Social Practice

for more information on the FREEB event, click here

“The Mountain School of Art concerns itself with the development of various academic programs designed as a supplement to those offered by the established art schools, teaching more tangible aspects of art, developing a different, but complimentary, point of view. These topics include law, science, production methods and problems, the commercial art market, relationships with galleries, etc…striving towards unconventional approaches to intellectual, aesthetic, and cultural questions.” (1)

Recently I took a weekend trip with California College of the Art’s first year MFA class to Los Angeles to view galleries and museums there. This trip was organized by the Dialogs and Practices class (a class described as a forum for introducing students to the cultural practices of artists, and arts professionals in the Bay Area, California and beyond, through their work and working methods.) to convey a feel for the art scene(s) of Los Angeles. We saw 4 museums, at least 20 galleries and 2 artist-run spaces. Though many of the exhibitions and artist projects we visited were interesting it was actually a space that I never saw (since class was not in session) called the Mountain School of Arts (MSA), which seemed most complex in its approach and effect on the LA scene.

The MSA is a free school founded by the artists, Piero Golia and Eric Wesley in 2005. To paraphrase from the MSA’s somewhat vague website, the function of the school is to contribute to the cultural history of Los Angeles through the establishment of a tuition-free art school for artists which acts as a fixed cultural center point for artistic discourse within the ever striating fabric of the limitless city of LA.

The program is structured into one, 3-month semester per year beginning in January through the first week of April. Classes take place 2 or more times a week at night from 6 to 9pm in the unglamorous backroom of the Mountain bar in Chinatown (hence the name the Mountain School). The program supports 12 or more students, both local and international who are selected from a pool of applicants (2). The MSA also provides lodging and studio space to the out of town students. Some examples of these classes are; “Sustainable Articulture: how to grow an art practice”, by Michael Darling, assistant curator, moca; “Law & Art”, Eric Wesley, artist, Lonnie Blanchard and Carl Wesley, lawyers; and “Topics in Science & Technology”by Stefano Campagnola, a researcher at Caltech.

Having heard vague and often conflicting descriptions of this school from a number of artists I decided to use this trip to LA as an excuse to find out more about the MSA. I began this search with China Art Object, a gallery in Chinatown, whom I had heard was closely related to the school. There I asked the gallery attendants Meghan and Anna about the school. Both Meghan and Anna were quite familiar with the school though they were pretty unclear on the content and structure of its classes. They told me that the school was funded partially by Steve Hanson an artist and one of the co-owners of both China Art Objects and the Mountain Bar (3) . Significantly the two artists who founded the school are representing by China Art Object. Meghan and Anna also told me that next month there would be a show at China Art Object of the art of the recipient of the MSA’s Martin Kippenburger award, an award presented to the student who drank the most beer during the semester. It was unclear how this was measured. There is an interest in beer due to the programs location above a bar and perhaps its happy hour class meeting time causing many of these classes to be relayed through pints of lager.

I was then referred to Wendy Yao the owner of Ooga Booga an art, clothing, zine, book and music store also in Chinatown, who had taught a class at the MSA. Wendy described the school as really interesting though slightly chaotic. Wendy said that the school though begun as a kind of alternative to art school was recently, due somewhat to its growing notoriety, trying to broaden its student body to incorporate a more diverse group.

Since Wendy had only really been involved once in the school she suggested I talk to Sara Clendening the director of Jack Hanley gallery. Sara was not only a 2007 student but was also reputed to be the girlfriend of Eric Wesley and could therefore provide me with a more privileged perspective. Sara told me that for her the experience was pretty unusual. The first class was a talk by Dan Graham to which 200 some odd people showed up. Dan played punk records on a record player and narrated them for an hour. She said the students were dissuaded from talking about their art. They did not make art in class, though they did read artist writings and would discuss them. The class would also go on field trips to such sites as “Black Pussy” a spectacular and vulgar kind of nightclub/cabaret as sculpture by the tragically deceased artist Jason Rhoades, which was run out of his studio before his death.

