actual artistic “work”. artistic actual

erefore, the action of doing this became my my became this doing of action the erefore, T artist. an as

eld eld f my in active and visible remain to order in community

out how to remain connected to an international creative creative international an to connected remain to how out

gure gure f to had quickly I resources, and income less With

increase the capacity and range of my own social network. network. social own my of range and capacity the increase

Social Practices Art Network (SPAN), out of a need to to need a of out (SPAN), Network Art Practices Social

With this in mind, I created the creative concept for the the for concept creative the created I mind, in this With

a “post-studio practice”. practice”. “post-studio a

cultural production happens, and by this I mean that I have have I that mean I this by and happens, production cultural

needed to redirect and expand my notion of where and how how and where of notion my expand and redirect to needed

work as a socially engaged creative person, I decided that I I that decided I person, creative engaged socially a as work

cult time, in order to continue to to continue to order in time, cult f di this During quickly.

one year. My household income dropped substantially and and substantially dropped income household My year. one

November 18, 2011, I have been unemployed for almost almost for unemployed been have I 2011, 18, November

I lost my full-time job on December 16th, 2010 and as of of as and 2010 16th, December on job full-time my lost I (II)

(I) Refererences

Te people and tents of Occupy LA are all around me. I’m [1] 2,439 to be precise. “About Occupy Together Meet-ups Everywhere”. a little thirsty, and having worked in the sun all afternoon, http://www.meetup.com/occupytogether/. Retrieved 11.03.11. [2] I can smell my body. I can smell my neighbour’s too. Helmut Sturm, , , Dieter Kunzelmann, Hans-Peter Zimmer, Stafan Larsson, , Jørgen Nash, Katja Informed and comforted by our smells I snif like a dog; Lindell & Maurice Wyckaert: Te Avant-garde is Undesirable, January though more discretely I hope. 1961. Situationist International On-line. http://www.cddc.vt.edu/ sionline/si/undesirable.html Accessed 10.29.2011. Gathered around the base of Los Angeles City Hall, [3] Gloria Anzaldúa: Borderlands-La Frontera: Te New Mestiza, Aunt Occupy LA represents a range of opinions but, reformer Lute Books, 1999, p.101 [4] Nicholas Bourriaud: Relational Aesthetics, Les Presses du Réel, 2002, and revolutionary alike, we are united by the demand that p.14 our social, political and economic structures stop servicing [5] “Social Class as Culture: Te Convergence of Resources and Rank corporate greed and re-calibrate to assuage human need. in the Social Realm”, Michael W. Kraus, Paul K. Pif & Dacher Keltner With politics-as-usual leaving no choice but submission to Current Directions in Psychological Science 2011 20: 246 a system that prioritises the pursuit of proft over absolutely [6] International Institute for Labour Studies: World of Work Report everything else, our gathering together embodies that 2011 Making Markets Work, http://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/- --dgreports/---dcomm/---publ/documents/publication/wcms_166021.pdf demand. Retrieved 11.3.11. [7] Richard Wolf, USA Today, “Record number in government anti- Did we all wake up one day and realise that all we really poverty programs”, 8/30/2010. http://www.usatoday.com/news/ have is a body and each other? And what do humans need washington/2010-08-30-1Asafetynet30_ST_N.htm. Retrieved 11.02.11 anyway? [8] Robert W. Hatfeld, Ph.D: Touch and Human Sexuality: in V. Bullough, B. Bullough, & A. Stein (Eds.). Human Sexuality: An Encyclopaedia. Garland Publishing, NY, 1994. http://faculty.plts.edu/ gpence/PS2010/html/Touch%20and%20Human%20Sexuality.htm. Retrieved 11.02.11 [9] Marina Sitrin: Horizontalism: Voices of Popular Power in Argentina, AK Press, 2006, p.5. [10] Gloria Anzaldúa: (un)natural bridges from this bridge we call home:

radical visions for transformation, Routledge, 2002.

