Saturday, May 3, 2008
Friday, May 2, 2008
Congratulations and thanks to everyone that helped make this show a reality. Can I just tell all of you how impressed I am with everyone's contributions and thankful I am that you have welcomed me in participating in this experience. The learning and resources shared by this "gang of nine" in the past 4 weeks has surpassed what I had ever imagined and is only the beginning.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Meeting Minutes 04/13/08
SPARKPLUG 4/14/08 minutes (taken by Karen) There were 12 people in attendance : Jenny, Kathryn, Mike, Mark, Lisa, Deborah, Peter, Lea-Ann, Philip, B, Kofi & Karen
Agenda items were covered as follows AND PLEASE FEEL FREE TO RESPOND WITH QUESTIONS, CORRECTIONS OR CLARIFICATIONS –WE COVERED A LOT!:
1-introducing
We had one new prospective member attend the meeting. His name is Kofi Dofour and we will plan of having him do a short presentation of his work at the next meeting. In the meantime his website is http://kofidofour.com/splash.html
2-Slides “E32”
Lisa was kind enough to volunteer to take everyone’s images and burn them to a CD so Lea-Ann could take them home and work with ordering them – at this point we did not put a dead line on this.
• Lea-Ann will put them in a power point so we can all take a look at the presentation.
• Once the presentation is OK’ed Lisa will work on sizing the chosen images (and syncing the music choice),
• Karen or Kathryn need to go back through their emails and get the submission format requirements for resolution to E32 and send to Lisa,
• When we have uploaded to E32 we let Kathryn know so she can let her contact Linda Griggs know,
3-Sparkplug the exhibition
Lea-Ann will be contacting people in this first exhibition (Jenny, Kathryn, Mike, Mark, Lisa, Deborah, Peter, & Karen) to schedule studio visits to get a dialogue going about what work we should be bring for installation on 4/30. She will post these times as open studio times if others are available at the set times and want to participate in the studio visit.
Peter will work on formatting resumes, etc. for a gallery binder for the show. Please send him a resume and statement in Word ASAP so he has time to mock up everyone’s resumes in a similar format.
Karen will work on getting an email phone list distributed for this show so we can contact each other directly rather than through the group in the next two weeks. (You should have received this already) She should also be able to send you a pdf/html of the show postcard for you to send to your individual email lists between the 16th & 18th. Hard-copy postcards should be available the week of the 23rd. Stay tuned for more details on dealing getting hard-copy cards.
Once you have spoken with Lea-Ann make sure that you have the following information for all the works she has selected/suggested you bring to installation
Your name,
title of work
Medium
Dimensions h x w x d
Year
For all future projects – make sure you provide this information with any images that are collected!!!!
critical details as discussed:
Submit resume/statement for binder Sun., April 20
Drop off work and hang the show Wed./Thurs., April 30 & May 1
Opening Event - Fri., May 2
Learn-a-Palooza/Meet the Artists Sat., May 10 – 2 PM to 5:30 PM
Take down show remove work from gallery Sun., May 11 (After 7 PM)
Mon., May 12 (730 PM & after-this is also our next meeting day)
3-Learn-a-Palooza
link to last years Learn-A-Palooza http://www.learnapaloozadc.com/
It was agreed that the format of offering the three workshops we are brainstorming as 25 minutes classes in the following order would be preferable:
230 PM – materials show & tell
330 PM – stretching a canvas
430 PM - Now you want to frame it
If we get a good turn out this will leave us plenty of time to answer questions so we don’t run over out time limit. Right now we can still use the theater for the workshops. The gallery opens at 2 PM.
Lisa and Kathryn can help with set and break down and then assist in the gallery if people come to the meet the artist (though we need to clarify times for them as I don’t think either of them can stay the whole time). We need to be cleaned up and out of the theater by 5:30 PM.
Karen will work on getting the class descriptions posted to learn-a-palooza and the DCAC listserv and approach Utrecht for material donation. Hope to have an answer about that by the end of the month – if not we will need to get stretcher bars to fit in Mark’s 11” x 14” frame.
3-goals for goals
Cuisine des Artistes – is DCAC’s major fundraiser. This year it is on Wed., May 28.
There is more information on the dcartscenter.org website about how to participate. If volunteering artists services will not fit into your schedule please see if you can volunteer in some other way for the event: like help set-up, clean-up, sell memberships. Volunteers are critical to making this a success. Passing on information to people that might attend is also really important to expanding our membership.
3-ideas about ideas-in no particular order
a-Suggestions for the short term to get it ready for the show on the May 2: Post the html of the show card and details and make it link to the blog ASAP before the postcards go out.
Not ASAP but sooner rather than later - we talked about what we needed to add to the Sparkplug page of the DCAC website to more accurately reflect how far we’ve come. So far the belief is that focus, themes and discussions will change and ‘prospectives’ should feel comfortable with working in the collective for the duration of their interest (I think the idea here is along the lines that commitment is only required for ‘projects’ not for participation-does that sound right?)
