I am Winnie the Pooh
February 27, 2012 5:56 AM Subscribe
Je suis Winnie l'Ourson (I am Winnie the Pooh). Pictures of superheroes and icons living their other lives.
Well that was miserabilistic. Why not have one be an executive, or a teacher, or just unemployed?
posted by Monday, stony Monday at 6:20 AM on February 27, 2012
posted by Monday, stony Monday at 6:20 AM on February 27, 2012
Not providing functionality that works on all major browsers is lame. Come on, it's just a freaking embedded FLASH slideshow. (For what it's worth, I personally use Firefox, but this sort of passive aggressive coding really annoys me.)
As for the content, interesting concept, but not as fleshed out (so to speak) as it might be, as if it were the beginning of a larger, more thoughtful project.
posted by aught at 6:26 AM on February 27, 2012 [2 favorites]
As for the content, interesting concept, but not as fleshed out (so to speak) as it might be, as if it were the beginning of a larger, more thoughtful project.
posted by aught at 6:26 AM on February 27, 2012 [2 favorites]
So, wait. Batman works in the French equivalent of New Jersey?
posted by schmod at 6:35 AM on February 27, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by schmod at 6:35 AM on February 27, 2012 [1 favorite]
"ourson" is french for pooh
posted by This, of course, alludes to you at 6:42 AM on February 27, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by This, of course, alludes to you at 6:42 AM on February 27, 2012 [1 favorite]
Well that was miserabilistic. Why not have one be an executive, or a teacher, or just unemployed?
I was a bit confused. Is it supposed to be what actors who wear those costumes for work do for their other part time jobs? Or is it literally what those characters are doing otherwise? Because, Batman is Bruce Wayne, a millionaire.
posted by bluefly at 7:19 AM on February 27, 2012 [3 favorites]
I was a bit confused. Is it supposed to be what actors who wear those costumes for work do for their other part time jobs? Or is it literally what those characters are doing otherwise? Because, Batman is Bruce Wayne, a millionaire.
posted by bluefly at 7:19 AM on February 27, 2012 [3 favorites]
A marginally acceptable Google translation of the artist's statement:
The populist rhetoric that feed on the discontent and widespread fear of enemies identify and cultivate the seeds of intolerance and the xenophobia they come out of the drawer of old ideals by exploiting a territorial concept that has taken an ever larger place in political discourse and discussions of counter: the identity. Construction historical and cultural identity, as taught by anthropologists, is fluid, multiple, and pop open. Each of us can own several to infinity: one, one hundred miles and no quote for Pirandello. But identity is primarily relational: the definition of We always passes through the negation of the Other. When she falls into the hands of political ambitions, identities become rigid form of regionalism, religious fanaticism, political or territorial. And when the other is marginal or precarious, the immediate consequences of exclusion and violence. Through an ironic manipulation of identity, I'm Winnie the Pooh will stimulate reflection on the stigmatization of the Other depicting the fears and contradictions associated with it. Rome, the city where the project was born, is a breeding ground for micro identitarisme that does not fail to refer to a romanitude or the Roman Empire, the city is witnessing a wave of intolerance and outright violence against part of the population who embodies fear and otherness denied. Marginal figures, illegal workers, undocumented or invisible ... People assemble black; on their complex and varied identities, we stick a label that simplifies and denigrating the other. In their clothes, we have superheroes, icons, celebrities known across the globalized world. To remember that a person is never what we see, but always something more complex, each identity is partial, we are all one, and no one hundred miles.posted by muddgirl at 7:23 AM on February 27, 2012
When she's not on duty, Xenophobia, Warrior Princess, robs tourists for fun.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 7:53 AM on February 27, 2012
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 7:53 AM on February 27, 2012
TL;DR: It's about immigration and xenophobia.
Yes, and it's also about the way in which the idea of a fixed, unitary, easily-comprehensible identity is used as a weapon. We are all a lot of things, have a lot of identities, are always more than what can be seen at one time by one person. But politically, there is this attempt to name and define one identity for certain people as a way to act against them.
So you define the Other - undocumented people have only one identity and it's defined in particularly stupid and uncomplex ways. So they aren't parents or kids or bullies or readers or cooks or partners or sick people or anything except "undocumented" or "undocumented and criminal". Whereas whoever is being centered gets to have a complex identity that can be redefined or multiple. I, a citizen, am understood complexly and variously, and I can bring in one identity to argue about another - for example, I can argue that I was late to work because I had to drop my kid off at school or pick up a prescription. If an undocumented person is late to work - in right wing discourse - it's because they are lazy or incompetent.
Now, there might come a time when it would be useful to flatten my identity - as a union member, for example, I'm just a stroppy slacker who doesn't appreciate how good she has it, nothing else.
The idea is that how we think about what makes up a person is political.
posted by Frowner at 8:01 AM on February 27, 2012 [3 favorites]
Yes, and it's also about the way in which the idea of a fixed, unitary, easily-comprehensible identity is used as a weapon. We are all a lot of things, have a lot of identities, are always more than what can be seen at one time by one person. But politically, there is this attempt to name and define one identity for certain people as a way to act against them.
So you define the Other - undocumented people have only one identity and it's defined in particularly stupid and uncomplex ways. So they aren't parents or kids or bullies or readers or cooks or partners or sick people or anything except "undocumented" or "undocumented and criminal". Whereas whoever is being centered gets to have a complex identity that can be redefined or multiple. I, a citizen, am understood complexly and variously, and I can bring in one identity to argue about another - for example, I can argue that I was late to work because I had to drop my kid off at school or pick up a prescription. If an undocumented person is late to work - in right wing discourse - it's because they are lazy or incompetent.
