Braving the Domain

Braving the Public Domain – M1.2 VL2

Professional Context – Notes

Notion of Audience – Response to work what does an audience bring to the work.

Once in the public domain you are surrending your work, it is not yours anymore.

Understanding the Audience

How do we wish to be judged? – I want to be judged on the standard of my work and the reasoning behind why I create the work.

Who do we relate to? – I relate to artists such as Francis Bacon, the movement in his work, the morphing of the face etc.

How will people engage with the work? Hopefully it will create a discussion!!

Our Intentions – My intention with the work  I am creating at the moment is my reactions and awareness of behaviour in society I believe, but as time goes on I believe my direction my alter and change for fresh inspiration.

Who is looking? Hopefully the general public and I do hope that eventually when the work is seen it is seen positively but that the discourse that runs through it creates discussion.

Why are people looking? I am interested in the type of people that go to galleries, because I think they are a bit of an unknown quantity.

Assumption of the Audience – everyone brings something of themselves even when looking at your work, they view within their world not yours.

Appropriation – Capture the visual image, may not be totally understood

Do we as artists have the control – What you are saying vs what you are showing.

Art works can hold power.

Entertainment the unusual, Body for site of art – Lisa Wesley Studio 31, 2003 status of viewer and model changed throughout the performance.

Think about your intentions as an artist, about control- And the response to that.

Engagement with the audience – TV audiences – collective response, can we manipulate a bond.

Plan work so it is read as you wish it to be read.

As Artists do we provide something?

Image, Music, Text - Roland Barthes – Death of the Author

Birth of the reader at the cost of the author, loss of control

Process of the making, interpretation, giving the world your work.

Freedom of engagement.

Who is the work for? My work is about me but I would like it discussed within the public context, and of course there is a sense of self satisfaction especially when the technical aspect is good, the reason why I have created the piece comes across well.

Test to the viewer, attention, learning, community benefit.

Artist, strive, rigour, integrity

Free of constraint, contextual requirement, constraints, value for money, pressure of commerce, financial security.

7 Days in the Art World

Charles Saatchi

Helen Paris – Curious, target audience, audience engagement

Is their a need, professional, common ground, relationship between maker and viewer. A suppression of artists intention

Audience a real experience it may not be interactive

Bridget Riley- High Sky 2 1992

Articulate, bold, hold the viewer, retainment in the mind of the viewer.

Success, -  critical, audience, mass, debate, unpick what we want

So consider carefully, thoughtfully the response of the audience, unpick, challenge, show work, the critiqued work.         

Developing Professional Knowledge and Competence

Developing Professional Knowledge and Competence

Eraute, m. (1994) Routledge, London

Chapter 3 Kinds of Professional Knowledge: Modes of Knowledge. Use of Knowledge Creation. – Notes

Introduction – The need to consider professional learning, the form in which learning takes place and the phases. The chapter explains the framework for developing studying and learning and interdependence of the various aspects.

The first part is about knowledge use.

The second part considers the problem of knowledge creation.

Different Kinds of Professional Knowledge.

Mapping knowledge, construction, labelling and perception.

There is a clear distinction between ‘technical knowledge’ and ‘practical knowledge’ so Technical knowledge can be written codification, but practical knowledge is uncodifiable in principle, - Knowledge that is non-verbal such as a musical instrument or a piece of sculpture even a painting.

There is a relationship between comment and action, intuitive nature does make attempts of describe, to criticise is difficult there are differences in theories to consider looking at ‘Propositional Knowledge.’

Discipline based theories and concepts – coherent, systematic knowledge.

Generalisations and practical principles – applied field of professional action.

Specific propositions about particular cases – decisions and actions.

 NB: In an attempt to understand this Chapter I am cutting some of the sentences in an attempt to make it clearer for me personally, so I probably am not grasping the knowledge but this is the best I can do!

“An idea connects with a practical situation in the sense of contributing some understanding of it or to one possible way of construing it; but difficult to persuade a practitioner that it is worth their while to use it.”(1994:43)

So it less about the theoretical knowledge but the ability to use that knowledge in a more efficient way and the introduction of that knowledge.