The MSA it is not a phenomenon individual to LA (4) there are other free schools in San Francisco, New York, Chicago, Berlin, Sweden and elsewhere. But there is something specific in their choice to meet within an underground yet semi public site of a bar and the power in their intentions to inform artists with other disciplines. Piero Golia one of the founders has commented on the site of the school by stating, “This situation interested us since it is similar to the secret societies in Europe that were fighting for national liberation two-hundred years ago.” (5)  There is something undoubtedly revolutionary about the notion of a free school but with art it is hard to tell whether the above statement is a statement of nostalgic fetishization or a provocation of actual purpose. Within this increasingly dark political moment me I hope for the later.

————

1. The Mountain School Of Arts Website, Objectives http://www.themountainschoolofarts.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=4
2 Applications for the 2008 program are available on the Mountain School of Arts website. http://www.themountainschoolofarts.org/2008/MSA%5E_2008_APPLICATION.pdf
3. It is also funded by the Netherlands Consulate in Los Angeles, BeLA Foundation, the Croatian government, Gai (Associazione Giovani Artisti Italiani), the Goethe Institute and 1+1=3.
4. In fact the MSA is 1 of 2 free art schools in LA that have emerged within the last five years, the second being the Sundown Schoolhouse.
5. Holy Mountain – Los Angeles, “Flash Art News - Flash Art Online” 2005. http://flashartonline.com/Archivio/riv_246/news_2.htm

For two weeks in June, a group of “15 outsider young journalists” put on the “London Project.” A subset of their activities centered around distributing and circulating free books on the London Underground.

“Over the next two weeks we’ll be distributing thousands of second hand books across the tube and we want YOU to get involved. If you see one of our books, please pick it up! Then read it and replace with any book of your choice. Let’s make the tube a giant, free library!”

You can read more on their site, and listen to some recordings of participant’s reactions.

See also:

• BookCrossing
• Read It Swap It
• and BARTreads

For the Dale Sko Hack, Otto von Busch initiated a workshop for factory workers and designers at the Dale shoe factory. This activity brought together people intimately tied to the physical prodection of style with those responsible for the aesthetic prodection of style. The discussion centered around questioning and redefining the process of manufacture. They concluded that “. . . we must find ways to use the existing manual craft skills better in the design, find non-linear ways to operate production that creates more interesting results and narratives” (via wmmna interview). Not only have the results of this dialogue recieved the critical attention of the international fashoin community, but shoe factory is sustantially restructuring and reforming their production. They also produced a download-able book [PDF] documenting the project.

Otto von Busch sees his practice as similar to ‘hacking’ or heretical thinking:

“Modifying and breaking into systems to alter them, injecting micropolitical will into the channels and flows of the system. But they do not oppose the inherent power or code processing of that system. This is what makes hackers similar to heretics; they oppose the hierarchical role of the interpreter, administrator, or author, but not the power itself – code or faith. The heretic is not an atheist, but someone hacking the institutional and hierarchical interpretation of the faith. Like the hacker, modder, or tinkerer the heretic is keeping the power on, not renouncing or opposing the core or energy of a system.” (also via wmmna interview)

Von Busch and his partner, Evren Uzer, constitute the group “roomservices.” Currently they are working on a two part workshop/conference called “epicenter/periphery.” These events will consider the “exploration, mapping, and building of rural conditions for embracing creativity.” Epicenter/periphery will take place consecutively in June and October 2007; the workshop will take place in 14-21 June 2007 and the conference will be realized in 18-21 October 2007, in Dale Norway in collaboration with Nordic Artists’ Center- NKD and United World College in Fjaler.