Participation in the monthly meetings was critical to motivating projects and the artists & curators that were participating so far would welcome anyone that makes the effort to ‘be there’. It is this sharing of experience and idea and being able to lend you individual skills at what you are good that is making this venture collective and a much greater motivating factor than just being a ‘member of a group’.
In general making the blog public was Ok with everyone. Adding a list of shows or some kind of group resume to the blog was suggested that lists the projects we complete. Karen will work from her notes from this discussion to draft something for dcartscenter.org/sparkplug. Be on the lookout to respond with comments to the ‘updated description’ that she will send out on the Google group.
b-curatorial development. Lea-Ann noted that at the first meeting at Bedrock Billiards A LOT of curators showed up and that perhaps we needed to comb through the list and work at re inviting these people to try coming to the set meeting times and get involved in the dialogue. DO we need to also try to develop in the area of writing too?
c-In the future if we want new people to come – we may have to strike doing so much administrative business at the monthly meeting and set secondary meeting times or REALLY use the web & phone ….
4~ACTION!
-Make sure you get in touch and set up your studio visit with Lea-Ann
-Make sure your schedule is clear AT NIGHT in the 30th & 1st so you can help out with the installation – keep both days free in case we can’t hang everything Lea-Ann chooses you will need to get it out of the space on Thursday nite
-Make sure that you come to DCAC with all the price list info-title dimension, etc….
-make sure that you can or arrange for someone else to pick up your works for De0install on May 11 or 12 (we will do our regular meet up on the 12th, 730 PM)
5-Agenda Items for next meeting
The next meeting is planned for Monday, May 12 at 7:30 PM
at the DCAC gallery
~De-Install works from the show that ends on May 11
~Kofi Dofour will present
~hopefully see a draft of the E32 presentation in power point
~plan summer meetings
~ALWAYS ALWAYS feel free to email me anything else you want to talk about or think needs to be added to the next meetings agenda-AND ANYTHING I MAY HAVE FORGOT!
Agenda items were covered as follows AND PLEASE FEEL FREE TO RESPOND WITH QUESTIONS, CORRECTIONS OR CLARIFICATIONS –WE COVERED A LOT!:
1-introducing
We had one new prospective member attend the meeting. His name is Kofi Dofour and we will plan of having him do a short presentation of his work at the next meeting. In the meantime his website is http://kofidofour.com/splash.html
2-Slides “E32”
Lisa was kind enough to volunteer to take everyone’s images and burn them to a CD so Lea-Ann could take them home and work with ordering them – at this point we did not put a dead line on this.
• Lea-Ann will put them in a power point so we can all take a look at the presentation.
• Once the presentation is OK’ed Lisa will work on sizing the chosen images (and syncing the music choice),
• Karen or Kathryn need to go back through their emails and get the submission format requirements for resolution to E32 and send to Lisa,
• When we have uploaded to E32 we let Kathryn know so she can let her contact Linda Griggs know,
3-Sparkplug the exhibition
Lea-Ann will be contacting people in this first exhibition (Jenny, Kathryn, Mike, Mark, Lisa, Deborah, Peter, & Karen) to schedule studio visits to get a dialogue going about what work we should be bring for installation on 4/30. She will post these times as open studio times if others are available at the set times and want to participate in the studio visit.
Peter will work on formatting resumes, etc. for a gallery binder for the show. Please send him a resume and statement in Word ASAP so he has time to mock up everyone’s resumes in a similar format.
Karen will work on getting an email phone list distributed for this show so we can contact each other directly rather than through the group in the next two weeks. (You should have received this already) She should also be able to send you a pdf/html of the show postcard for you to send to your individual email lists between the 16th & 18th. Hard-copy postcards should be available the week of the 23rd. Stay tuned for more details on dealing getting hard-copy cards.
Once you have spoken with Lea-Ann make sure that you have the following information for all the works she has selected/suggested you bring to installation
Your name,
title of work
Medium
Dimensions h x w x d
Year
For all future projects – make sure you provide this information with any images that are collected!!!!
critical details as discussed:
Submit resume/statement for binder Sun., April 20
Drop off work and hang the show Wed./Thurs., April 30 & May 1
Opening Event - Fri., May 2
Learn-a-Palooza/Meet the Artists Sat., May 10 – 2 PM to 5:30 PM
Take down show remove work from gallery Sun., May 11 (After 7 PM)
Mon., May 12 (730 PM & after-this is also our next meeting day)
3-Learn-a-Palooza
link to last years Learn-A-Palooza http://www.learnapaloozadc.com/
It was agreed that the format of offering the three workshops we are brainstorming as 25 minutes classes in the following order would be preferable:
230 PM – materials show & tell
330 PM – stretching a canvas
430 PM - Now you want to frame it
If we get a good turn out this will leave us plenty of time to answer questions so we don’t run over out time limit. Right now we can still use the theater for the workshops. The gallery opens at 2 PM.
Lisa and Kathryn can help with set and break down and then assist in the gallery if people come to the meet the artist (though we need to clarify times for them as I don’t think either of them can stay the whole time). We need to be cleaned up and out of the theater by 5:30 PM.
