The latest in our “From the Archives” spotlight is dated February 11, 2007: Richard Holland, Duncan MacKenzie and Meg Onli talk to Rodney Graham on the occasion of his solo exhibition at Donald Young Gallery. And hey, coincidentally, Rodney Graham has a new show up at Donald Young right now, through November 23rd, 2011!

Click here to listen to Episode 76 featuring Rodney Graham.

Rodney Graham, on repeatedly recasting himself in his work:

“It was just easier to do that, and it gave me a certain limit, placing limits on what I would do. It was a way of maybe trying to distinguish my work from other Vancouver artists who are really masterful at that like Jeff Wall or Stan Douglas…I thought the performance thing was maybe more my thing. It was a way of doing something that was my own.” – Rodney Graham, interviewed by Bad at Sports.

The Bad at Sports podcast has been going strong for over six years and thus far has produced–wait a sec, are you f*%king kidding me?– 322 *weekly* podcast episodes??!  With a new podcast released every week?! Each featuring an interview with a different artist or maker hailing from parts all across the Western Hemisphere? Uh, that’s pretty extraordinary. Over the last six-plus years of existence, Bad at Sports has talked to hundreds of artists, from local upstarts to living legends. Because B@S is constantly putting out new material, it’s easy to forget that they’ve built up a massive audio archive of material that is virtually unrivaled (William Furlong and his amazing Audio Arts casette tape magazines, of course, is the grandaddy precursor to Bad at Sports’ project).  In honor of B@S’ sixth year of life on this planet, we’re going to start digging through the podcast archives on a weekly basis to highlight key episodes from the past. This, in addition to the new podcasts that the B@S team continues to create and upload for your listening pleasure each and every week.

So, please to enjoy the following selection from Bad at Sports archives, recorded in 2007 and featuring an interview with Jeff Wall that took place just prior to the opening of Wall’s retrospective exhibition at The Art Institute of Chicago.

Click here to listen to Bad at Sports Episode 96: Jeff Wall.

“I was … looking at the exhibition and I realized, what I feel about many of my exhibitions…that no matter how well installed they are, no matter how well lit and if the rooms are great, and all that…a lot of the time my pictures just don’t look very good together. No matter how well you hang them they often just don’t really go together. It’s hard to make what I would call a really successful show as an event or as a circumstance, because they’re very singular, each one: and each one has its own structure, its own space, its own colors, its own light, or whatever. And they don’t go in groups. At least, they only go in groups more or less. I don’t see it as a virtue or a negative thing either, it must just be how I see, or how I do things. I really see my pictures as singular. I don’t have any interest in making variations on a theme, or any of those kinds of things that tie pictures together. Each one does come from a real experience. I used to think about it [in terms of] genre, but I don’t think about it like that anymore….Genre means something known. When you think you know something, you create limitations.”  – Jeff Wall, interviewed by Duncan MacKenzie for Bad at Sports

After 'Invisible Man' by Ralph Ellison, the Prologue 1999–2000 Transparency in lightbox 1740 x 2505 mm Emanuel Hoffmann Foundation, on permanent loan to the Öffentliche Kunstsammlung Basel Cinematographic photograph © The artist.

1. Transmissions From The Outpost at Thomas Robertello Gallery

Work by Adam Ekberg. In the project space: I Believe in Harvey Dent or Three Months in Valparaiso, work by Jason Robert Bell

Thomas Robertello Gallery is located at 27 N. Morgan St. Reception Friday, 6-8pm

2. Future Perfect at Co-Prosperity Sphere

Work by by Judy Natal.

Co-Prosperity Sphere is located at 3219 S Morgan St. Reception Friday, 6-9pm.

3. Rodney Graham at Donald Young Gallery

New photographs, sculptures, and paintings.

Donald Young Gallery 224 S. Michigan Ave. #266. Reception Friday, 5-7pm.

4. PHONEBOOK 3 at Threewalls

Release Party for PHONEBOOK 3

Threewalls is located at 119 N. Peoria. Party Saturday, 8-11pm.

5. The River Rats at Western Exhibitions

Work by Ryan Travis Christian, with collaborative work in Gallery 2.

Western Exhibitions is located at 119 N Peoria St, 2A. Reception Friday, 5-8pm.

+1 – The MDW Fair at GeoLofts, opening Friday at 8pm. Open to 11pm. $5, free beer.

Participating curatorial groups and galleries: 2612 Space, 65GRAND, ACRE, Alderman Exhibitions, antenna, ANTIDOTE, Bad at Sports, Chicago Artists, Coalition, BOLT Residency, Chicago Urban Arts, DEFIBRILLATOR, Devening Projects + Editions, Document, Drawn Lots, Green Gallery, Happy Collaborationists, Harold Arts, High Concept Lab, The Hills, Hinge Gallery, Hungryman, Iceberg Projects, Itsa_pony, LVL3, Trevor Martin, Abr Gallery, North Branch Projects, Nudashank, Old Seoul, Packer Schopf Gallery, Peanut Gallery, Pentagon, portage ARTspace, Reference, Reuben Kincaid, Roots & Culture, Sixty Inches From Center, Small Space, Spudnik Press, threewalls, Uncle Freddy’s Treats, Linda Warren, Western Exhibitions, What It Is, and Propeller Fund grantees 2010.

GeoLofts is located at 3636 S. Iron At. The MDW Fair will continue through Saturday and Sunday, noon to 6pm.

