Re: [-empyre-] What is to be done

[Melinda Rackham <melinda@anat.org.au>]

>...i'm currently n.gaged in a project doing just that...the proj is
> auction/exhibition for drought relief in the upper lachlan shire where
> the artists n.volved agree 2 auction off 1 of their wurks. it n.volves
> raising $650,000 [2 fund drilling 14 community water bores on Council
> controlled land] + n.volves around 30 artists.
> 
MeZ this is great and i hope the project raisies  lots of money for the
drought affected communities.. I see that Woolworth's is donating its
profits tomorrow to the drought relief as well..its pretty heart breaking to
see our county becoming barren and the animals dying.  Jared Diamonds
predictions as Australia being the continent to collapse first are starting
to seem quiet possible. My city is predicted to run out of water next year.

However  I was  referring to projects which benefit or skill or provide good
income and working conditions and facilities to artists , rather than ones
which rely on the artist, yet again , donating their time and services to
the good of society as a whole.. I m talking about asking Australian society
to support art practioners not the other way around.

An example: In 2005 i was one of 6 or 7 judges on a $10,000 blogg award,,
there were ten finalists from 100s of entries, wine blogs, car blogs, young
mother parenting blogs, 1  art blog. the artist won it.. Both she  and i
were slagged off mercilessly in blogs around the county ..she for basically
being an artist and accepting grant money.. And me as I was the judge
suspected of giving her a high score,  as in the opinion of a segment of the
blog community , artistic merit didn't merit..  In fact another  judge gave
her a higher score than me - however  I said nothing publically at the time,
as it just would have inflamed it more and that's judging etiquette.. but to
me this exemplified our extreme cultural distrust and dislike (among
intelligent articulate well educated people ) of anything differently
creative..

 The tabloid press loves nothing more than to talk about how our public
money is being miss spent on un-australian art.. think "escape from wommera"
think disbanding of the Australia councils New media arts board and CCD
board -funnily enough the two areas of arts practice in the country that
produce art which is highly visibly critical of government policy and
cultural norms. 

>     mel, i do understand that in ur world's architecture [which has
> obviously come about thru ur own choice_set] u perceive this 2 b the
> only way 2 establish + maintain adequacy in terms of  cultural
> formation[s]; i am just not convinced it's the only way; n.deed, i [+
> a network of others] live the difference......

Great..i wish you well..and lets talk about it again in another ten years..

> ...whereas those of us that moderate the _arc.hive_ list have it set
> up on principles via which the lvl of moderator control [like that
> here on empyre] isn't necessary?

Yes and its very different list.. I think empyre aims for plurality of
opinion

> a loverly wandering, tho i'm b unkeen 2 equate my position with a type
> of romanticism if [by that] you're m.plying a lvl of fanciful
> projection that doesn't gel well with the practicalities of how this
> all manifests?


Im really liking the Air Plant metaphor.. I think its a little catchier
than Keith Gallashes media artists as slime mould and bottom feeder
metaphors.. (people outside of Australia may not  get this reference)
I n fact the more i think about it, the more i'm speculating that  air
plants and soil free gardening must have been the inspiration for Ken Warks
" we no longer have roots - we have ariels" byte..
I didnt know Ken liked gardening...

M

The Future of Technology is Wearable
ReSkin & WearNow ::  2-3 February
ANU :: National Museum of Australia
http://www.anat.org.au/reskin


Dr Melinda Rackham
Executive Director
Australian Network for Art and Technology (ANAT)
PO Box 8029
Station Arcade
South Australia 5000
ph: 61 8 8231 9037; fax 61 8 8231 9766
http://www.anat.org.au
anat@anat.org.au

Australian Network for Art and  Technology (ANAT) is supported by the Visual
Arts and Craft Strategy, an  initiative of the Australian, State and
Territory Governments;  the Australian Government through the Australia
Council, its arts funding and advisory body, and the South Australian
Government through Arts SA.