Analysis of ‘Method’ by Buchler(1961)

So when I look at the way I work as an artist and what I am learning as in the theoretical knowledge that will expand my knowledge and my practice so by using the framework by Buchler(1961) I can analysis my method.

So I have decided that methodically I choose a mode of conduct(1) to a particular set of circumstances(3) for the attainment of a result(4)

However these factors each assume different forms for me it would be established practice modified by idiosyncratic technique(1c)

This procedure is utilised loosely, variable and with a discretionary relation to prescription(2b)

So the result toward which the activity aims maybe (4a) an envisaged or familiar type of result.

Modes of Knowledge

Oakeshott distinction between technical and practical knowledge is based on an understanding that technical knowledge is used systematically and explicitly and yet practical knowledge is used idiosyncratically and implicitly this is a very limited view point especially for an artist.

Because researching practical knowledge alongside the theoretical knowledge broadens the way an artist may define a piece of work, or help in a change of direction, the two co - joined examinations allows development.

The four Modes of Knowledge

Replication, Application, Interpretation, Association

So replication of knowledge is knowledge that is learnt, applied and then used as part of the process repeatedly. Then the knowledge is understood and applied into practice.

Broady explorers the issue of understanding and judgement “Identifies understanding with the interpretative mode of knowledge use. Concepts, theories and intellectual disciplines provide us with way of construing situations; and our understanding is shaped by the interpretative use of such theoretical knowledge, Perspectives or ‘ways of seeing’ provide the basis for our understanding of situations and hence the grounds for justifying our actions, but cannot be simply designated as right or wrong”(1994:49)

The way we use the intuitive mode of knowledge can be associative especially for an artist, because of the wide variety of styles and skills reflected, an artist can gain an understanding but extends this understanding by using their intuition, which I believe extends our understanding and interpretations of work.

Contexts of Use

The concept of knowledge use a mapping of knowledge bases intertwined with the practicality of production of work in visual capacity. So the assumption that practical knowledge is based on context and that theoretical knowledge is context free, clashes with my believe of the MA within the context of Fine Art, because the practical knowledge is there within the background which is extended on through learning new techniques, in doing this expands this blanket, and yet the theoretical knowledge underpins all of these techniques, because theoretical knowledge allows the artist to expand their ideas and understanding of their own work, the practical and theoretical works side by side.

Knowledge Creation and Development

The study of creation is a diverse subject matter and cannot be rigidly set once again there is a framework that is discussed within this Chapter.

Furthermore it is discussed that knowledge creation and development maybe not be separated because ideas come from sort of influence, and there are a lot interconnected knowledge based criteria’s that become interacted with one another.

Higher Education and the Profession

Eraute attempts to reconceptualise the relationship between the higher education and professionals, continual education is not narrowed with continual attendance to courses relevant to the field in which the person works but can be extended and interacted on.

“That knowledge creation, knowledge use and continuing education are highly interdependent”(1994:57)

In recognising that knowledge that expands beyond the rigid structures, can enhance an individual’s capacities within the professional context.

Learning Journal

Learning Journal – Notes

          So a Learning Journal is more than an academic interest in the human process of reflection. However is a vehicle for reflection on guidance, encouragement, questions and on exercises leading to a revue that can have a worthwhile consequence to my learning and artistic development.

          Within the MA I believe it is a document that could be considered as recording of evidence like a portfolio that reflects my work and the progression of the work as well as a record of my reading, in using a blog site I can reflect and create a commentary that is continuous and as time goes on will grow and expand allowing me also to retain knowledge gained and debated but not just as a private log or diary. The blog site is also a reference for other students and Lecturers to see my development but also my reflective documentation. As stated on page 2 – Background.

“In this book, by ‘learning journal’ we refer to an accumulation of material that is mainly based on the writer’s processes of reflection. This accumulation is made over a period of time, not in one go”.

My blog is one main place for me to show my creative processes, my past work, and then there are extended areas that has enabled me to include the other subject matters on the MA course which are ‘Visual Enquiry’ and Contextual learning’ in doing this it has enabled me to work across all the subject matters individually but also to pull these individual aspects together in one place, so there can develop a cross over between the subjects.