(www.feastinbklyn.org)

respects FEAST functions as a CSA for artists. for CSA a as functions FEAST respects

(Community Supported Agriculture) farm shares, and in many many in and shares, farm Agriculture) Supported (Community

unites them all. all. them unites support within that community. We found inspiration in our CSA CSA our in inspiration found We community. that within support

of, engagement with, and value for interdependence which which interdependence for value and with, engagement of, nancial nancial f nd f turn in and neighbourhood a of needs immediate the

localised model for art funding. We wondered how art could serve serve could art how wondered We funding. art for model localised one form from another fade in comparison to the awareness awareness the to comparison in fade another from form one

solely on the support of exclusive, private capital. We wanted a more more a wanted We capital. private exclusive, of support the on solely – the names are numerous but the nuances that distinguish distinguish that nuances the but numerous are names the –

sustainability in the arts. We concluded that the arts should not rely rely not should arts the that concluded We arts. the in sustainability

Relational Aesthetics, Participatory Practice, Social Practice Practice Social Practice, Participatory Aesthetics, Relational

FEAST in Brooklyn emerged from a collective of friends discussing discussing friends of collective a from emerged Brooklyn in FEAST

Social Sculpture, New Genre Public Art, Social Aesthetics, Aesthetics, Social Art, Public Genre New Sculpture, Social

nanced and communally experienced. experienced. communally and nanced f is art how rethinking to

over the country, resulting in a network of organisations committed committed organisations of network a in resulting country, the over

. collectively constructed are [4] raised over $15,000. Meanwhile, similar models have emerged all all emerged have models similar Meanwhile, $15,000. over raised

space” to “the realm of human interactions” where meanings meanings where interactions” human of realm “the to space” Brooklyn has produced 10 dinners, funded dozens of projects and and projects of dozens funded dinners, 10 produced has Brooklyn

from the “assertion of an independent and private symbolic symbolic private and independent an of “assertion the from a grant comprised of that evening’s door money. Since 2009, FEAST FEAST 2009, Since money. door evening’s that of comprised grant a

the end of the night, the artist who garners the most votes is awarded awarded is votes most the garners who artist the night, the of end the production of relations. Or, to put it another way, away away way, another it put to Or, relations. of production

each idea. Attendees cast a vote for their favourite proposal, and by by and proposal, favourite their for vote a cast Attendees idea. each institutional – away from the production of objects to the the to objects of production the from away – institutional

a series of project proposals and conversing with the artists behind behind artists the with conversing and proposals project of series a

older shift of resources – both human and, increasingly, increasingly, and, human both – resources of shift older

they receive supper and a ballot. Diners spend the evening reviewing reviewing evening the spend Diners ballot. a and supper receive they

that the impulses fuelling them are kin to those driving an an driving those to kin are them fuelling impulses the that

art makers. At each FEAST, patrons give a $20 donation for which which for donation $20 a give patrons FEAST, each At makers. art

occupations are a product of art practice. But rather to say say to rather But practice. art of product a are occupations

nancial support to democratically fund new and emerging emerging and new fund democratically to support nancial f driven

cultural context. Which is not to suggest that the the that suggest to not is Which context. cultural

is a recurring public dinner designed to use community- use to designed dinner public recurring a is Tactics)

Optimism is warranted too, in light of the contemporary contemporary the of light in too, warranted is Optimism FEAST in Brooklyn (Funding Emerging Art with Sustainable Sustainable with Art Emerging (Funding Brooklyn in FEAST

Te occupations that are currently happening in more than two thousand communities worldwide, embody, above all, the desire for change[1]. Not I think, or not only, change for its own sake in that avant-garde fashion that decreed: “the mother must die so that the child may live”[2]. But rather change that stretches for the non-hierarchical, non- authoritarian plane of “horizontalidad”, or perhaps for the kind of third space described by Gloria Anzaldúa: “At some point…we will have to leave the opposite bank, the split between the two mortal combatants

somehow healed so that we are on both shores at once and, at once, see through serpent and eagle eyes”[3].

dX[\n`k_nnn%Yffbc\k\\i%Zfd]ifdgifYfjZ`j Is this an optimistic interpretation of a young movement 1 2 3 that will almost inevitably succumb to recuperation, ridicule, violence, or any other of the strategies that sustain the dynamics of hierarchy? Possibly. But at the very least the slogan “we are the 99%”, suggests that something other than divisive old politics-as-usual is in play in the US.