Now, there might come a time when it would be useful to flatten my identity - as a union member, for example, I'm just a stroppy slacker who doesn't appreciate how good she has it, nothing else.
The idea is that how we think about what makes up a person is political.
posted by Frowner at 8:01 AM on February 27, 2012 [3 favorites]
Shouldn't that translate to "Winnie le Merde?"
posted by Brodiggitty at 8:03 AM on February 27, 2012
posted by Brodiggitty at 8:03 AM on February 27, 2012
More superheroes in everyday life (flash gallery; flash-free smaller images), by Ian Poole.
Also: The Real Story of Superheroes, immigrants in the US who work hard and send money back to their family, dressed up as various superheroes.
posted by filthy light thief at 9:28 AM on February 27, 2012
Also: The Real Story of Superheroes, immigrants in the US who work hard and send money back to their family, dressed up as various superheroes.
posted by filthy light thief at 9:28 AM on February 27, 2012
Am I allowed to complain about the lame "I see you're using IE, you shouldn't, so I won't show you the content" crap, or do I have to take it to freaking MetaTalk?
posted by Curious Artificer at 9:30 AM on February 27, 2012
posted by Curious Artificer at 9:30 AM on February 27, 2012
I couldn't get the thing to work on Chrome - not sure that I missed much anyway.
posted by Ber at 10:01 AM on February 27, 2012
posted by Ber at 10:01 AM on February 27, 2012
Am I allowed to complain about the lame "I see you're using IE, you shouldn't, so I won't show you the content" crap, or do I have to take it to freaking MetaTalk?
I'm not sure what it is you want to "take to MetaTalk." I had no idea the site was browser specific, and agree that it's lame (I'm using Chrome and saw it just fine). Regardless, you seem to have done a fine job of complaining about it here.
posted by OmieWise at 10:06 AM on February 27, 2012
I'm not sure what it is you want to "take to MetaTalk." I had no idea the site was browser specific, and agree that it's lame (I'm using Chrome and saw it just fine). Regardless, you seem to have done a fine job of complaining about it here.
posted by OmieWise at 10:06 AM on February 27, 2012
Thanks for the direct link. I don't really get the "superheroes in real life" idea for the reasons others have outlined above, but I liked the photos.
posted by sweetkid at 10:07 AM on February 27, 2012
posted by sweetkid at 10:07 AM on February 27, 2012
OmieWise, there has been discussion (and grumbling) about off-topic comments placed in the thread to which they apply. To the point where we have been chastised in MetaTalk for adequately failing to "flag it and move on", and have had comments deleted when they point out possible double-posts, or other things which may be problematic with a thread. I was afraid I might run afoul of a similar breach if I said anything in this thread.
posted by Curious Artificer at 10:55 AM on February 27, 2012
posted by Curious Artificer at 10:55 AM on February 27, 2012
Even after reading the artist's statement, I don't really "get it." I mean, I'm pretty sure that I understand the artist's statement, but I still don't fully understand who these photos achieve the goal.
posted by asnider at 10:58 AM on February 27, 2012
posted by asnider at 10:58 AM on February 27, 2012
I don't think you're supposed to take the artist's statement at face value -- it's close enough to gibberish that I would, at first glance, think it's basically lorem ipsum, or the output of a bullshit generator.
If it's serious, it's another symptom of the Problem with Art: artists.
posted by Monday, stony Monday at 11:13 AM on February 27, 2012 [1 favorite]
If it's serious, it's another symptom of the Problem with Art: artists.
posted by Monday, stony Monday at 11:13 AM on February 27, 2012 [1 favorite]
(And I'm not saying that because of the google-translated version: French is my first language)
posted by Monday, stony Monday at 11:14 AM on February 27, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by Monday, stony Monday at 11:14 AM on February 27, 2012 [1 favorite]
Is there some kind of "Famous Photographers" correspondence school that all photographers go through to learn how to make horrible web sites? Is there a tax break for it? A religious duty?
I mean seriously, why the fuck does every photographer in the world end up with a totally useless "too hip for usability" web site?
posted by Naberius at 11:41 AM on February 27, 2012
I mean seriously, why the fuck does every photographer in the world end up with a totally useless "too hip for usability" web site?
posted by Naberius at 11:41 AM on February 27, 2012
It seems pretty clear to me, even in Google Translate, after I actually looked at the photos. Frowner's summary is pretty good.
posted by muddgirl at 11:44 AM on February 27, 2012
posted by muddgirl at 11:44 AM on February 27, 2012
I don't think you're supposed to take the artist's statement at face value -- it's close enough to gibberish that I would, at first glance, think it's basically lorem ipsum, or the output of a bullshit generator.
It was translated from French. The translation isn't great, but it isn't gibberish and it makes sense to me. I just don't fully understand the connection between what the project is supposed to be and what the project actually appears to be.
posted by asnider at 12:11 PM on February 27, 2012
It was translated from French. The translation isn't great, but it isn't gibberish and it makes sense to me. I just don't fully understand the connection between what the project is supposed to be and what the project actually appears to be.
posted by asnider at 12:11 PM on February 27, 2012
I want to stress the importance of this post.
Typical would be the scenario where a regency is setup systematically, violently, not without scars, because of ancestral rights.
posted by Meatafoecure at 12:45 PM on February 27, 2012
Typical would be the scenario where a regency is setup systematically, violently, not without scars, because of ancestral rights.
posted by Meatafoecure at 12:45 PM on February 27, 2012
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posted by misteraitch at 6:04 AM on February 27, 2012