Will Lie For Science

A LASER talk by Igor Vamos / aka Mike Bonanno, founder of The Yes Men, the culture jamming activist whose work is described as “The Business Week version of Punk’d.” (Times Out New York).

May 3, 2019, 7 pm

LASER Santa Fe at Santa Fe Art Institute -

1600 St Michaels Dr, Santa Fe, NM 87505

REGISTRATION BEGINS March 27, 2019.

Seating limited. Doors open at 6:30 pm.

Do you feel crippled by your relationship to truth? Do you suffer from the agony of repeatable results, the disconnect between facts and persuasion? Do you feel the vectors of capital squeezing your interest into commerce that lies outside the public interest? Do you feel powerless despite having a greater than average understanding of the natural world? Do you feel a disconnect between what you know and how it affects policy? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you may be a scientist, and we may be able to help. This lecture and discussion will explore science, arts, and activism, with an eye towards solving our mutual problems.

"...the Jonathan Swift of the Jackass Generation.”

Naomi Klein



Igor Vamos aka Mike Bonanno of The Yes Men

Igor Vamos is an artist whose media spectacles get attention for social and environmental causes. He is a founding member of The Yes Men, a comic duo who infiltrate the world of big business to pull off jaw-dropping pranks that target the world's biggest corporate criminals. The antics of The Yes Men have been seen worldwide in three award-winning feature films that prompted author Naomi Klein to call them "the Jonathan Swift of the Jackass Generation.” He is also a professor of Art and Technology at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and has received many awards over the years including a Guggenheim Fellowship, The Alpert Award, and The Annenberg Award for Art and Social Change.

The Yes Men films

The Yes Men (2003)

About the early culture jamming exploits of The Yes Men.

wikipedia

Impersonating spokespeople for the WTO, The Yes Men, Mike Bonanno (Igor Vamos) and Andy Bichlbaum (Jacques Servin) lampoon the WTO and other organizations in front of live audiences of business people, the press, and students with elaborately developed ruses and outrageous announcements. Described as "subversive and diabolically funny" by Rolling Stone Magazine and "Has to be seen to be believed. Thumbs up!" by Roger Ebert.

The Yes Men Fix The World (2009)

The infamous Yes Men activists return to take on the likes of Dow Chemical, Exxon Mobil, Halliburton and HUD. The US Chamber of Commerce sued the film, so it has special distribution via bittorrent. Described as "The Business Week version of Punk'd" by Time Out New York, and "Outrageously entertaining" by New York Magazine.


This film is harder to find online. We've included a link to a YouTube video below.

Follow this link to YouTube to find links to download this film and more information.


The Yes Men Are Revolting (2014)

This documentary by Laura Nix follows The Yes Men as they go after corporations and organizations that deny climate change. Described an "entertaining mix of agitprop, pranksterism and autobiography" by Variety, it was the official selection of both the Toronto International Film Festival and the International Filmfestspiele Berlin. It was also the Closing Night Film at Doc NYC.

Two of the films are available at various corporate overlords online.