Karen will work on getting the class descriptions posted to learn-a-palooza and the DCAC listserv and approach Utrecht for material donation. Hope to have an answer about that by the end of the month – if not we will need to get stretcher bars to fit in Mark’s 11” x 14” frame.
3-goals for goals
Cuisine des Artistes – is DCAC’s major fundraiser. This year it is on Wed., May 28.
There is more information on the dcartscenter.org website about how to participate. If volunteering artists services will not fit into your schedule please see if you can volunteer in some other way for the event: like help set-up, clean-up, sell memberships. Volunteers are critical to making this a success. Passing on information to people that might attend is also really important to expanding our membership.
3-ideas about ideas-in no particular order
a-Suggestions for the short term to get it ready for the show on the May 2: Post the html of the show card and details and make it link to the blog ASAP before the postcards go out.
Not ASAP but sooner rather than later - we talked about what we needed to add to the Sparkplug page of the DCAC website to more accurately reflect how far we’ve come. So far the belief is that focus, themes and discussions will change and ‘prospectives’ should feel comfortable with working in the collective for the duration of their interest (I think the idea here is along the lines that commitment is only required for ‘projects’ not for participation-does that sound right?)
Participation in the monthly meetings was critical to motivating projects and the artists & curators that were participating so far would welcome anyone that makes the effort to ‘be there’. It is this sharing of experience and idea and being able to lend you individual skills at what you are good that is making this venture collective and a much greater motivating factor than just being a ‘member of a group’.
In general making the blog public was Ok with everyone. Adding a list of shows or some kind of group resume to the blog was suggested that lists the projects we complete. Karen will work from her notes from this discussion to draft something for dcartscenter.org/sparkplug. Be on the lookout to respond with comments to the ‘updated description’ that she will send out on the Google group.
b-curatorial development. Lea-Ann noted that at the first meeting at Bedrock Billiards A LOT of curators showed up and that perhaps we needed to comb through the list and work at re inviting these people to try coming to the set meeting times and get involved in the dialogue. DO we need to also try to develop in the area of writing too?
c-In the future if we want new people to come – we may have to strike doing so much administrative business at the monthly meeting and set secondary meeting times or REALLY use the web & phone ….
4~ACTION!
-Make sure you get in touch and set up your studio visit with Lea-Ann
-Make sure your schedule is clear AT NIGHT in the 30th & 1st so you can help out with the installation – keep both days free in case we can’t hang everything Lea-Ann chooses you will need to get it out of the space on Thursday nite
-Make sure that you come to DCAC with all the price list info-title dimension, etc….
-make sure that you can or arrange for someone else to pick up your works for De0install on May 11 or 12 (we will do our regular meet up on the 12th, 730 PM)
5-Agenda Items for next meeting
The next meeting is planned for Monday, May 12 at 7:30 PM
at the DCAC gallery
~De-Install works from the show that ends on May 11
~Kofi Dofour will present
~hopefully see a draft of the E32 presentation in power point
~plan summer meetings
~ALWAYS ALWAYS feel free to email me anything else you want to talk about or think needs to be added to the next meetings agenda-AND ANYTHING I MAY HAVE FORGOT!
Saturday, April 5, 2008
Next Meeting Sunday April 13, 700 PM at DCAC
Hello - Next meeting is planned for Sunday April 13, 700 PM at DCAC, probably in the gallery.
Agenda
1-Get to work loading up people’s chosen work and formatting the presentation for E32. If Lea-Ann has not already contacted you she hopes to get to everyone by Wed., 4/9. Bring the absolutely highest resolution of the image(s) chosen; and hopefully we will be able to work out the sizing of our images for E32 as a group.
2-Talk about what is underpinning the choices of the photos in order that we all have something to bring to the show installation at DCAC on Wed., 4/30. As mentioned earlier it is likely that some of us may not have the exact works available that get chosen for E32 because the work is sold or destroyed or not printed or what-have-you.…
To recall last meetings discussion there are two major tangents that I remember: 1- entropy, 2-place.
en·tro·py, noun
1. a measure of the disorder that exists in a system
2. a measure of the energy in a system or process that is unavailable to do work. Symbol S
3. a measure of the random errors (noise) occurring in the transmission of signals, and from this a measure of the efficiency of transmission systems
Encarta® World English Dictionary © 1999 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Developed for Microsoft by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.
After looking at the definition of entropy, I think that although our discussion of ‘place’ focused on our experience of place as “Washington, DC” I think we all may start thinking about what guides the choice of works we can bring to install as:
1-entropy 2-place 3-systems.
These three words seem like more than enough to get people started.
3- thanks to Peter for volunteering to format a binder for this show – in the future we will want to make sure we keep this up as an electronic file available at DCAC too. I sent out a deadline of 4/25 to have information (A resume and a one to two paragraph statement) to Peter by, but as always the sooner the better. This is Peter's email: pgordon78@yahoo.com
4-Discuss Learn-A-Palooza. We communicated our short meeting about this event and the ideas for the three classes in another post. We will want to nail down the details like times and schedules at this meeting.
