{"id":563934,"date":"2026-07-28T18:10:12","date_gmt":"2026-07-28T18:10:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/563934\/"},"modified":"2026-07-28T18:10:12","modified_gmt":"2026-07-28T18:10:12","slug":"curtis-sliwa-and-massive-hot-dog-in-times-square","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/563934\/","title":{"rendered":"Curtis Sliwa and Massive Hot Dog in Times Square"},"content":{"rendered":"

New York Newsletter<\/a><\/p>\n

The absurdist elegy of \u201cThe Most American Pageant Ever!,\u201d Brazilian modernist Chico da Silva, reclaiming a Thomas Jefferson statue, and more.<\/p>\n


\n \"Lisa
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

I can\u2019t say I\u2019ve ever dreamed of watching a recreation of Curtis Sliwa\u2019s infamous 1992 kidnapping and assassination attempt in front of a 65-foot hot dog in Times Square, but that\u2019s just because of a lack of imagination. Our Editor-at-Large Hrag Vartanian found all the above and then some \u2014 drag Melania, Epstein file cumshot, etc. \u2014\u00a0during a visit to The Most American Pageant Ever!, an absurdist performance event that felt like an elegy during this national moment.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Also in this issue, we unpack a quieter though no less symbol-laden event a ways uptown. In May, a quill snapped off a nearly two century-old statue of Thomas Jefferson that once stood in City Hall, while it was being moved at the New York Historical. Todd Fine argues that the Mamdani administration ought to reclaim it as an emblem of democratic, labor, and socialist movements. Elsewhere around the city, three generations of Amazonian artists, including the brilliant and misunderstood modernist Chico da Silva; a weaving circle at Abrons Art Center; an exploration of the gut at LES community center ABC No Rio; and so much more to fill your days.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I\u2019m so very jealous. This is the last week you\u2019ll find me in your inbox, as I\u2019m moving to Iowa City this weekend \u2014 no place to write the New York newsletter from \u2014 and handing it off to my wonderful colleagues. Thank you for everything. Hope to be back soon \u2014\u00a0hold it down for me in the meantime, will you?<\/p>\n

\u2014Lisa Yin Zhang, associate editor\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\tGiant Wieners, Drag Queens, and Curtis Sliwa at \u201cThe Most American Pageant Ever!\u201d<\/p>\n

\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\tWatching Curtis Sliwa watch comedian Spike Einbinder \u2014 brother of Hacks star Hannah Einbinder and son of Saturday Night Live alum Laraine Newman \u2014 get shot in a comedic recreation of the former New York City Republican mayoral candidate\u2019s infamous 1992 kidnapping and shooting was the kind of experience I\u2019ll remember for the rest of my life. Thankfully, the other parts of the performance were just as absurd, verging on the erratic, which was pitch-perfect for The Most American Pageant Ever!, an event billed as a \u201crenewed portrait of America,\u201d though it often felt more like an elegy during the nation\u2019s semiquincentennial year. | Hrag Vartanian\n\t<\/p>\n

\t
\n\t\tRead More
\n\t<\/a><\/p>\n

From Our Critics\"\"<\/a>Natalie Weis<\/p>\n

Helen Levitt, book edited by Joshua Chuang<\/p>\n

“Levitt didn\u2019t work with any particular political agenda other than the belief, still somewhat radical for its time, that the city\u2019s working-class communities of color possessed a beauty and drama all their own.”<\/p>\n

Read the full review<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>John Yau<\/p>\n

Riverlines: Chico da Silva, Joseca Yanomami, and Kuenan Mayu, Three Generations of Amazonian Indigenous Artists at David Nolan Gallery<\/p>\n

“By presenting da Silva with two Amazonian artists of different generations, the exhibition undermines the oppressive Western notion of the artist as an isolated genius.”<\/p>\n

Read the full review<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Julie Schneider<\/p>\n

Finding Here, 2026 SVA MFA Art Practice Thesis Exhibition at Art Cake<\/p>\n

“With a rollicking DIY spirit, these handcrafted works offer a reminder that it\u2019s possible to rewrite what came before, push back against harmful systems, and invent better ways of living together.”<\/p>\n

Read the full review<\/a><\/p>\n

Opinion\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

What Else Is Happening?The New York Foundation for the Arts\u00a0awards $903,000 to 132 artists<\/a>\u00a0across New York State in its joint fellowship program with the New York State Council on the Arts.New York Chinatown residents and activists\u00a0protested\u00a0outside a town hall event organized by the Museum of Chinese in America, condemning the leadership\u2019s acceptance of a $35 million grant<\/a>\u00a0from the city tied to the construction of a\u00a0borough\u00a0jail.Two painters\u00a0are suing The Hole Gallery<\/a>, alleging that it owes them a combined sum of about $50,000 in outstanding sales proceeds.Just a few months after the reopening of the New Museum\u2019s expanded building, a\u00a0water leak shut down<\/a>\u00a0the Manhattan institution for a full weekend.Hyperallergic contributor Seph Rodney will moderate a conversation about entropy in artist Meg Webster’s work, tied to her show at Paula Cooper. (Tues July 28) [impulsemagazine.com<\/a>]The Bronx River Art Center is hosting an opening reception for Persona \/ Non Persona, a dynamic group exhibition by the queer art collective Magenta Lounge. (Thurs July 30) [bronxriverarg.org<\/a>]Join Asia Art Archive in America for a screening, artist talk, and discussion featuring Christy Chan and Amanda Phingbodhipakkiya that confronts violent power structures. (Thurs July 30) [aartsalliance.org<\/a>]Studio6 Gallery is hosting an opening reception for U&LC: Upper and Lower Case, an international exhibition celebrating the power of letterform, featuring work from three graffiti pioneers. (Thurs July 30) [Studio6<\/a>]The opening reception of the Bower Gallery’s Annual Juried Exhibition is this week. (Thurs July 30) [bowerygallery.org<\/a>]At Abrons Arts Center, join a weaving circle led by artist Cyle Warner, exploring Caribbean breeze block patterns, conversation, repetition, and shared making. (Fri July 31) [Abron Arts Center<\/a>]Come to the opening of ABC No Rio Visual Arts Collective’s Lower Intestine at Onetwentyeight Gallery, where subterranean artists examine the guts and hidden mechanisms churning beneath the surface world. (Sun Aug 2) [abcnorio.org<\/a>]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"New York Newsletter The absurdist elegy of \u201cThe Most American Pageant Ever!,\u201d Brazilian modernist Chico da Silva, reclaiming…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":563935,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[437,434,435,436,438,146,85,46],"class_list":["post-563934","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-arts-and-design","tag-arts","tag-arts-and-design","tag-artsanddesign","tag-artsdesign","tag-design","tag-entertainment","tag-il","tag-israel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/563934","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=563934"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/563934\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/563935"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=563934"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=563934"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=563934"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}