“Education, as Friere noted rightly, can be used to free people or to domesticate them; when students write reflectively, I think they are being liberated. (Sanford, 1988) page 6 Backgrounds.

          I also use my blog as a way of not only referencing my work but also as a record of the varies stages that I explore through a painting, and as time goes on to explore why a painting does not work, and when a painting works and by recording these happenings to develop more of an understanding and a language as well. Furthermore the more I use the blog as a site of exploration of my work and as a learning tool I will be able to extend the vision through my paintings.

“Her meticulously recorded material on the four years of – what she called – an ‘uncomfortable experience’ led her to see painting as an interplay between objective and subjective views of the world: ‘imagination and action, dream and reality, incorporated environment and external environment” (Milner, 1957:129). Page 6 Backgrounds.

As I work on the blog and as I work at developing my art, the two become intertwined like a network and the root of all of the building and in keeping the information, visual and written is to strengthen the theoretical and practical essence of reflection.       

Curators on Audiences

Curators and Audiences – Notes

A chapter in discussion with international theatre and performance producers.

Annemie Vanackere – Programme director of the Rotterdamse Schouwburg in the Netherlands.

Christine Peters - from Frankfurt, preparing the Theater de Welt Festival in Stuttgart.

Mark Ball – Director of Fierce! Festival in Birmingham.

Sven Age Birkeland – Director of the Bergen International Theatre in Norway.

Chair: Thomas Frank – Sophiensaele in Berlin.

The first question discussed was ‘Are the audience under estimated and generally curious?’ stated by Heiner Goebbels.

Thomas Frank states that the audience is asked a lot of for instance, they are asked to be open and curious to the production and asked to pay to witness the production, Sven Age Birkeland disagrees he believes the audience isn’t curious enough, he has researched main stream Contemporary galleries, who don’t use just the ‘Art’ to pull the audience in, they use the idea of the café and the entrance fee is free.

I want to disagree with Sven Age Birkeland it isn’t enough to say that the audience isn’t curious enough, art for art’s sake is not what many people are interested in, and they may not have been to an art gallery for years, probably not since school. So often curiosity is what tempts the audience in, especially in today’s climate where there huge financial constraints on the individuals that make up the audience.

Mark Ball talks about how ‘Fierce!’ used to be called ‘Queerfest’ which commented on queer culture, this was researched when the numbers of the audience that attended were not great. Within this investigation it was discovered that straight audiences were not attending because of the ‘queer’ tone and guy audiences were put off because the tone of the work wasn’t touching the audience. Therefore the name was changed to ‘Fierce!’ they continued to present challenging and innovative work but broadened that concept, in doing this numbers have doubled, it has become a social event.

Ball states that if you just present the work as work without thinking about the value of the audience then it is hard to grow audiences.

What Ball is stating is absolutely right in my opinion, attempting to understand your audience and attempting to expand on the type of audience by researching and acknowledging the different social, political, even financial aspect of the potential audience and attempting make the work speak to talk to more by expanding rather in than remaining insular and only using one vision the audience will deteriorate rather than expand.

Does an audience appreciate it to get an insight how art is developed and produced? This question was directed to Christine Peters, who was quite critical of the audience stating issues such as:

The audience to not like to see things twice.

Not liking different languages.

Concentration problems.

Doesn’t read the programme, text properly.

Ask stupid questions.

Doesn’t like to see unknown artists.

The audience hates interactive art, however once experienced excited from the performance.

I found the attitude of Christine Peters very arrogant, and there was no attempt to acknowledge the difference facets that make up an audience, in my opinion she is examining the audience as a pack of animals, not capable to intellectualise to her standard, and the poem? ….

Mark Ball continues to talk about being inventive and not assuming that your audience are going to venture into to particular spaces that you often have to look out of the box and develop new relationships with promoters in different venues. He continues that some performances is about establishing relationships between the audience and the artist, in an evangelical way – Franko B

He continues to state that it is about education placing the artist work in context. The audience wants to consume an experience, so it’s about offering something tantalising.

Conclusion

          In my opinion this chapter opens up the debate between how international theatre and performance producers view the audience and how to draw the audience into going to see performances. Furthermore what constitutes an audience and then relating this back to the art and its effect on the audience.