In order to post the classes on the Learn-a-Palooza website, have printed info available at the May 2 opening and get the event of the DCAC listserv I need the blurbs as soon as possible (definitely no later that April 15 for the blurbs-if I can get them before the meeting, even better) and canvas stretching and framing sizes (ASAP).
I’m working on developing a materials list to try and get donations from Utrecht but that is not a done deal yet– so if you have something in your studio that you are not going to use and want to bring it on 4/13 to donate, give me a heads up in an email about what it is. karenjoan@gmail.com
3-ideas about ideas (which I seem to be monopolizing this month)
a-I have some updates concerning the past month or so at DCAC. What brought on my card mock up that is posted on the blog and DCAC’s Cuisine des Artistes upcoming fundraiser and how you can help.
b-my experience at the conference in NYC and some ideas or opportunities that could be pursued in the future,
c-there are at least 3 new people that have requested to join the list serve, have asked me questions and are looking at our posts. I hope to see them at the upcoming meeting.
d-as this first exhibit gets off the ground, we by default will begin to form a particular public identity for DCAC’s Sparkplug. I urge you to look at the Sparkplug tab on the DC Arts Center website http://dcartscenter.org/sparkplug.htm and think about the specific aspects of the experience so far, what we have contributed to this discussion and where we want to go.
4-goals for goals
a-discuss curatorial development, where do we find more idea people to help craft shows and statements, etc. as well as give fresh perspectives from non-artists perspective and how do we entice them to like us?
Email me any additions you'd like to see on the agenda, any questions or corrections. karenjoan@gmail.com
Agenda
1-Get to work loading up people’s chosen work and formatting the presentation for E32. If Lea-Ann has not already contacted you she hopes to get to everyone by Wed., 4/9. Bring the absolutely highest resolution of the image(s) chosen; and hopefully we will be able to work out the sizing of our images for E32 as a group.
2-Talk about what is underpinning the choices of the photos in order that we all have something to bring to the show installation at DCAC on Wed., 4/30. As mentioned earlier it is likely that some of us may not have the exact works available that get chosen for E32 because the work is sold or destroyed or not printed or what-have-you.…
To recall last meetings discussion there are two major tangents that I remember: 1- entropy, 2-place.
en·tro·py, noun
1. a measure of the disorder that exists in a system
2. a measure of the energy in a system or process that is unavailable to do work. Symbol S
3. a measure of the random errors (noise) occurring in the transmission of signals, and from this a measure of the efficiency of transmission systems
Encarta® World English Dictionary © 1999 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Developed for Microsoft by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.
After looking at the definition of entropy, I think that although our discussion of ‘place’ focused on our experience of place as “Washington, DC” I think we all may start thinking about what guides the choice of works we can bring to install as:
1-entropy 2-place 3-systems.
These three words seem like more than enough to get people started.
3- thanks to Peter for volunteering to format a binder for this show – in the future we will want to make sure we keep this up as an electronic file available at DCAC too. I sent out a deadline of 4/25 to have information (A resume and a one to two paragraph statement) to Peter by, but as always the sooner the better. This is Peter's email: pgordon78@yahoo.com
4-Discuss Learn-A-Palooza. We communicated our short meeting about this event and the ideas for the three classes in another post. We will want to nail down the details like times and schedules at this meeting.
In order to post the classes on the Learn-a-Palooza website, have printed info available at the May 2 opening and get the event of the DCAC listserv I need the blurbs as soon as possible (definitely no later that April 15 for the blurbs-if I can get them before the meeting, even better) and canvas stretching and framing sizes (ASAP).
I’m working on developing a materials list to try and get donations from Utrecht but that is not a done deal yet– so if you have something in your studio that you are not going to use and want to bring it on 4/13 to donate, give me a heads up in an email about what it is. karenjoan@gmail.com
3-ideas about ideas (which I seem to be monopolizing this month)
a-I have some updates concerning the past month or so at DCAC. What brought on my card mock up that is posted on the blog and DCAC’s Cuisine des Artistes upcoming fundraiser and how you can help.
b-my experience at the conference in NYC and some ideas or opportunities that could be pursued in the future,
c-there are at least 3 new people that have requested to join the list serve, have asked me questions and are looking at our posts. I hope to see them at the upcoming meeting.
d-as this first exhibit gets off the ground, we by default will begin to form a particular public identity for DCAC’s Sparkplug. I urge you to look at the Sparkplug tab on the DC Arts Center website http://dcartscenter.org/sparkplug.htm and think about the specific aspects of the experience so far, what we have contributed to this discussion and where we want to go.
4-goals for goals
a-discuss curatorial development, where do we find more idea people to help craft shows and statements, etc. as well as give fresh perspectives from non-artists perspective and how do we entice them to like us?
