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Bethlehem is one of the most contentious places on earth.Perched at the edge of the Judaen desert at the intersection of Europe, Asia and Africa in the state of Palestine it was governed by the British following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. After World War II the United Nations voted to partition the region into two states - one Jewish, one Arab and there’s been fighting ever since.
It’s obviously not the job of a loose collection of idiot doodlers to tell you what’s right or wrong about this situation, so you’re advised to do further reading yourself (this month’s National Geographic has an excellent article all about Bethlehem).
We would like to make it very clear Santa’s Ghetto is not allied to ANY race, creed, religion, political organization or lobby group. As an organisation the only thing we’ll say on behalf of our artists is that we don’t speak on behalf of our artists. This show simply offers the ink-stained hand of friendship to ordinary people in an extraordinary situation.
Every shekel made in the store will be used on local projects for children and young people. Not one cent will go to any political groups, governmental institutions or,
in fact, any grown-ups at all.If you feel that moving the Ghetto to the Middle East discriminates against people who can't afford to fly then you're right, so sorry about that.
However, we're making a brace of great new work available over the internet in the usual punch-up we laughingly call an on-line business.
Well, can't say I saw this one coming. Note that there will be plenty online releases this month, including stuff from:
Aiko
Banksy
Bast
Lucy Mac
Kelsey Brooks
Paul Insect
Gee Vaucher
Blu
Eric The Dog
3D
D*Face, Blek Le Rat, Bo130, Blu, Microbu and Space Invader are all teaming up and bringing a small slice of Europe to New York. The show, starting tonight at 6pm, will run all the way through to the 29th of December. For more information, see the Jonathan LeVine site.
Imperfect Union, a solo exhibit of new works by Shepard Fairey. This show displays a provocative collection of politically charged paintings, screen prints, stencils, album covers and mixed media pieces rich with metaphor, humor and seductive decorative elements.Imperfect Union is derived from the first line of the U.S. Constitution “We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union”. For Shepard Fairey, critiquing the imperfect union, far from disparaging the United States, is a patriotic step toward shaping a more perfect union.Almost all the pieces that the show had on offer are now sold out, but it is most definitely worth a visit if you're in the area; Shepards originals are very impressive indeed. The show runs from today at 8pm (December 1st) to January 14th. More information can be found on his site.