          At the end of the day without the audience the art will be undiscovered and not appreciated; most people who go to see performances are curious to discover something new and are interested in this particular area, or particular members of the audience do need to drawn in especially if they have to pay to see a performance and so I do disagree with some of the comments made by Sven Age Birkeland who makes that statement that the audience are not curious enough, that was an obscure comment to make especially as this chapter is in discussion in front of audience, because curiosity would be a key point for people to attend this discussion.

          I found the comments by Mark Ball mirror my opinions regarding the audience, he has taken time and effort to research and in doing this has broadened the audience, expanded numbers that witness the performances, by expanding on the original format of what use to be ‘Queerfest’ into a cohesive festival ‘Fierce!’ that unites the audience from different cultures together, and in turn unites the audience with the artists, this in turn develops and deepens that relationship.

          When Thomas Frank set the question ‘Does an audience appreciate it to get an insight how art is developed and produced?’ This question was directed to Christine Peters, who was quite critical of the audience as seen from my comments made regarding her reply, I really do struggle with her opinions and her objectives within the realm of discussion, especially in front of an audience participated debate. I appreciate that everyone is entitled to have an opinion, however her comments seemed overtly aggressive and out of place. Because at the end of the day very few people would have an understanding of how art is developed and produced, and if somebody attempting to give an insight into how art is developed and produced reflected that attitude, personally I would switch off! Not everybody is academic, the fact that someone goes to see a production in the first place is a starting point, and often the programme isn’t read, and depending on the performance maybe concentration is lost, but often a discussion develops once the performance has finished.

However I do see her point of view after watching Jamie Oliver’s ‘Dream School’ on Channel 4, one particular episode did show a group of teenagers go to see a performance of ‘Shakespeare’ and they were unruly and did ruin the performance for other members of the audience. However the way she voiced her opinions did cause me to almost disregard her opinions.

Once again referring to the comments made by Mark Ball the importance of the audience creates the need to build and create new relationships and expanding on these relationships. He continues to state that it is about education, placing the artist work in context. The audience wants to consume an experience, so it’s about offering something tantalising, that has a two way reaction between the audience and the artist.

Who is your Audience? Synchronous Seminar 2

Who is your audience?

Synchronous Seminar 2 – 18^th April 2011

Professional Context Lecture Notes

Audience – Conform, ritualistic, traditions and culture, convention and conformity, tribal instincts, accepted norms,

Common understanding rules of behaviour, football match, church

As artist need to consider audience especially with Art, position yourselves with your art

Spencer Tunik – Aletsch – Artist and audience with this work is taking part, observing work as well, duality, perception.

Pyhllida Barlow – double act 2010, recycling avante-guarde experience of art work can a relationship be formed with the artwork within a gallery setting. She has only recently been represented more distanced from viewer. She is represented product and commodity artist is hidden, money into mix shift of expectation, Industry growing away from the artist and audience.

Range of people that connect the work, ie, catalogue, tour guide, interest view and engagement

Paying audience  - theatre performance, film alter expectation put onto artist, pronounce whether acceptable or not.

Commission work alter expectations untold pressure on artist will commissioner like work – who holds power in that relationship.

Look up quote…….. The need for exchange

Interaction work artist face to face with tattoo palour – action hero live art

Agreement between artist and recipient, unknown response, shared experience, unknown quanity

Gypsy and the cat 2010 – growing audience because of utube staged video before the tate, live audience targetted – live art, clearly defined plan, as result have followers.

Own practices who have we have chosen for our work

Group 1: Jonathan, Molly, Hisami

Does the artist have a responsibility to the audience?

i think as artist we have responsibility because some political issues

but is it a responsibility, or an artist´s choice

 

If you choose to do that, you can.

Particularly in an exhibition - to put your point of view across

Engaging with issues

Commissions give a huge responsibility - but you shouldn´t  be tied to that or you are just a designer?

You are responsible but you have to be true to yourself

You are responsible to a critique

You have to think the consequences how audience reflect and response

Group 2: Eleanor, Amelia, Jennifer

How does the artist diversify and widen audiences?

