- Ray Harkins reflects on a Q&A with Ian MacKaye. Link.

- Timothy Connors witnesses the guerilla art of Banksy. Link.

- Ronen Kauffman offers Band from TV, with Teri Hatcher on the mic. Link.

On October 2^nd guerrilla artist Banksy opened The Village Pet Store and Charcoal Grill, his first official exhibition in New York City. My girlfriend and I made our way over to the Lower East Side storefront location of this installation, cameras in hand. The exhibition features chicken nuggets with legs, busily dipping themselves in sauce; a rabbit wearing a pearl necklace and filing its nails; a robot monkey wearing headphones and watching TV in a cage. There’s also the disturbing still figure of Tweety, a caged bird that has lost all of its feathers.

This is the first time that Banksy has used animatronics, and the effect is absolutely amazing. It’s admirable that it’s being held in a tiny storefront that’s less than 300 square feet and can’t hold more than 20 people at any one time. It will also catch you a bit off guard if you’re just wandering down 7^th avenue and your eyes stray toward the exhibition. That’s how Banksy’s art works though – it’s simple and cerebral. This fake pet shop in the middle of New York City aims to question “our relationship with animals and the ethics and sustainability of factory farming.” Banksy also said: “New Yorkers don’t care about art, they care about pets. So I’m exhibiting them instead.”

I am really glad I was able to view this installation before it shuts down on Halloween. For the curious, I’ve linked the official video clips.

http://www.youtube.com/user/banscopetstore