On March 25th, Rebecca Gamble hosted “An Event for Conversation” via the peer-to-peer internet telephone service, Skype. She invited participants to BYOB, pull up a stool, and log on. Following in Tom Marioni’s technologically enabled footsteps, she describes the gathering as

“. . . the first event in a series, for the project ‘An Event for a Conversation’, which celebrates social networking, and explores the social and technological methods we use to communicate. . . . This event will be documented by the participants, through text sent to the artist and through screen grab images of desktops. The conversations themselves will not be recorded.”

So far, the documentation from this raucous virtual pub-crawl* have yet to surface online, but you can find more information on the project blog.
*I didn’t attend, so my description may be completely off

The Artist Tax Deduction Bill is finally up for action in the House. “Preserving America’s Cultural Heritage” it’s not, but the text of the bill does seem like it’s a step in the right direction.
After announcing at the Congressional Arts Breakfast on Arts Advocacy Day that he would be the lead sponsor for the Artist Deduction Bill, Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) introduced the bill on March 14, 2007, joined by Rep. Jim Ramstad (R-MN). Identical to a Senate bill introduced by Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Robert Bennett (R-UT), the bill supports individual artists by allowing them to take a fair-market value tax deduction for tangible works they donate to nonprofit collecting and educational organizations, and it benefits the public by giving them access to more art. The ‘works’ covered under this bill are “contributions of literary, musical, artistic, or scholarly compositions” which would seem to leave plenty of room for artistic activities that do not produce a physical product. The only stumbling point, from my perspective, in the language of the bill is the bit about a “qualified appraisal of the fair market value . . . of the work.” Now, the bill doesn’t specify what makes the appraisal ‘qualified,’ but I wonder how the IRS would read a tax deduction for “dish washing” or “conversation.”

Bill: H.R. 1524 (House) and S. 548 (Senate).

The Philadelphia ICA currently has a show up entitled “Locally Localized Gravity.” Their curatorial stament calls this a show organized around the concept of “artists-as-producers.” From the context of the rest of their literature, it’s fair to say that they mean producers of events, rather than producers of paintings.

“Each [artist or artist group] has created an installation that characterizes how they operate in the art world. The [sic] in turn have invited others: during its run, ‘Locally Localized Gravity’ will feature over 100 artists, musicians, lecturers, performers, writers and many other creators.” (via ICA, Philadelphia)

The show has met with praise from some (like the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council) and mixed reviews from others:

The substantial events schedule for “Gravity” are available on the ICA’s Web site; a downloadable PDF catalog soon will be.

The events are the missing, critical dimension for visitors who come in when nothing special is happening. It’s like wandering into an empty theater on the morning of opening night.

This points up the most salient characteristic of this communal art playground: its firm grounding in the moment. “Gravity” feels transient and serendipitous. All of what you see, hear and read today might not be available tomorrow. It’s art as blogging, with all that implies about substance and permanence. (review in the Philadelphia Daily News)

The curator/historian Alan Moore also offers a detailed (and highly critical) walk through the exhibition:

. . . But that the groups and spaces here represented specifically do not work together seems to be part of the concept. Neither do the grapes and bananas communicate in the fruitbowl which the ICA proudly wears upon its head, shaking its behind to lure the eyes of international curators to the home of the cheese steak. (via post.thing.net)

I guess ‘Dark Matter‘ doesn’t have a monopoly on adopted physics terms . . . and the show certainly has some people puzzling over what contemporary art has to do with theoretical questions about the number of dimensions that we inhabit.

Participating artists/groups: Black Floor Gallery, LURE, basekamp, Space 1026, Matt Bakkom, Red76, LTTR, and Fritz Haeg’s Sundown Schoolhouse

Also, some Flickr sets of action shots from the opening by Libby Rosof and Roberta Fallon.

