: Printed Matter's Philip Aarons on Why Artists' Books Are as Relevant as Ever in Today's Digital World
- Interviews & Features: How to Collaborate: 25 Leading Art Collectives Share Their Creative Processes, Part 2
- Art 101: How Do Today's Art Stars Make Prints? Master Printer Erik Hougen Explains an Intimate Form of Collaboration
Photograph
Chromogenic print of color photograph.
11.00 x 16.50 in
27.9 x 41.9 cm
Signed by the artist.
About The Work
When artist Paul Chan visited New Orleans for the first time in November 2006—a little more than a year after Hurricane Katrina—he was struck by the disquieting stillness: no hammer sounds banging in the distance, no construction crews yelling to one another, no cranes visible on the skyline. His immediate response to the city was to imagine an outdoor performance of Samuel Beckett's legendary play, Waiting for Godot. Chan explained, "There is a terrible symmetry between the reality of New Orleans post-Katrina and the essence of this play, which expresses in stark eloquence the cruel and funny things people do while they wait for help, for food, for tomorrow." Chan's production was comprised of four site-specific outdoor performances in two New Orleans neighborhoods—one in the middle of an intersection in the Lower Ninth Ward and the other in the front yard of an abandoned house in Gentilly. The project further evolved into a larger social production involving free art seminars, educational programs, theater workshops, and conversations with the community.
In this photograph, Robert Lynn Green Sr., a resident of the Lower Ninth Ward, holds a sign created by Paul Chan that reflects the first three lines of Waiting for Godot. These signs could be found posted on lampposts throughout New Orleans, acting as an indirect marketing campaign to alert residents of play's performances in the Lower Ninth Ward and Gentilly neighborhoods.
About Paul Chan
From The Magazine
- Art 101: In Their Own Words: 10 Essential Reads Written by Artists
- Interviews & Features: Paul Chan on Erotica, E-Book Censorship, and "Quitting" Art to Become a Book Publisher
- Interviews & Features: Printed Matter's Philip Aarons on Why Artists' Books Are as Relevant as Ever in Today's Digital World
- Interviews & Features: How to Collaborate: 25 Leading Art Collectives Share Their Creative Processes, Part 2
- Art 101: How Do Today's Art Stars Make Prints? Master Printer Erik Hougen Explains an Intimate Form of Collaboration
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