CURA. #45 2025 - Blackout

Blackout is a glitch, a moment of rupture, riot, and rebellion; a cognitive tilt that disrupts the network of understanding—the very possibility of connection, communication, and control.

Blackout is an anomaly in the system: a suspended time, a crack that can signal madness, or freedom. It is a failure—technical, structural, mental. A rupture, an omission, an interruption. It is both silence and noise. It is ghosting, dissent, shock, ubiquity. A setback in the acceleration of history. A riotous, anti-systemic, revolutionary state.

Spanning over 400 pages, with a refreshed logo and graphic identity, designed by Dan Solbach, CURA. 45 Blackout presents two covers featuring portraits by Nadya Tolokonnikova and R.I.P. Germain, photographed by Tsarina Merrin, and accompanied by a third, all-black limited edition “blackout” cover. Texts by Cat Kron and Jennifer Piejko accompany Nadya Tolokonnikova’s feature, while Josephine Pryde writes about R.I.P. Germain. A major visual section features newly commissioned projects by Petra Cortright, Sophia Al-Maria, R.I.P. Germain, Aleksandra Domanović (introduced by Brian Droitcour), alongside a gif-novel by Dennis Cooper that collects and assembles some of the internet’s most unsettling images.

Furthermore, Philippa Snow explores the theme of violence in contemporary art, with an essay featuring the works of Marina Abramović, Florentina Holzinger, and Jordan Wolfson; Charlie Fox engages in a compelling conversation with Banks Violette, delving into the artist’s career, a long and sinister romance with darkness in all its forms; the new Artist+Artist section pairs artists in dialogue, comparing their work, thoughts, and inspirations through their own words. This edition features dialogues between Simon Denny and Hito Steyerl, and Cory Arcangel with Maya Man. A special project by Diego Marcon disrupts the editorial rhythm, introducing a suspended, parallel narrative that runs through the pages of the issue. A series of critical essays highlight the work of Jacolby Satterwhite introduced by Andrew Durbin, Danielle Brathwaite-Shirley by Giulia Colletti, and LuYang by Sophie Guo. Florentina Holzinger, one of the most disrupting artists of her generation, is introduced by the words of Francesca Gavin. The New Now section features emerging voices in contemporary art, through the work of Candela Capitán introduced by Günseli Yalcinkaya, Steffani Jemison by Camille Bacon, and Charmaine Poh by Jiaying Sim.