Email me any additions you'd like to see on the agenda, any questions or corrections. karenjoan@gmail.com
Saturday, March 22, 2008
LEFT - mock up for possible invite
HERE IS THE TIMETABLE FOR THE SHOW WE COMMITTED TO AT DCAC -
Provide information for press releas/binder: April 13
Installation: April 30 and May 1, 2008
Opening Reception: May 2, 2008
Dismantle exhibition: Sunday, May 11 (evening -while the gallery is closed) or Monday May 12, 2008
Friday, March 14, 2008
Hello - for discusions sake I am posting my first short semester paper, seeing it's about
~the relationship between art & school (relevent to Learnapalooza),
~I kind of take a stab at DC, which is kind of unlike me - but after a decade of not leaving the city very often I am becoming more and more convinced that we need a non-federal, relatively independant CONTEMPORARY MUSEUM in this city (which is relevent to maintaining and growing the arts and artists in the city)
~uses the New Museum's program "Night School" to introduce this facinating guy Anton Vidokle, I am most impressed that I have found THREE collections of essays that he has participated in published online as PDFs - and think in the future that even if we cannot pay to create 'catalogs' for whatever we do - we should definately consider using this online psoting of pdf books method - especially as we have some design people with some crazy skills that could make an online pdf look really hot and print really nice.
recess is over...Karen
Sleepless in DC because of “Night School”
Sleepless not because of the eleventh hour push to get assignments done or worrying about grades, but sleepless thinking about a program going on for the entire year of 2008 at the New Museum in New York City; called “Night School”, the program is commissioned from artist Anton Vidokle by the New Museum and the core offering to the public is four days of seminars at the end of every month which are run and moderated by more than a dozen artists, writers and contemporary thinkers. Much more than just a program of public seminars, the New Museum’s literature relates and expands on the format of a “temporary school” where museums, organizing contributors, twenty-five hand selected core students and the interested public facilitate extended critical engagement in contemporary art, institutions and the role of the artist ("Night School").
The yearlong “Night School” falls under and alongside the auspices of other new programs that coincide with the opening of the New Museum’s brand new building. The “Night School” organizers are counted as ‘fellows’ of a new program called Museum as Hub which will partner four international art organizations with the New Museum’s. All will implement programming in their locale on the agreed topic of ‘neighborhood’, cross planning and hosting the other institutions literally and virtually on their websites, and in exhibition spaces and education centers. Museum as Hub is described as a “new model for curatorial practice and institutional collaboration…to enhance our understanding of contemporary art around the world” ("Night School"). This interconnected tangle of programs and exhibitions seems cleverly formulated to perhaps for the first time cut into the maze of bias, nepotism, leading experts and arbiters of taste to rediscover what discovering art is: a very real desire to ‘get it’.
In Vidokle’s transcribed opening remarks for “Night School” he frighteningly states “while it is still possible to produce critical art object, there seems to be no public out there to complete its transformative function, possibly rendering the very premise behind contemporary art practice effectively futile” (2). He describes the subtle and complex historic difference between the socially engaged public of the past and the one of the present that seems to be degenerating into an audience that does not seek a role beyond “being consumers of leisure and spectacle” ("Vidokle" 2). This is a clear observation that should give pause to thought for all, not just artists.
What seems to be fundamental to the understanding of “Night School” as a commissioned work of art is that it is a work that finally gets around to exploring what has always been crucial to appreciating art, the process of engagement. Far from blockbuster exhibitions that have brought a whole world of paintings to billboards and covered city buses in advertising ‘skins’, “Night School” is designed to “aggressively solicit audiences…through advertisement” of its “content” not it’s “objects” ("Vidokle" 3). Like the adage “a workman is only as good as his tools” this far-reaching program does not shy away from the part of the system that works, but seeks to uproot the insidious and pervasive apathy of thought that approaches the practice of art and trappings of culture as just another commodity to be pigeonholed or peddled to niche markets.
Vidokle describes the product of “Night School” as “framed by itself” and while assisted by the museum the program does not totally rely on the institution to “display it” ("Vidokle" 4). It is exactly because of inspired statements like this that I am simultaneously loathing and loving the internet at the moment for sending me the enchanted list-serve email that made me aware of this program happening in a city 350 miles away from me in the first place. Lauded for the accessibility of its national museums, that are admission free and open every day but Christmas, the institutions in Washington, DC have historically served as window for a national audience to look upon this countries objects of significance. The Smithsonian Institution and other national galleries have likewise existed as a “frame for itself” as the nation’s cabinet of wonders for spectacle and for acceptable interpretation. But from my perspective as a full-time colonial citizen of the United States capital city circa 2008 it seems that in DC, as in Vidokle’s description of his project for Manifesta 6 “the situation demands not commentary, but involvement and production”("Exhibition" 2). The desire to be a part of a dialogue and the anticipation of carrying away ideas, rather than note cards and coffee mugs, has already taken a strong hold on me. Unlike the ambivalence I feel for the entreaty of my peers that I ‘really must go to Miami one of these years’- I feel drawn to “Night School” in an almost supernatural way; not unlike Vidokle describes his reading of George Maciunas unrealized vision for the New Marlborough Centre for the Arts that that Vidokle says “is a proposal that hinges on the notion of ‘possibility’, saying far less about what needs to be done than about what can be done” ("Exhibition" 3). And on that note – there is something in this man Vidokle’s single-minded repetition that there must be a way found for art, lasting great art, that can be made available to the public independent of the institutions that the leading society is holding onto with a death grip. As individuals, we have become too comfortable with our insular tendencies. Unlike the spirit of revolution and manifesto driven by desires to break from totalitarianism and capitalism that are now reflected upon as the impetus for the ‘true’ art of the 20th century, the 21st century has yet to name its motivation. I vote for thoughtful collaboration, access to information and equitable education and what better place to start than art.
