Introduction The Collective Action Archive performing, provoking, etc.?” Lippard and PAD/D continued is an exhibition consisting of Also, rather than imposing a to collect materials through- items from a recently creat- definition on what a “politi- out the 1980s. The PAD/D ed archive that goes by the cally and socially active” col- Archive includes groups such same name. The videos, lective of artists is, the cura- as ACT UP, Not For Sale, zines, posters, books and tors accepted materials from Deep Dish TV, PESTS, and Art other materials that form the any groups that self-identi- Workers Coalition. archive and exhibition were fied in this way. The decision submitted by more than thir- to only invite U.S. collectives With the Purchase College, ty socially and politically ac- was largely logistical, taking SUNY, redux of the Collective tive artist collectives between into account budget and Action Archive, the school’s October, 2012 and July, 2013. time limitations. student gallery provides a The call for materials was generous space that, unlike initiated by the not-for-prof- The Collective Action Archive the Collective Action archive’s it art space, Franklin Street was inspired in part by the first iteration, allows for all of Works, Stamford, CT, as one Political Art Documentation/ the collectives to be exhibited component of their exhibition Distribution (PAD/D) archive simultaneously. This gives Working Alternatives: Break- started by art historian Lucy audiences the opportunity to ing Bread, Art Broadcasting, Lippard along with artist/ explore the archive, unpacked and Collective Action (October activist Gregory Sholette and from its files and boxes in a 27, 2012 – January 13, 2013). other PAD/D members, in- shared space, providing an cluding Barbara Moore and ideal setting for conversa- That call aimed at an infor- Mimi Smith. That collection of tions, observations, and dis- mal survey and gave only materials, now in the MoMA coveries about the strategies, loose parameters on types Library collection, was initi- materials, organizational of materials or what kinds of ated with Lippard’s 1979 call structures, and themes found groups could send them. It asking political artists for ar- in socially and politically ac- asked among other things: chive materials as part of her tive artist collectives today. “What is your collective say- Artists Space exhibition Some ing, making, distributing, British Art from the Left. Essays CollectiveActionArchive Brooke Singer, Associate Professor of New Media, New Media Program Coordinator, School of Film & Media Studies, Purchase College, SUNY. COLLECTIVE Google the word “collective” and the top replaced the faux brown leather encyclopedia result (at least on August 24, 2013) is collec- set of my youth. (As a child I started precisely tive.com – a company about big data science at the beginning and began to memorize the that is passionate and client-centric. Yes, big contents of my parents’ encyclopedia. This data is a form of collective, maybe even the fixed knowledge, I believed, once digested most salient today. This collective is the data and retained, would bring me unequivocal stream of our digital bits that we offer up intelligence. The first word was aardvark.) hundreds of times a day to feed server banks scattered across the globe. It is not only big Wikipedia has a different tone. Under the in size but, according to collective.com, is header “collective” there is talk of a group also big with ideas, heart and fun. of people sharing, motivated by a common interest or issue. There is this idea of Try looking for collective.org and it does not working together – or collaborating – to appear; it is parked and maybe waiting for achieve a common goal. Collectives are not the highest bidder. necessarily focused on economic benefit the text goes on to say. The structures are vari- If you are feeling depressed, turn to Wiki- able. The models are numerous. pedia.com, a massive collective experiment of a different kind. Here online you-sers The list of collectives in this exhibition reads everywhere are describing what is important like band names: fierce pussy, The Pinky in the world. It has, as many once feared, Show, Temporary Services, Philly Stake, etc. No individuals listed, instead there are indi- Action here is dumb time – but a smart cations of direct sentiment with a peppering move: carving space to do nothing. Action of sass. As the audience we wonder what can be non-activity, deciding not to take part. they are up to, why and how. The items pre- Action can be laziness that is practiced and sented in this exhibition share some of the perfected. Action in the context of this exhi- story; they point toward common goals and bition means creating the life you want to see shared interests among the groups. rather than following a path that has been laid before you. Life hacks are entertaining ACTION one-liners, but hacking life is a full-time job. The world is your