Joni Mitchell Gets U.S. Citizenship, Debuts Political Art Book — SkimNews
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- Joni Mitchell obtained dual U.S. and Canadian citizenship on Tuesday, 62 years after moving to the States, telling Rolling Stone she did it so she could vote: "I'm a proud Canerican like Neil Young."
- Neil Young, Mitchell's longtime pal, became a U.S. citizen in 2020 — 54 years after illegally crossing the border in a Pontiac hearse.
- NEWS, Mitchell's collection of 23 paintings tackling the 24-hour news cycle, will be released Nov. 4 — three days before her 83rd birthday — conceived, executed, and designed entirely by the artist.
- The standard edition plus 500 hand-numbered and signed copies will be sold via Mitchell's website and Julien's Publishing, with preorders opening Oct. 15 at 10 a.m. ET.
- Julien's auction of book numbers 1-10 (Oct. 15-29) directs all proceeds to the ACLU, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Save the Children, and ASPCA.
- The original NEWS paintings will be on display at the L.A. Louver gallery in Venice, California, on Oct. 29 and 30.
Why it matters: Mitchell, an artist who says she retired from music to pursue painting, casts NEWS as her first major political art statement since a post-9/11 Bush-era series — explicitly invoking Picasso's "Guernica" and Chaplin's "The Great Dictator." Formalizing citizenship after 62 years gives Mitchell a vote she has never cast, while the Nov. 4 release ties her commercial debut to four major charities.
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