Works Cited
Night School. 2008. New Museum. New York. 5 Mar 2008. .
Vidokle, Anton. “Exhibition as School in a Divided City.” Reading Room,
unitednationsplaza. 12 Mar. 2008.
---. “Opening Remarks. Anton Vidokle. Night School, January 31,
2008.” 31 Jan 2008. 12 Mar. 2008.
Karen Joan Topping
Independent Writing Project I
P. Falzone
Washington, DC
3/14/08
~the relationship between art & school (relevent to Learnapalooza),
~I kind of take a stab at DC, which is kind of unlike me - but after a decade of not leaving the city very often I am becoming more and more convinced that we need a non-federal, relatively independant CONTEMPORARY MUSEUM in this city (which is relevent to maintaining and growing the arts and artists in the city)
~uses the New Museum's program "Night School" to introduce this facinating guy Anton Vidokle, I am most impressed that I have found THREE collections of essays that he has participated in published online as PDFs - and think in the future that even if we cannot pay to create 'catalogs' for whatever we do - we should definately consider using this online psoting of pdf books method - especially as we have some design people with some crazy skills that could make an online pdf look really hot and print really nice.
recess is over...Karen
Sleepless in DC because of “Night School”
Sleepless not because of the eleventh hour push to get assignments done or worrying about grades, but sleepless thinking about a program going on for the entire year of 2008 at the New Museum in New York City; called “Night School”, the program is commissioned from artist Anton Vidokle by the New Museum and the core offering to the public is four days of seminars at the end of every month which are run and moderated by more than a dozen artists, writers and contemporary thinkers. Much more than just a program of public seminars, the New Museum’s literature relates and expands on the format of a “temporary school” where museums, organizing contributors, twenty-five hand selected core students and the interested public facilitate extended critical engagement in contemporary art, institutions and the role of the artist ("Night School").
The yearlong “Night School” falls under and alongside the auspices of other new programs that coincide with the opening of the New Museum’s brand new building. The “Night School” organizers are counted as ‘fellows’ of a new program called Museum as Hub which will partner four international art organizations with the New Museum’s. All will implement programming in their locale on the agreed topic of ‘neighborhood’, cross planning and hosting the other institutions literally and virtually on their websites, and in exhibition spaces and education centers. Museum as Hub is described as a “new model for curatorial practice and institutional collaboration…to enhance our understanding of contemporary art around the world” ("Night School"). This interconnected tangle of programs and exhibitions seems cleverly formulated to perhaps for the first time cut into the maze of bias, nepotism, leading experts and arbiters of taste to rediscover what discovering art is: a very real desire to ‘get it’.
In Vidokle’s transcribed opening remarks for “Night School” he frighteningly states “while it is still possible to produce critical art object, there seems to be no public out there to complete its transformative function, possibly rendering the very premise behind contemporary art practice effectively futile” (2). He describes the subtle and complex historic difference between the socially engaged public of the past and the one of the present that seems to be degenerating into an audience that does not seek a role beyond “being consumers of leisure and spectacle” ("Vidokle" 2). This is a clear observation that should give pause to thought for all, not just artists.
What seems to be fundamental to the understanding of “Night School” as a commissioned work of art is that it is a work that finally gets around to exploring what has always been crucial to appreciating art, the process of engagement. Far from blockbuster exhibitions that have brought a whole world of paintings to billboards and covered city buses in advertising ‘skins’, “Night School” is designed to “aggressively solicit audiences…through advertisement” of its “content” not it’s “objects” ("Vidokle" 3). Like the adage “a workman is only as good as his tools” this far-reaching program does not shy away from the part of the system that works, but seeks to uproot the insidious and pervasive apathy of thought that approaches the practice of art and trappings of culture as just another commodity to be pigeonholed or peddled to niche markets.
