ANTONI MUNTADAS / MARSHALL REESE: Political Advertisement IX 1952-2016 Press Release

For thirty-two years, artists Muntadas and Reese have been compiling a history of presidential campaign spots, following the evolution of political advertising from its beginnings in 1952 to the present. Political Advertisement is a personal vision of how politics and politicians are presented through the medium of TV.

For the past nine general elections, the artists have premiered the latest version of the piece in a public presentation, followed by a discussion about the impact of campaign advertising. This year author Michelle Goldberg, senior contributing writer to Slate.com, will moderate a discussion on the role of advertising in the 2016 election. Her work has also appeared in The New Yorker, Rolling Stone, The Nation, The Guardian (UK) and The New Republic.

Occurring the final weekend of this year's campaign, this event will offer a timely and important outlet for discussion. The New York screening takes place at the School of Visual Arts Theatre, located at 333 West 23rd Street, on Friday, November 4th at 7:00pm. This screening is a shared presentation by the School of Visual Arts and EAI.

Friday, November 4, 2016 7:00pm SVA Theatre 333 West 23rd Street New York, NY 10011 svatheatre.com Free admission

Political Advertisement IX 1952-2016
Muntadas and Reese first started working on this video project in 1984. This year they are presenting the 9th version. This fascinating anthology, updated to include ads from the 2016 presidential campaign, documents the selling of the American presidency since the 1950s. Surveying the American televisual campaign process from Eisenhower to the Clinton and Trump campaigns, the artists trace the history of TV ads as political strategy and marketing technique. The artists state: "Looking back at these political ads provides a key to understanding the evolution of images on television and the marketing of politics."

Antoni Muntadas
Antoni Muntadas was born in Barcelona in 1942 and has lived in New York since 1971. His work addresses social, political and communications issues, and the relationship between public and private space within social frameworks. His work also addresses channels of information and the ways they may be used to censor central information or promulgate ideas. He works on projects in different media such as photography, video, publications, Internet and multi-media installations. Since 1995, Muntadas has grouped together a set of works and projects titled On Translation emphasizing issues of interpretation, transcription and cultural translation. Their content, dimensions and materials are variable, and focus on the author's personal experience and artistic activity in numerous countries over forty years. His most recent project Asian Protocols explores similarities, differences and conflicts between Korea, Japan, and China.

Marshall Reese
Marshall Reese is a Brooklyn-based artist working in various media including video, information networks, custom hardware and software, editions and temporary public art events. Since the mid-eighties he has collaborated with Nora Ligorano as LigoranoReese Their work is an ongoing investigation into the impact of technology on society and the rhetoric of politics and visual culture in the media. LigoranoReese have presented 7 site-specific public works at the U.S. political conventions focusing on climate and political issues. These installations incorporate ice sculptures weighing several tons, video and live streaming. For both the RNC in Cleveland and the DNC in Philadelphia, they unveiled a 4000-pound sculpture carved in ice spelling out the words The American Dream.

Political Advertisement IX is sponsored by the following School of Visual Arts Departments: MFA Art Practice Department; MFA Art Writing, MFA Computer Art Department; MFA Fine Arts Department; MFA Social Documentary Department; MFA Photography, Video and Related Media; and BFA Fine Arts Department. This program is being co-presented by EAI.

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About EAI
Celebrating our 45th anniversary in 2016, Electronic Arts Intermix (EAI) is a nonprofit arts organization that fosters the creation, exhibition, distribution, and preservation of moving image art. A New York-based international resource for media art and artists, EAI holds a major collection of over 3,500 new and historical media artworks, from groundbreaking early video by pioneering figures of the 1960s to new digital projects by today's emerging artists. EAI works closely with artists, museums, schools and other venues worldwide to preserve and provide access to this significant archive. EAI services also include viewing access, educational initiatives, extensive online resources, technical facilities, and public programs such as artists' talks, screenings, and multi-media performances. EAI's Online Catalogue is a comprehensive resource on the artists and works in the EAI collection, and features expansive materials on media art's histories and current practices: www.eai.org

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This presentation is made possible in part with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts' Electronic Media and Film Preservation Funds grant program, administered by The ARTS Council of the Southern Finger Lakes. EAI receives program support from The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts.