Things to Do in Self-Isolation: Isabella Burley’s Guide

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Paris, Texas, 1984 film still Wim Wenders
Paris, Texas, 1984(Film still)

Dazed’s editor-in-chief Isabella Burley shares what’s getting her through isolation – from Wolfgang Tillmans to Paris, Texas

We at AnOther believe that in this unprecedented time of isolation, economic uncertainty, and social distancing, culture is more important than ever. Over the coming weeks, we’ll be publishing daily to do lists, curated by the teams behind AnOther Magazine, Another Man and Dazed, as they share things to look at, listen to, watch, read, or follow, to get you through. Here, Dazed’s editor-in-chief Isabella Burley shares her recommendations, from Wolfgang Tillmans’ 14th Street to Weight of the Earth: The Tape Journals of David Wojnarowicz.

Watch

Thanks to the ICA’s daily newsletter of what to watch, read and listen to, I spent this morning streaming Wolfgang Tillmans’ 14th Street: a 30-minute video work of life on New York’s 14th Street, filmed from his second-floor apartment window in 1994 and 1995. It made me smile. I’ve also been rewatching lots of the In Residence series on NOWNESS – Sue Webster’s mole man house in east London is a favourite! Tiger King (of course), John Waters’ Pecker, Wim Wenders’ Paris, Texas, Keanu Reeves in Point Break, Midsommar, a weird show about Evangelical Christians called The Righteous Gemstones, Ratatouille, oh and Sister Act

Read

I’m reading Weight of the Earth: The Tape Journals of David Wojnarowicz and Olivia Laing’s Funny Weather: Art in an Emergency – which is weirdly fitting for this time. I’m currently in Stockholm to be with my boyfriend so I don’t have much with me, but while unpacking I found a copy of New York Magazine that I bought back in September, so I finally had a moment to read that! It’s the teenage vaping crisis cover. I’ve also been enjoying 100 Notes – 100 Thoughts, Bettina Funcke’s dOCUMENTA (13) project which is available to view online – Karen Barad’s What Is the Measure of Nothingness?feels important for now. 

Look

Stephen Shore’s daily photo series in the form of #artinthetimeofcovid Instagram posts. I’m flying back to London tomorrow, so I’m excited to be reunited with my photo books at home.

Listen

Honestly, I’ve been enjoying the quiet.

Follow

I love @sadiecoleshq’s ‘Answers from Isolation’ series where their artists describe the exhibitions they were working on prior to them being postponed due to the virus and what they are doing to keep sane. Charlie Fox and Martine Syms are my favourites! And the Apartamento app is cool.