4 5 6

2,4,6,8,10,12

context of potential environmental collapse? environmental potential of context

survival, how much more important are they now, in the the in now, they are important more much how survival, (www.das-gaengeviertel.info)

ective tools for human human for tools ective f e As communities. low-income the art scene and the wider public context. public wider the and scene art the

touches. Its future, and the precedent it sets, is widely discussed across across discussed widely is sets, it precedent the and future, Its touches. have never stopped being common in working class and and class working in common being stopped never have

space in Hamburg by both the media, and the communities its work work its communities the and media, the both by Hamburg in space my British grandparent’s era of poverty and war, and they they and war, and poverty of era grandparent’s British my

has been considered a breakthrough in the struggle for more urban art art urban more for struggle the in breakthrough a considered been has

teaching circles; these were common non-art practices in in practices non-art common were these circles; teaching

e project project e T space. and art of cation f commodi the and cation, f gentri

Time banks, barter systems, sharing, making and growing, growing, and making sharing, systems, barter banks, Time

Issues explored by the Gängeviertel collective include: urban change, change, urban include: collective Gängeviertel the by explored Issues

. . matrix cultural relational “new” the to central becoming [7]

projects located in former derelict buildings in central Hamburg. Hamburg. central in buildings derelict former in located projects

no coincidence that poverty management strategies are are strategies management poverty that coincidence no

is a conglomerate of galleries and other other and galleries of conglomerate a is Gaengeviertel Hamburg Gaengeviertel

European Union on the brink of implosion, it can be be can it implosion, of brink the on Union European

enrolled in government anti-poverty programs, and the the and programs, anti-poverty government in enrolled (www.panoplylab.org)

political viewpoints held by individuals and groups. and individuals by held viewpoints political , 17% of North Americans now now Americans North of 17% , 2006-2010 period the [6]

examine complex systems and trace epistemic, emotional, and socio- and emotional, epistemic, trace and systems complex examine With food price volatility worldwide doubling during during doubling worldwide volatility price food With

workshops, interviews, and other engaged practices. practices. engaged other and interviews, workshops, ey often often ey T

erent walks of life, through community community through life, of walks erent f di many from individuals

behaviours become tools for mutual survival. survival. mutual for tools become behaviours

performance art projects are developed in collaboration with with collaboration in developed are projects art performance

in other words, empathy, collectivity, and pro-social pro-social and collectivity, empathy, words, other in

musician/sound artist Brian McCorkle. PPL’s hyper-structural hyper-structural PPL’s McCorkle. Brian artist musician/sound

. In the context of poverty, poverty, of context the In . assert psychologists accuracy” [5]

and composer/ and f Ne Esther artist librettist/director/video by 2006 in

greater interpersonal engagement, and enhanced empathic empathic enhanced and engagement, interpersonal greater is a performance collective formed formed collective performance a is Panoply Performance Lab (PPL) (PPL) Lab Performance Panoply

give rise to increased sensitivity to the social context, context, social the to sensitivity increased to rise give

are in collapse, the mask thins. “Reduced resources… “Reduced thins. mask the collapse, in are (www.broodwork.com)

an unexpected perspectival shift after becoming parents. becoming after shift perspectival unexpected an emergence of horizontalidad in Argentina – economies economies – Argentina in horizontalidad of emergence

previously unspoken community of practitioners whose work realised realised work whose practitioners of community unspoken previously

upon another. But when – as happened prior to the the to prior happened as – when But another. upon

by Iris Anna Regn and Rebecca Niederlander that names the the names that Niederlander Rebecca and Regn Anna Iris by

Money masks the reality of our mutual dependence one one dependence mutual our of reality the masks Money

is the cross-disciplinary art and design project founded founded project design and art cross-disciplinary the is Broodwork

Bronx River Art Center (BRAC) is a culturally diverse, multi- And there is, I think, another driver worth mentioning arts, non-proft organisation that provides a forum for community, here: the human need for physical communion. By which artists, and youth to transform creativity into vision. Our Education, I mean the need to be an analogue body sharing real space Exhibitions, Artist Studios, and Presenting Programs cultivate with other real bodies – an experience that is being eroded leadership in an urban environment and stewardship of our natural by the increasing ubiquity of digital communications resource – the Bronx River. Bronx River Art Center (BRAC) was technologies. Tough the impacts of such technologies founded in 1987 to bring professional arts programming to a are still largely speculative, scientists assert that “a paucity culturally under-served population. For more than twenty years of brain-nourishing touch causes neurological atrophy (including several years of arts programming under the umbrella of the frst Bronx River Restoration project), this multi-arts centre and increased violence”, which rather suggests a poor has flled the West Farms community of the Bronx with art and outcome [8]. While for theorist Paul Virillio, in addition to environmental experiences. Our programs are designed to encourage degrading memory and the collective imagination, digital our residents to engage in creative activism towards the revitalisation technologies efect “de-corporation”, which leaves the body and future of their neighbourhood. “torn and disintegrated”. (www.bronxriverart.org)

