Re: [-empyre-] Introductions and beginnings (October on -empyre-)

[Renee Turner <geuzen@xs4all.nl>]

Hi Ryan, Tracey and all,

Thanks for trying to keep the conversation rolling.  While in  
Stockholm, we (meaning De Geuzen) were discussing the nature of this  
kind of communication space, meaning a list.  It's a form which  
allows for certain kinds of expression but also excludes others.  
(sometimes, I've had the overwhelming desire to say: "hey look at  
this"... but here, text is privileged ...so at best I can slip in a  
url... )

And to come back to the notion of matters of concern and the spirit  
of study, it has always been important for us to work across media to  
talk about or question a particular subject.   The Geuzennaam project  
happens amongst a constellation of other projects.  On our website,  
we can connect  to those works,  such as a campaign with a  
prostitutes rights organisation in Amsterdam, or a workshop with  
textile students looking at how the body can function as a billboard  
(or a means of communication), or we can connect to a temporary  
collection we've made of 17th/18th/19th century paintings of unknown  
women displayed in a historical museum (unified in their loss of  
identity) .  Our uniforms and paperdolls are also there, as  well as  
other research threads on archiving and the ecology of mediated  
images.   In other words, that critical mass is crucial and sometimes  
difficult to convey or represent in a "list".

That said, there are also immense affordances to this kind of space,  
an encounter with strangers, an opportunity to rub up against other  
practices and perspectives which are not our/my own. So far, I've  
certainly enjoyed the swapping of links to articles, or a pointing to  
quotes.  Also, even when I did not know how to respond, I appreciated  
Aliette's series of posts on gender and power.  I liked following her  
thought process as she sketched through words, modifying and re- 
modifying her position.  Although my French is not the best,  I felt  
that Sally Jane Norman did a great interjection, and I'll carry with  
me the words of Sexy Babelfish and Cunning linguist performance.

A list like Empyre gives chances to seek nuance and provides trails  
to be followed up.  And to return to the many ideas Ryan has tried  
bring into this discussion over the past month, these types of  
exchanges have the potential to transform facts and entrenchment,  
into matters of concern and mobility.  I don't see criticality as  
merely negation, it might be more about seeking a proliferation of  
discourse, perspectives and multiple forms of engagement.


all the best,

Renee


On 28 Oct 2006, at 20:13, Ryan Griffis wrote:

> On Oct 26, 2006, at 3:25 PM, Renee Turner wrote:
>
> > Is there another online version of this text because, I would  
> > really like
> > to read the full essay. subscribers only  :-(
> >
> > Bringing in the word "concern" is exactly what is needed in  
> > combination
> > with "critical mass" (meaning, it assuages my initial unease with  
> > that
> > phrasing alone) so thanks for introducing the Latour ....
>
> i think this is the same general essay in pdf form (may be a bit  
> different from the Critical Inquiry one, but it looks basically the  
> same)
> http://www.uofaweb.ualberta.ca/historyandclassics//pdfs/ 
> Latour2004WhyHasCritiqueRunoutofSteam.pdf
> ryan
>
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