New Work: Sylvie Blocher

Friday, February 23, 2007 - Sunday, May 13, 2007French artist Sylvie Blocher has been working on her Living Pictures video series since 1992. This ongoing project is made up of multiple site-specific video installations. Each work follows a basic format: the artist recruits volunteers through classified ads and other postings, then conducts filmed interviews with these subjects. Editing the videos into a compilation, Blocher creates a group portrait out of individual encounters. Her interviewing technique opens up possibilities for personal response and reflection and touches on issues such as immigration, privacy, memory, and the authority of the artist. This exhibition features Living Pictures/Je et Nous, a 2003 project in which Blocher filmed volunteers wearing T-shirts printed with statements they had written. In addition, it includes a new San Francisco-based installment of Living Pictures, commissioned by SFMOMA.

MEMBER EVENTSPreviews and Events for New Work: Sylvie Blocher, Picasso and American Art, and Brice Marden
Members are invited to take a first look at New Work: Sylvie Blocher, Picasso and American Art, and Brice Marden: A Retrospective of Paintings and Drawings at special events before the exhibitions open to the public. The member evening reception features refreshments and entertainment, while the daytime preview offers private access to the exhibition galleries.Member Preview and Reception
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
6:00 p.m. - 11:00 p.m.
6:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. Artist’s Circle and Director’s Circle members
7:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. upper-level members
8:00 p.m. - 11:00 p.m. general members
Museum-wide

Member Preview Day
Thursday, February 22, 2007
11:00 a.m. - 8:45 p.m.
All members
Fourth- and fifth-floor galleries

Watch your mailbox for an invitation.

Also in conjunction with Brice Marden and Picasso and American Art

PUBLIC PROGRAMS

Lecture Series
Artist Talk: Sylvie Blocher
Sylvie Blocher, artist
February 22, 2007
6:15 p.m.
Phyllis Wattis Theater
One of France’s most notable multimedia artists, Blocher produces site-specific installations that explore concepts of otherness, authority, representation, memory, and the political responsibility of art. By interviewing strangers and compiling group portraits from the individual encounters, Blocher encourages different ways of viewing and understanding the world. She will discuss her ongoing video series Living Pictures as well as the new work commissioned by SFMOMA on view in the galleries.Free with Museum admission.

Devices employing Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) are poised to enter our lives in many public and commercial spheres. They can work passively and automatically, and are being included in some new US passports and all new UK passports. Many mass transit, product tracking, and animal ID systems use them extensively.

space.media.art presents five artists working with RFID in the public sphere this month in Tagged:

“In this exhibition, the artist collaborative Louis-Philippe Demers and Philippe Jean are working with local shop Hollywood Convenience electronically tagging their grocery items to produce the artwork iTag. Using a portable music device, available to pick up from the exhibition, shoppers can listen to music generated from the grocery aisles.

RealSnailMail is a project in development by boredomresearch, using RFID technology to enable real snails to carry and deliver electronic messages on their own time, despite growing expectations of instant communication.

Mute-Dialogue (Yasser Rashid and Yara El-Sherbini)have created the interactive installation Origins and Lemons. Arranged as an East End market stall the installation invites you to pick up RFID-tagged items and scan them to receive clues as to their history and origin.

In SWAPOId, evoLhypergrapHyCx (C6) implement RFID technology in the Antisystemic Distributed Library Project, an alternative library of shared books, videos, and music with venues in community centres and bedrooms worldwide, and through this acting as but one site of resistance against a de-humanising, de-dimensional agenda.

Arphield Recordings by Paula Roush records the sound of citizens scanning their Oyster cards in London Underground stations, and outputs them in live performance, installation and public intervention.”

(via Tagged press release)

Update: Regine at we-make-money-not-art also posted about the snails — and it looks like the snail mail website is actually running. Unfortunately, no snails are involved at this point, but you can still send a message to be delivered by snail that will help them test their tech.

The Wooster Collective gave a talk at the Conflux Festival in New York and Regine of “we make money not art” transcribed some of her notes.

On location– “A work of street art reclaims the public space and the best street art has a context, builds a relationship with its environment, dialogs with the city.”