Flux Factory began in 1994, in an old spice factory in Williamsburg, New York City. It was founded as an informal artist collective to create an alternative platform to the commercial gallery scene. About four years later, with a new stage built and twice as many members, the Flux Factory living room evolved into a site for art events and performances of all kinds. Flux became an ofcial 501 (c)(3) non- proft in 1999 and moved to 43rd Street in Long Island City, Queens in 2002. (www.fuxfactory.org)

(www.elsewhereelsewhere.org)

initiatives. initiatives.

community events, international residency program, and educational educational and program, residency international events, community

to investigate creative collaboration, through the living museum, museum, living the through collaboration, creative investigate to

of contributors over a 9 year period. Today, Elsewhere is a space space a is Elsewhere Today, period. year 9 a over contributors of

and surplus, has become a living installation curated by hundreds hundreds by curated installation living a become has surplus, and

three story building, housing one woman’s 58 year collection of thrift thrift of collection year 58 woman’s one housing building, story three

perspectives.” [10]

e e T store. thrift former a inside set museum living a is Elsewhere

connote transitioning, crossing borders, and changing changing and borders, crossing transitioning, connote

consciousness…conduits, and connectors that that connectors and consciousness…conduits,

(www.elpuentelab.org)

“Bridges are…primal symbols of shifting shifting of symbols are…primal “Bridges

social transformation. transformation. social

accompany processes of education, communication and urban and and urban and communication education, of processes accompany

For Gloria Anzaldúa: Anzaldúa: Gloria For tool of activation of cultural projects that initiate, facilitate and / or or / and facilitate initiate, that projects cultural of activation of tool

social context where they are carried out, using artistic creativity as a a as creativity artistic using out, carried are they where context social

c needs of the the of needs c f speci the meet Lab Puente El by developed projects . future scarce resource the in survival than [9]

and experts through a strategy of international co-operation. co-operation. international of strategy a through experts and e e T

manners and mores that may enable us something more more something us enable may that mores and manners

on a local level, building bridges of communication with artists artists with communication of bridges building level, local a on

they are composing and performing, in the present, the the present, the in performing, and composing are they

active in Medellín, Colombia, which aims to develop cultural projects projects cultural develop to aims which Colombia, Medellín, in active

by which the future will be shaped”, then at the very least least very the at then shaped”, be will future the which by

is a platform for artistic and cultural production, production, cultural and artistic for platform a is El Puente Lab Puente El

guring the social relationships relationships social the guring f “pre actually not If describes.

individualistic world of “mortal combatants” that Anzaldua Anzaldua that combatants” “mortal of world individualistic

practices or artistic engagements. artistic or practices

human need, they break away from the hierarchical, hierarchical, the from away break they need, human each “Listening Station” because a hub for a range of artistic artistic of range a for hub a because Station” “Listening each

and relating in ways that privilege interdependence and and interdependence privilege that ways in relating and (SPAN) archive continues to grow through this process because because process this through grow to continues archive (SPAN)

alternatives to normative modes of discourse. By organising organising By discourse. of modes normative to alternatives e e T practice. their of record or archive an create to (SPAN)

repression and recuperation, both phenomena are engaging engaging are phenomena both recuperation, and repression below have agreed to conduct “Listening Sessions” with with Sessions” “Listening conduct to agreed have below

intent or the capacity of the occupations to withstand withstand to occupations the of capacity the or intent the following Hub Locations. (SPAN) and each of the groups groups the of each and (SPAN) Locations. Hub following the

c social practice project’s political political project’s practice social c f speci a of Regardless e following “Listening Stations” have been established in in established been have Stations” “Listening following e T Appendix