studio. You will find it in the video games you play, the person who sits ARCHIVE next to you on the bus, the construction of a park bench, the advertisements that frame The irony of course is that we have brought your emails, the worms in your compost ephemera into a room, the gallery, for you to bin. By any media necessary, by any means look at, consider and enjoy. We have trans- necessary, get out from where you think you formed these collective actions into objects, ought to be making art. taking away their lifeline and making them part of the production/promotion/ A friend recently forwarded a short essay titled competition system. “In Praise of Laziness,” by the Croatian artist, Mladen Stilinovic. Laziness? What could lazi- We have done this to celebrate this loose ness have to do with action? The essay is a grouping of work that is collaborative, issue- short provocation (please find online to read in based and action-oriented. its entirety). Here is a sample: We have done this to fuel a conversation about art, ideas and alternative histories. “Laziness is the absence of movement and thought, dumb time - total amnesia. It is also We have done this because action can look indifference, staring at nothing, non-activity, good and should be admired from an aes- impotence. It is sheer stupidity, a time of pain, thetic perspective. futile concentration. Those virtues of laziness are important factors in art. Knowing about We have done this because when collective laziness is not enough, it must be practised and action art goes out of fashion, this archive perfected. Artists in the West are not lazy and will persist. therefore not artists but rather producers of something... Their involvement with matters of We have done this to nourish minds and no importance, such as production, promotion, spirits and incite you to join, continue and gallery system, museum system, competition claim for your own. system (who is first), their preoccupation with objects, all that drives them away form lazi- ness, from art. Just as money is paper, so a gallery is a room.” The Collective Action Archive: Virtual Geography Gina Mischianti, Curatorial Intern, Collective Action Archive Within last quarter century, we have steadily it means to be without it. This examina- built rapidly changing technologies and tion manifests itself in a variety of ways, systems that have most of us scrambling extending throughout many facets of their to process the resulting paradigm shifts in work. Looking at neglected geographical human interaction. Systems built around the locations is a prominent method by which concepts of physical boundaries and cor- physical location is explored. Groups such poreality have been rendered almost com- as the M12 Collective and Regional Rela- pletely obsolete in the face of rapid techno- tionships focus heavily on often-ignored logical advancements. Despite these shifts, rural and/or impoverished areas, as well as we have seen few large-scale changes in the man-made, synthetic boundaries. Both col- ideology of the world’s cultural institutions. lectives deconstruct elitist and regressive One could ask, “Do these reasons include misconceptions about these areas created fear, reluctance, confusion, or perhaps, igno- by conventional institutional thought while rance?” In the face of seeming institutional respecting and upholding unique regional complacency some groups are studying and cultures. Examples include M12’s project/ tackling the consequential issues emerging event called “The Big Feed,” an annual gath- in this environment. Compelling models are ering that combines the so-called “high- present in the various artists groups fea- brow” and “cosmopolitan” elements of a tured in the Collective Action Archive exhi- contemporary art/architecture fair with bition. These collectives explore, examine, those of a “low-brow” and “rustic” cookout and expand the developing mindsets born festival. This is also seen in Regional Rela- from technological globalization and virtual tionships’ prominent projects “A Map Without landscapes, critically deconstructing the Boundaries” and “Greetings from the Corn- stagnating institutions of a freshly outdated belts,” where mail art utilizes information past. The groups encapsulate (either through to re-imagine spaces and cultural histories, a direct reaction to the new technological including the juxtaposition of indigenous nar- age or forward thinking correspondence), ratives kept apart. These projects show the the various conflicts, fears, and hopes cre- arbitrary and unnecessary nature of regional ated on the cusp of this bourgeoning cultural exclusions and expose the areas’ unique evolution, ranging from the contemplation of local culture to a wider demographic. physical/non-physical location to the desire for connectivity. Meanwhile, some of the collectives focus on exploring and critically examining the One primary way that the collectives in non-corporeal environment of cyberspace.