Vidokle describes the product of “Night School” as “framed by itself” and while assisted by the museum the program does not totally rely on the institution to “display it” ("Vidokle" 4). It is exactly because of inspired statements like this that I am simultaneously loathing and loving the internet at the moment for sending me the enchanted list-serve email that made me aware of this program happening in a city 350 miles away from me in the first place. Lauded for the accessibility of its national museums, that are admission free and open every day but Christmas, the institutions in Washington, DC have historically served as window for a national audience to look upon this countries objects of significance. The Smithsonian Institution and other national galleries have likewise existed as a “frame for itself” as the nation’s cabinet of wonders for spectacle and for acceptable interpretation. But from my perspective as a full-time colonial citizen of the United States capital city circa 2008 it seems that in DC, as in Vidokle’s description of his project for Manifesta 6 “the situation demands not commentary, but involvement and production”("Exhibition" 2). The desire to be a part of a dialogue and the anticipation of carrying away ideas, rather than note cards and coffee mugs, has already taken a strong hold on me. Unlike the ambivalence I feel for the entreaty of my peers that I ‘really must go to Miami one of these years’- I feel drawn to “Night School” in an almost supernatural way; not unlike Vidokle describes his reading of George Maciunas unrealized vision for the New Marlborough Centre for the Arts that that Vidokle says “is a proposal that hinges on the notion of ‘possibility’, saying far less about what needs to be done than about what can be done” ("Exhibition" 3). And on that note – there is something in this man Vidokle’s single-minded repetition that there must be a way found for art, lasting great art, that can be made available to the public independent of the institutions that the leading society is holding onto with a death grip. As individuals, we have become too comfortable with our insular tendencies. Unlike the spirit of revolution and manifesto driven by desires to break from totalitarianism and capitalism that are now reflected upon as the impetus for the ‘true’ art of the 20th century, the 21st century has yet to name its motivation. I vote for thoughtful collaboration, access to information and equitable education and what better place to start than art.
Works Cited
Night School. 2008. New Museum. New York. 5 Mar 2008.
Vidokle, Anton. “Exhibition as School in a Divided City.” Reading Room,
unitednationsplaza. 12 Mar. 2008.
---. “Opening Remarks. Anton Vidokle. Night School, January 31,
2008.” 31 Jan 2008. 12 Mar. 2008
Karen Joan Topping
Independent Writing Project I
P. Falzone
Washington, DC
3/14/08
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
SPARKPLUG 3/10/08 minutes
SPARKPLUG 3/10/08 minutes (taken by Karen) There were 9 people in attendance : Jenny, Kathryn, Mike, Mark, Lisa, Deborah, Peter, Lea Ann & Karen
Agenda items were covered as follows:
1-presentations
Everyone that came to the meeting managed to get a number of images loaded into the flickr group – We let it run as a slide show on projection as we discussed the similarities; focusing largely on Lea Ann’s observation of a commonality of “subtle entropy” in the theme, execution or process of all of the work, regardless of the style. This is the crux of how the curatorial aspect for this particular curated slide set all inclusions will come from this recently posted group of work. Lea is going to work on a “slide list” indicating which photos she is selecting and will try to have that to each of us by the beginning of next week.
Hopefully by the time she makes the decisions known to us, we will have communicated with Linda Griggs at E32 to check what technical requirements there are for the jpgs. In short though we should all plan to bring CD’s of the photos Lea selects-we will download all of them at next meeting to one computer then work on getting the presentation in whatever format it needs to be sent to E32 in. Downloading the photos at the meeting will also serve as the MASTER file for any other opportunity we may have to present this work.
2-Slides “The Show”
An unexpected opportunity to use the gallery for a Sparkplug Exhibition has arisen in May. It would only be for a two week slot, but there seemed to be a general consensus that in developing and preparing for the E32 submission we could also test out the developing theme in the gallery.
We will be hashing out the logistical and curatorial details over the coming weeks, but the critical details will not change.
Drop off work and hang the show Tues./Wed., April 29 & 30
Opening Event - Fri., May 2
Learn-a-Palooza Sat., May 10
Take down show remove work from gallery Sun., May 11 (After 7 PM)
Mon., May 12 (until 5 PM)
3-Learn-a-Palooza
Here is the link to last years Learn-A-Palooza.
http://www.learnapaloozadc.com/
I (Karen) talked more about my experience last year and the different approaches we could take to participating. Given that this event would occur during the period that we would have our work in the gallery we could schedule gallery talks or talk about Sparkplug; we could get on the schedule and look for other instructors to do art related classes and just serve as hosts, individually we can work on developing classes.
Peter’s suggestion of showing “how to stretch a canvas” was a great idea. I’ve already elaborated in an earlier email about “painting show & tell”. In my experience last year – do not underestimate your potential to teach something small or simple.
Here is last year’s organizer that will give more info on how to think about being a teacher
http://wiki.learnapaloozadc.com/index.php?title=FAQ
Last years rules of participation were as below and I am guessing they will be very similar this year:
• classes are on April 28, between 10AM and 6PM
• classes must start on the hour or half-hour
• they must be 25 or 55 min long
• they must be free and open to the public
As about 1/3 to ½ of us were engaged in other activities between now & April 1 - we will try to have a mini-brainstorming meeting just on Learn-a-Palooza for those who are interested or available to help sometime in the last week of March or first week of April – more details later.