Planning and felicity have provided Jules Rochielle’s Te primary objective of (SPAN) is to connect people and growing archive of social practices with a singularly ideas; connecting things that may be disconnected and appropriate acronym. Arising from and participating in visualising things that could be connected, exploring the contemporary conditions, the Social Practices Art Network possible outcomes once these bonds are made. (SPAN) is a tool by which the artist/archivist and her collaborators operate as both bridge builders and surveyors Initially, (SPAN) was created out of an artist’s personal in a plane of proliferating social practices. need to generate possibilities for economic survival and a belief in the potential that is generated through building a Te audio interviews, articles and links that comprise collaborative and connected creative community. Perhaps, (SPAN)’s website, and the real space “listening stations” by even out of the belief that our ability to fnd new ways of which Rochielle probes social and community practices in working and supporting one another is equivalent to our specifc locales, foster both present and future relationship survival on the planet. As artists and citizens of this planet, networks. At the same time, (SPAN)’s record of actions it is essential to our survival that we continue to fnd a way undertaken and memories spoken generates a dynamic of feeding and empowering one another. diagram of distributed activities that may well, in a society where human need is not yet privileged, otherwise remain As an artist, (SPAN) became a practice of navigating my local, intimate, invisible. own economic reality, moving out of a frame of isolation into a place of connection, propelled by the intrinsic knowledge that the body needs nourishment to thrive and that the network created through the community building of (SPAN) is an umbilical cord that can ofer this much needed nourishment. Building this cord that threads us together can lead us to discover new ways of working together in an expanded framework of practice.

Jules Rochielle

people.

the voice of an international network comprised of these these of comprised network international an of voice the

other types of socially engaged thinkers – these tune into into tune these – thinkers engaged socially of types other

about various socially engaged artists, art collectives and and collectives art artists, engaged socially various about

Listening Sessions are a method of collecting information information collecting of method a are Sessions Listening

interviews and conversations. conversations. and interviews

located online and sometimes are exhibited as an archive of of archive an as exhibited are sometimes and online located

with individual artists or groups. Listening Stations are are Stations Listening groups. or artists individual with

represent various collaborations or conversations held held conversations or collaborations various represent

Listening Station is a digital community archive. community digital a is Station Listening A ese ese T

Janet Owen Driggs Owen Janet

Stations” and “Listening Sessions”. Sessions”. “Listening and Stations” smell the bodies. bodies. the smell

of (SPAN) happens through the activation of “Listening “Listening of activation the through happens (SPAN) of happens on the ground. We come together, close enough to to enough close together, come We ground. the on happens

e primary practice or enactment enactment or practice primary e T exchange. social larger a action and venture out to join you. We plan a project that that project a plan We you. join to out venture and action

intervention into an existing social system that can catalyse catalyse can that system social existing an into intervention kinds of space, the virtual and the real. I learn about your your about learn I real. the and virtual the space, of kinds

creation” between myself and others, it becomes a critical critical a becomes it others, and myself between creation” relationship networks that operate in and through two two through and in operate that networks relationship

media and art/life performance. By using a model of ”co- of model a using By performance. art/life and media of the digital in support of the physical, SPAN facilitates facilitates SPAN physical, the of support in digital the of

it is a form of social sculpture that makes use of interactive interactive of use makes that sculpture social of form a is it visualising things that can be connected”. An example example An connected”. be can that things visualising

incorporating diverse media art strategies and interventions, interventions, and strategies art media diverse incorporating of connecting things that may not be connected and and connected be not may that things connecting of

e process put forward by (SPAN) is a Social Practice; Practice; Social a is (SPAN) by forward put process e T is network”, writes Rochielle, “is a performance performance a “is Rochielle, writes network”, is T “

Trough (SPAN) I decided to map my own process of navigating this terrain and to create a network as an experiment in community building. (SPAN) is about creating a social space through which to engage people in conversation and exchange, building connections while ending the silence that exists between us; (SPAN) is the exploration of possibilities created through both formal and informal networks.

Te work of (SPAN) primarily happens in two locations: my home in Los Angeles and in Brooklyn, NY. Te initial layer of outreach is often done online through various forms of social media and via recorded Skype calls that create links to local, national and international communities of artists. One of the set intentions of (SPAN) is to create a resource for individuals, organisations, community groups and institutions that are interested in new genre arts forms and practices. It is meant to serve as an online platform for a variety of socially engaged creative practices.