In The Devil's Dictionary, an assassination-by-satire on duplicitous political argot published by Ambrose Bierce in 1911, peace is defined as "a period of cheating between two periods of fighting." Nearly a century onward, the same sense of  integrity that compelled Bierce's dry pen also inspires "No Soul for Sale: A Festival of Independents," a program created by X Initiative to celebrate and advocate for not-for-profit independent arts organizations.

When first asked to do a video interview with Art in America for "No Soul For Sale: A Festival of Independents," a four-day celebration of independent collectives opening this evening at the X Initiative's Chelsea space, K48 founder Scott Hug agreed with the friendly caveat that the other contributors to the forthcoming issue of the magazine join him in front of the camera.

The Iranian-born artist talks about her first feature film, Women Without Men, and the challenging negotiations it embodies: between fine art and commercial cinema, East and West, metaphor and political reality. Over the last 12 years Shirin Neshat (b. 1957) has produced a series of lyrical video installations that touch on such issues as gender politics, cultural self-definition and the authority of religion. Drawing on the artist’s experiences as a Middle Eastern émigré as well as more universal themes of identity, desire and social isolation, these works have garnered many honors, including, in 1999, a Venice Biennale International Golden Lion prize.

Known for technophilic representations of biological functions. Delvoye here talks about the 33-foot-high, pseudo-Gothic tower he's made to crown the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice. He'd like the ultimate version to be four times as tall.

An artist of manifold gifts and a deeply troubled soul, Unica Zürn was associated with the Parisian Surrealists, by whom she was largely eclipsed. A current show brings her work to light.