Decks, dolls, and strategies
This week’s subject line is an excerpt from Brian Eno and Bette A.’s new book What Art Does, of which very few of its 777 copies remain. The book offers a new theory of art and call for all of us to embrace a sense of play in what we do. (To collect a copy before all editions sell out, go here.)
As we look around the Metalabel Universe, we see artists and creators demonstrating the traits Eno writes about. There are conceptual card games that ask us to play with our minds. Art objects that remind us of the feelings of childhood. Playful invitations to see the world with fresh eyes. And a new Artist Residency in Metalabel’s digital spaces where artists can tell their stories.
So much of the tone of our creative and artistic universes is serious because we’ve learned taking ourselves seriously is the only way the wider world takes us seriously too. That respect is important and hard-earned, but it’s important to remember that it all starts with play.
NEW RELEASES
01
BLACK BEYOND AND JAZSALYN, WARPMODE
RECOMMENDED IF YOU LIKE: Card games, Conceptual conversations, New ways of thinking
WHAT IT IS: WARPMODE is a new conceptual card game from the artist Jazsalyn that invites a group of players to adopt philosophical lenses and consider the past, present, and future.
Jazsalyn, the artist behind the project, is the Artistic Director of the experimental curatorial project Black Beyond and teaches at The New School. Warpmode was supported by Pioneer Works, Onassis ONX, and the Serpentine UK, who collaborated to host a live-streamed playtest of the game last week, and incubated by Metalabel.
02
HARD ART, THIS IS NOT A BLUEPRINT VOL 1
RECOMMENDED IF YOU LIKE: Peeking behind the curtain, Creative experiments, Starting movements
WHAT IT IS: Hard Art, the cultural collective whose members include Brian Eno, Es Devlin, Asif Kapadia, Pete Townsend, and many more, have introduced a new series that reveals the practices and strategies the group uses to operate.
The season begins, appropriately, with a release that documents how the group began, from Eno’s first invitation to audio recordings of members of Hard Art talking about the group’s beginnings. The series will continue with more releases documenting how they work together.
Get a look behind the scenes of one of the most interesting cultural collectives working today.
Collect This is not a blueprint Volume 1
03
RECOMMENDED IF YOU LIKE: Dramaton, pixel-perfect fashion, divine secrets
WHAT IT IS: A tarot deck first created in 2018 and now on its third edition, Molly Soda revives the ‘90s and ‘00s internet dollz to illustrate a unique 78-card tarot deck.
04
PHILIPPA SCHMITT, STICKERS SET
RECOMMENDED IF YOU LIKE: Stickers, Cuteness, Deprocessing high school trauma
WHAT IT IS: Six artist-illustrated stickers that come in a custom pouch by a French visual artist.
05
SUPERSTARS ONLY ISSUE 5: BAGAZINE
RECOMMENDED IF YOU LIKE: Wearable art, Everyday Superstars, A mag bag
WHAT IT IS: A magazine that can be worn as a bag (PLUS option to bundle with a t-shirt) by an independent NYC-based art magazine.
06
ZARINA NARES, EVERYTHING HAS CHANGED, NOTHING HAS CHANGED
RECOMMENDED IF YOU LIKE: Patterns, Visual essays, Patriarchal criticism
WHAT IT IS: A 128-page photo book that examines mimetic relationships between classical Western sculptures and contemporary representations of women, and traces visual histories of objectification, idolization, and imperialism.
Collect Everything Has Changed
07
RECOMMENDED IF YOU LIKE: Positivity, Creative encouragement
WHAT IT IS: From the release page: “An interactive zine illuminating the healing power of art and creativity, powered by culture therapy.”
08
EXTREME ANIMALS, “MUSICAL TELEVISION”
RECOMMENDED IF YOU LIKE: Early MTV, Video art, Physical media
WHAT IT IS: A wild and unusual DVD + CD + poster release from an influential video art collective
09
AMBIENT SOUL MUSIC CLUB, “FOUR TRACK ORIGINALS”
RECOMMENDED IF YOU LIKE: Beautiful packaging, Debuts, Multimedia releases
WHAT IT IS: One of the nicest release pages we’ve come across yet on Metalabel. Love the care and design that went into presenting this work. Kudos!
Metalabel IRL
- WARPMODE’s appearance on the Serpentine Twitch livestream.
- "A palm-sized paperback time capsule... Many of these ideas — around art, commerce, and social and cultural institutions, in particular — are genuinely exciting." — Hyperallergic reviews Dark Forest Anthology
- Intra-Metalabel crossover! PLAY creative director Gabriella Lewis drops knowledge in The Creative Independent
Want to drop your own work with Metalabel? Get started here.
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