3-goals for goals
none come to mind that are not related to the above two items
3-ideas about ideas-in no particular order
none come to mind that are not related to the above two items
Except for fact there was a lot of interesting things said relative, tangentially and in support of Lea’s bringing up tension, place and entropy as a theme. I don’t have time to put them down but think this would be a completely appropriate topic to try and capture what many of you said by going on the blog and posting about the other things we brought up when discussing the slide project.
4~ACTION!
Lea presents us with a preliminary slide list so we can all get out highest resolution images ready to bring to the meeting on CD’s or thumb drives.
Plan a mini-meet-up to see if it is of interest to develop anything for Learn-A-Palooza
5-Agenda Items for next meeting
The next meeting is planned for Sunday, April 13 at 7:00 PM
at the DCAC gallery
~bring photo files for download
~go over curatorial statement and set schedule for any extra PR that we want other than the DCAC weekly list serve news letter
~get specific commitments from people for the exhibition and Learn-a-Palooza
~Ideas about ideas
~Goals for goals
~ALWAYS ALWAYS feel free to email me anything else you want to talk about or think needs to be added to the next meetings agenda-AND ANYTHING I MAY HAVE FORGOT-I am too sleepy today!
Agenda items were covered as follows:
1-presentations
Everyone that came to the meeting managed to get a number of images loaded into the flickr group – We let it run as a slide show on projection as we discussed the similarities; focusing largely on Lea Ann’s observation of a commonality of “subtle entropy” in the theme, execution or process of all of the work, regardless of the style. This is the crux of how the curatorial aspect for this particular curated slide set all inclusions will come from this recently posted group of work. Lea is going to work on a “slide list” indicating which photos she is selecting and will try to have that to each of us by the beginning of next week.
Hopefully by the time she makes the decisions known to us, we will have communicated with Linda Griggs at E32 to check what technical requirements there are for the jpgs. In short though we should all plan to bring CD’s of the photos Lea selects-we will download all of them at next meeting to one computer then work on getting the presentation in whatever format it needs to be sent to E32 in. Downloading the photos at the meeting will also serve as the MASTER file for any other opportunity we may have to present this work.
2-Slides “The Show”
An unexpected opportunity to use the gallery for a Sparkplug Exhibition has arisen in May. It would only be for a two week slot, but there seemed to be a general consensus that in developing and preparing for the E32 submission we could also test out the developing theme in the gallery.
We will be hashing out the logistical and curatorial details over the coming weeks, but the critical details will not change.
Drop off work and hang the show Tues./Wed., April 29 & 30
Opening Event - Fri., May 2
Learn-a-Palooza Sat., May 10
Take down show remove work from gallery Sun., May 11 (After 7 PM)
Mon., May 12 (until 5 PM)
3-Learn-a-Palooza
Here is the link to last years Learn-A-Palooza.
http://www.learnapaloozadc.com/
I (Karen) talked more about my experience last year and the different approaches we could take to participating. Given that this event would occur during the period that we would have our work in the gallery we could schedule gallery talks or talk about Sparkplug; we could get on the schedule and look for other instructors to do art related classes and just serve as hosts, individually we can work on developing classes.
Peter’s suggestion of showing “how to stretch a canvas” was a great idea. I’ve already elaborated in an earlier email about “painting show & tell”. In my experience last year – do not underestimate your potential to teach something small or simple.
Here is last year’s organizer that will give more info on how to think about being a teacher
http://wiki.learnapaloozadc.com/index.php?title=FAQ
Last years rules of participation were as below and I am guessing they will be very similar this year:
• classes are on April 28, between 10AM and 6PM
• classes must start on the hour or half-hour
• they must be 25 or 55 min long
• they must be free and open to the public
As about 1/3 to ½ of us were engaged in other activities between now & April 1 - we will try to have a mini-brainstorming meeting just on Learn-a-Palooza for those who are interested or available to help sometime in the last week of March or first week of April – more details later.
3-goals for goals
none come to mind that are not related to the above two items
3-ideas about ideas-in no particular order
none come to mind that are not related to the above two items
Except for fact there was a lot of interesting things said relative, tangentially and in support of Lea’s bringing up tension, place and entropy as a theme. I don’t have time to put them down but think this would be a completely appropriate topic to try and capture what many of you said by going on the blog and posting about the other things we brought up when discussing the slide project.
4~ACTION!
Lea presents us with a preliminary slide list so we can all get out highest resolution images ready to bring to the meeting on CD’s or thumb drives.
Plan a mini-meet-up to see if it is of interest to develop anything for Learn-A-Palooza
5-Agenda Items for next meeting
The next meeting is planned for Sunday, April 13 at 7:00 PM
at the DCAC gallery
~bring photo files for download
~go over curatorial statement and set schedule for any extra PR that we want other than the DCAC weekly list serve news letter
~get specific commitments from people for the exhibition and Learn-a-Palooza
~Ideas about ideas
~Goals for goals
~ALWAYS ALWAYS feel free to email me anything else you want to talk about or think needs to be added to the next meetings agenda-AND ANYTHING I MAY HAVE FORGOT-I am too sleepy today!
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