"Salviamo la luna"is a public art and civic participation project. It uses photography as the initial vehicle to engage the neighbors of Cinisello Balsamo, in the Italian province of Milan, through the display of their portraits, as proposed in an open process by the artist Jochen Gerz. After overcoming several challenges Fran Reyes and Davide Ferrario have almost ready a documentary that picks up the proposal, and taking it beyond the initial scope, becomes an exploration of civic society and public art.

I work for an organization in a department where we have been assigned to organize a picnic at Mount Vernon. It should be quite the nice and memorable day, chilling out by the Potomac River, a few sandwiches, good company, nice conversations...

OK, Mount Vernon is a good 16 miles away from here, but there is a pretty nice trail that we can use. I would typically get the bikes, pack some good sandwiches, and cycle over there. I am told that it is a nice idea but apparently we do not use bikes. OK, so maybe we need to use the old car we have or if that is not enough rent a minivan, or better yet: use public transportation.

Artomatic is prepared to roll this Friday April 13 with Back to Work installed and ready. All are invited to visit the exhibition. If you have trouble attending the opening, Artomatic will be open for 5 weeks and there will be plenty of events and performances. Cinco de Mayo and the closing night look particularly party ready.