Update: This just in — excerpts from the recordings taken during the MDW Fair will be broadcast on Episode 300 of the podcast!

Bad at Sports is setting up camp at the MDW Fair (pronounced Midway, like the airport) – come check us out over the weekend of April 23 and 24th! Richard, Duncan et al. will set up a casual recording booth area in the style of Storycorp‘s DIY reportage. Bring someone you want to interview – or someone who wants to interview you – and take 7 to 10 minutes to discuss your project your own way, in your own voice. The MDW Fair promises to be the Chicago art event of the season — check out all the details below:

The MDW Fair is a gathering of independent art initiatives, spaces, galleries and artist groups from the Chicago metropolitan area. Held April 23-24, 2011 at The Geolofts, 3636 S. Iron Street, Chicago and organized by Version 11 Festival, Threewalls, Roots and Culture and the Public Media Institute, the MDW Fair aims to highlight the “diversity, strength and vision of the people/places making it happen in the art ecology of our region” and is “a manifestation of the collective spirit behind the region’s most innovative visual cultural organizers, focusing on the breadth of work done here by artists and arts-facilitators alike.” The fair features for-profit, 501(c)3, and commercial and unincorporated galleries, independent curatorial projects and publishers and media groups in over 25,000 square feet of exhibition space that includes a 8,000 square foot sculpture garden with work by local artists.

Full press release below:

San Francisco, CA March 31, 2011 – AOL Inc. [NYSE: AOL] today announced that it has agreed to acquire BadatSports.com, one of the nations leading Contemporary Fine Art & Culture commentary/interview programs based out of Chicago, IL. Bad at Sports is well known throught the world for its fresh take on the current Fine Art scene and will make a strong cornerstone to the growing AOL Culture Network while retaining their editorial independence and unique voice that has proven so successful over the years. Further bolstering AOL’s position as one of the world’s leading providers of high-quality & timely commentary and insight into everything from technology & politics to art & culture.

Founded by Duncan MacKenzie and Richard Holland, Bad at Sports which has operated on a minimal budget and office of dedicated staff has over 5 years grown into a site that reaches millions around the world and has archived over 300 hours of one on one interviews with some of the art worlds most notable up in coming art creators, curators, historians, educators, business insiders and collectors.

AOL’s Editor in Chief Arianna Huffington singled this out as one of the main reasons Bad at Sports was one of the first aqqusitions under her direction. “The work that Holland & MacKenzie and everyone at Bad at Sports has done over the years is close to amazing and shows a level of care and dedication that you need to succeed in the long term in both the publication business and Art/Culture world and made bringing them into the larger portfolio an obvious decision.” she said.

“Engagement with thought leaders, tread setters and those that create the culture of tomarrow is as important to AOL’s growth as is the engagement of our established audience and having spoken with Operations Manager Christopher Hudgens at length about the ideas he had for the role Bad at Sports in expanding the art & culture division of AOL under the supportive hand of our new Editor in Chief will only continue to show AOL’s commitment to quality and a greater conversation on the internet. I look forward to what they can produce with the full support and resources of AOL behind them.” said David Eun, President of AOL Media and Studios.

This acquisition will further AOL’s strategy to become the global leader in sourcing, creating, producing and delivering high-quality, trusted, original content to consumers. Bad at Sports will remain headquartered in Chicago,IL, as a wholly owned AOL unit. Deal terms were not disclosed.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains “forward-looking” statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 regarding business strategies, market potential, future financial and operational performance and other matters. Such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the anticipated benefits of the transaction and other statements identified by words such as “may,” “will,” “intend,” “should,” “expect” or similar expressions. These statements are based on management’s current expectations and beliefs, and are subject to uncertainty and changes in circumstances, including, but not limited to, the satisfaction of the closing conditions to the transaction and the parties’ performance of their obligations under the agreements; changes in our plans, strategies and intentions; the competitiveness and quality of our products and services; our ability to retain, hire and develop key employees; and the intensity of competition. Any forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future performance and actual results may vary materially from those expressed or implied by the statements herein, due to changes in economic, business, competitive, technological, strategic and/or regulatory factors, as well as factors affecting AOL’s operations and businesses. More detailed information about these factors as they relate to AOL may be found in the section entitled “Risk Factors” in AOL’s Annual Report on Form 10-K, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. AOL is under no obligation to, and expressly disclaims any obligation to, update or alter the forward-looking statements contained in this press release, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

About AOL

AOL Inc. (NYSE:AOL) is a leading global Web services company with an extensive suite of brands and offerings and a substantial worldwide audience. AOL’s business spans online content, products and services that the company offers to consumers, publishers and advertisers. AOL is focused on attracting and engaging consumers and providing valuable online advertising services on both AOL’s owned and operated properties and third-party websites. In addition, AOL operates one of the largest Internet subscription access services in the United States, which serves as a valuable distribution channel for AOL’s consumer offerings.

About Bad at Sports

Bad at Sports located at badatsports.com and based in Chicago, IL is one of the worlds leading contemporary fine art commentary/60 minute art interview programs. Founded in 2005 as a podcast by co-hosts Duncan MacKenzie and Richard Holland, Bad at Sports has grown into a website that is read and listened to by people  in every major metropolitan city around the globe. With over 300 60 minute episodes with leading art world over a thousand posts Bad at Sports has and continues to document the Art world from within with a unique and valuable position of insight.

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Update

Art Practical releases a more up to date statement read here