Thursday, November 26, 2009

"Let art save democracy!"

Hey everyone,

When I came into the office this morning to do some more preparation for our upcoming relational aesthetics study group, Michael slipped me this fascinating article.

If you're feeling relationally inspired, check it out on line or there is also a hard copy available in the Dancemakers office. I like it because while it's very much on topic, it was written by architects who approach the topic with different preoccupations and curiousities than I do and venture into a whole other set of practical applications.

It comes from a research conference called "The Museum of Conflict - Art as Political Strategy in Post-Communist Europe" which focused on two major questions:

How does the institutional museum reflect ways in which contemporary art is used as a representation of political change?

Can art take over the location of power, being 'a symbol of openness and democracy?'


Enjoy!

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Coming up...Thinking Out Loud 3

(Kari Pederson)

It's about that time again...we are looking forward to our third Thinking Out Loud this December 1st at 6:30. Whether you have attended a previous TOL event or if this will be your first we wold love to have you join us for an evening of interesting and relaxed conversation, snacks and refreshments at Dancemakers. Tell your friends, lovers, colleagues and teachers - everyone is welcome.

In our upcoming TOL we will be contemplating the changing relationships between spectator, artist and participant through these articles:

"Relational Form" by Nicolas Bourriaud (1998) (with a particular focus on the section titled 'Artwork As Social Interstice'
"The Emancipated Spectator" by Jacques Ranciere (2004)
"The Social Turn: Collaboration and Its Discontents" by Claire Bishop (2006)

(click the title for a pdf or find a hardcopy, and a photocopier, in the Dancemakers office)

We hope to see you there. Please RSVP and join us at the Dancermakers’ Centre for Creation on December 1st at 6:30.

Bring your curiosity, openness, some spare change for drinks and anyone you know who might be interested in snacks and stimulating conversation.

Thursday, November 5, 2009

Long-awaited-eagerly-anticipated Study Group #2 Notes

Things have been buzzing here at Dancemakers, but finally, for your perusal, here are the notes Kari and I compiled from our awesome second Thinking Out Loud session, all about the ideas of contemporariness, reconstruction, and modernism.

Notes from Thinking Out Loud #2 - Monday, October 19, 2009

Here are our notes from the last TOL! Dancemakers has been very busy lately and we have been discussing new articles for next TOL, which falls on December 1st. We will post them soon - but for now, see below:

What is the Contemporary?” – Giorgio Agamben

How Modern Is Modernism? The Relevance of Reconstruction
- André Lepecki

Reconstructing Dance: Taking an Active Interest in the Legacy of Dance” - a short essay from the Goethe-Institute website

-


“What Is Contemporary?”

What connections to The Act of Study (TOL’s first article by Paulo Freire) arose while reading this article?
- Being Agamben’s “contemporary” is like being what Freire calls a subject (an ideal learner). It is not static but a process.

Using Freire’s concept of a flash idea, what flashed while reading “What Is Contemporary?”
- I thought about how I’ve come to where I am and how I can use others’ work as a filtration system to learn about where I am and what is contemporary to me. For instance I prefer contemporary work but it’s lineage is not forgotten. It’s like a line of evolution that you can cut into. Peggy Baker is an example of this: I’m not a fan of her work but I’m a fan of her student’s work.
- if I prefer the contemporary, why would I want to read the “pre _____” if there is a “post _____”,? For instance, why learn about modernism if we are post-modern?

Thoughts on the article’s form:
- Elitist or academic
- Poetic and hard to grasp.
- Inspiring but daunting – if I do what he is asking of me I can’t do things like buy my groceries
- “Contemporary” as an idealism
- A higher call to action – like a manifesto to become more “contemporary” (by Agamben’s definition)