Artist Designed "Brinco" Sneakers for Art Exhibit, Not for Illegal Immigra

[UTUSN]

Apparently Faux has been trotting this woman, Judi WERTHEIN, around to their various firing squads for two or three days already. This morning they had her on Faux & Friends (again?), regarding her being the designer/artist of "Brinco" sneakers. The weekender FauxFriends are slightly less Redmeat-eating, so they gingerly brought up whether her sneakers make her an accessory to the crime of abetting illegal aliens.

Apparently she is now practiced with being on Faux, so she denied them the money shots, did not show the various components of the sneakers, stuck to describing the origins, that they were an ART PROJECT for an outfit center in San Diego-Tijuana, where the central daily event is the border so she zeroed in on the sneakers as a symbol.

The predictables, O'LOOFAH and MALKIN, will blow gaskets. She's from Argentina, and, despite her art her social consciousness, her project is manufactured in China for peanuts. What's next, WalMart (cough).


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http://www.plunderbund.com/
Plunderbund
A Progressive Political Playground

My kicks ayudeme a cruzar la frontera
Posted by Eric under Plunderbund
This is going to make O'reilly's head explode --not to mention piss off the minutemen (do we still have minutemen?). A company has made sneakers that have several built in features to help Mexicans cross the border. They feature an insole with a border map, a pouch to carry money or other small items, a compass, a mini-flashlight, and Mexican flag colors.
Brinco sneakers (jump in spanish) is an art project really, only 1000 have been made; some sold for prices that would even make Jordan blush; some given away to Mexicans planning to come to the U.S. via a border crossing.

azcentral.com Article

Sellers: Printed Matter Blends

The sneakers are made in China for $17, yet sell for over $200 --highlighting key social and economic justice issues. They bring up important things to discuss, so have at it!


News Hounds
We watch FOX so you don't have to.

http://www.newshounds.us/

"Brinco" Sneakers Are FNC Target Of The Day
Fri 06:19 PM
Judy Werthein artist, created the Brinco Sneakers for an exhibit at the San Diego Museum of Art in August 2005. Werthein wanted to draw attention to the difficulties endured by migrants crossing the desert to the U.S.. The sneakers include a compass, a map of the crossing area and a visible tag stating they were made in China to draw attention to the unfair labor practices there.

Now the artist is suddenly caught in a Foxian distortion accusing her of encouraging illegal immigration across our borders. The campaign started this AM on Fox & Friends and was repeated during Big Story where she was interviewed by John Gibson. 11/18/05

Continue reading »

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[Hissyspit]

1. Uh... Most Illegal Immigrants CAN'T AFFORD THEM!!!

Of course they are meant to really be used, but even if they weren't, they would mainly be helpful in KEEPING YOU ALIVE in any border-crossing attempt. And they aren't really practical for that, either.

Fauxnews viewer = brain-dead on arrival.

[UTUSN]

2. She's an "Activist"? (Made in China) - Is She Worthy of Our Defending Her?

Sounds like she's going for notoriety with a gimmick.

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http://www.jessicamurrayprojects.com/artistsJudiWerthein.html

Judi Werthein was born in Buenos Aires and received her Masters of Architecture from the University of Buenos Aires (1993). She was selected for solo exhibitions at the Chinati Foundation (Thoughts Come to Mind); Centro Cultural Borjes (Buenos Aires), Bronx Museum of Art (Manicurated); Kent Gallery (Turismo); Museo de Arte Contemporaneo Bahia Blanca, Ruth Benzacar Galeria (Buenos Aires), Centro Cultural San Martin (Buenos Aires). She has been included in exhibitions at El Museo del Barrio, Apex Art, The Center for Curatorial Studies at Bard (curated by Victoria Noorthoorn); and the 2000 Havana Biennial (Cuba). Her work has been reviewed in Art News, New York Magazine, New York Times, ArtForum, Village Voice, Art Nexus, and Flash Art. She lives and works in Brooklyn and Buenos Aires.

http://printedmatter.org/catalogue/search.cfm?email=&cookie1=4757834.7&return=/index.cfm

Brinco

Judi Werthein
CA: Judi Werthein; Insite-05. 2005

This pair of sneakers was custom designed by artist-activist Judi Werthein especially for migrant workers crossing the border between Mexico and the U.S. She distributes the sneakers for free at border towns, and uses the procedes from sales to non-workers to help support the migrants in their efforts to establish themselves in this country. The symbol of the Mexican eagle is sewn onto the side of each shoe and the American eagle engraved on the quarter dollar is sewn onto the toe. The shoe's insole is printed with a map of the border region, and a compass and mini-flashlight allow the wearer to navigate the terrain night and day. Every pair of these self-conscious and consciousness-raising multiples is embroidered with a full disclosure of their manufacturing conditions: "this product was manufactured in China under a minimum wage of $42 US a month working 12 hour days."

Category: Multiple

$215.00

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[NV Whino]

3. She's an artist

making a political statement, just as I and many other artists do. Do we want noteriety? You bet.

[UTUSN]

4. So My Non-artist, Political Defense of Her Would Be for Free Speech

not for social consciousness.

[Hissyspit]

5. Art is about gimmicks, often.

"Look, I can make this paint goo look like someone's face." That's a gimmick.

Some gimmicks are more significant, substantial or influential than others.

[Richard Steele]

6. So, she's accused of "encouraging illegal immigration", and FOX is mad?

I guess its a good thing she wasn't "encouraging"
terrorists to come here and blow up parts of a major city.

FOX would have been SCREAMING about anyone who did THAT, right?

[UTUSN]

7. Like THIS Man

Here's chickenhawk O'LOOFAH receiving the VFW Errect Loofah Award