I want to remind everyone to use the class discussion forum to respond to the readings. Responses are not essays, or even fully articulated arguments, but rather short thoughts on the readings. I usually start with some kind of prompt or question, but encourage everyone to bring in additional things that seem relevant.
To follow up on some of the conversation from Feb 6, some terms, ideas and names get thrown around that maybe not everyone is familiar with, such as "relational aesthetics" or "social practice."
These are professional terms used to describe the work of some contemporary artists as a genre or medium (like "history painting" or "installation"). While there are certainly overlaps between these professional categories and things we discuss in class, this class is decidedly not about them. The need or desire to create spaces or counter institutions for culture/art and the aesthetic evaluation of experience have multiple precedents and contexts, some of which we've looked at. I referenced the ideas of John Dewey from the 1930s, for example. While we are learning and acting in the context of the professional world of art and design (with the important similarities and differences that come with those fields), part of what we're exploring is how to not take the profession, as it is currently described, for granted.
The readings for next week are Gregory Sholette's "Mockstitutions" chapter from his Dark Matter book and a piece on a Hamburg-based project called Park Fiction.
These texts are very related to a lot of the things we looked at last class, which I will link to below.
Actions: What You Can Do With the City
The Center for Urban Pedagogy
Carl DiSalvo's Neighborhood Networks
The Bioethics of Beer
David Liittschwager's One Cubic Foot photo project
Fieldwork's Hallucinogenic Parks
Mel Chin and the Fundred Dollar Bill project
FLOAT
Seed Broadcast
We'll also be meeting with the artist Graziela Kunsch from Brazil (she is in the KAM exhibition, "Blind Field") on the 13th.