Artist

- change the location for the presentation of your work

- a different community, or environment, or with different types of artists

- translate the work into different media to relate to more people

- use "marketing media" to discuss and promote artwork in order to find a larger audience (cast a wider net)

- change the language you use to describe your work (more accessible descriptions, make connections between different areas of interest)

- Include all language and writing including labels, text, how you as the artist frame and present your work.

- change the location (context) for the placement of work e.g. nightclub, street,

- collaborate with other creative practitioners who have different audiences, channels, work in different mediums

- Placement of leaflets and promotional material

- Intention of the artist (what audience does the artist want to reach, should or does this inform/direct the work itself?)

Curator

- Personal networks and professional networks (other curators, academics, art historians)

- redefining the work (story about the work) in an academic or historical context

Programmer

- tie efforts and exhibition ideas to current events and cultural or social interests

- making artwork relevant for a contemporary audience through interpretation

- communicating to a chosen/desired audience (the goal might not to be entirely inclusive)

   Group 3: Sarah, Jo Keeley, Alexa, James

Does an audience need interpretation of a work?

Group 4: Does an audience need interpretation?

This could be via catalogue, blurb.

Audience may need information given to them to help them to appreciate the work if they are unfamilar with the territory.

Do we need to interpret our audience?

Sometimes we can be too blatant in our interpretation (as artists)

Tate Liverpool, silent disco, stereotypical audience, however, engaged audience through entertainment factor.

Francis Bacon - background knowledge can help interpretation.

Fine line between what is intended and what isn't.

Audience has power when the artist doesn't declare intentions.

Potentially everyone could be the audience, it depends on how actively the audience engages with the work.

Who is intended to be the audience? narrow the audience, people who can personally relate to it.

Curators could be the audience, they chanel work to a wider audience becoming the middle man.

People who don't view art, work taken to school/college students to educate. Intention of the work is to educate and expose individuals to work they wouldn't usually see.

Opinion of the artist, open minds to looking at and engaging with work, audience does sometimes need interpretation.

Does it matter what the audience gets out of your work? Any response can be positive rather than what the artist intended.

Riley needs some context to fully understand the work.

Group 4: Clare, Emma, Sue

Who are the performers, the artists or the audiences?

Group 5: Who are the performers, the artists or the audiences?

Clare: blurred boundaries, depending on artwork, eg recent/current show with The Girls - live tableau, left feeling exposed as audience, unsure if you are audience/participator. etc.

Emma: almost like a reaction to history of waht art has been traditonally - art has to now stop the viewer being passive?

Sue: does this stop the viewer seeing because they become too self-conscious?

Clare: difference between how live art and 'innert' work is viewed and how they relate to each other

Sue: has been trying to photograph work in sea - daughter and other people appear as reflections - unaware audience...

Emma: we make quite traditional work - what does that mean -audience makes up the art work through interpretation - we live in complex society in terms of technology and art market - asks us to position viewer/audience to read our work in the way that we want

Clare: something to be said for leaving interpretation open to extent

Sue: objects viewed over time,

Clare: meanings mediated over time?

Sue: at a performance, need to have reaction at that time, with objects can revisit, reflect more, can touch the work? Needs space around in some circumstances eg depending on material

Emma: physical space?

Sue: yes, encourage people to explore on tactile basis, harder if lots of people around. Can have pressure to move on.

Emma: changes things if able to touch things - galleries etc often touch is prohibited - changes how work is experienced

Clare: living tableau - people unsure how to engage at first

Emma: like Yoko Ono piece - scissors, invite audience to do what they want - they are nervous, start cutting off bits of her dress. When someone cuts off a lot, very violent looking. 1964? Cut away dress, left in underwear, camera fades, very tame compared to today.

Clare: yet still uncomfortable - could stab, cut off hair etc.

Emma: The whole time feels tense, uncomfortable. Also Marina Abramovich did a similar piece.

Clare: with live art easier for boundaries to be blurred? With traditional art objects, everyone more clearly positioned in their roles?

Sue: except for with commission - ppl expect to have input into how work will be. Possibility for negotiation.

Clare: with traditional work, less chance of performance - although can be done performativity

Emma: everything around it that engineers how it is seen becomes the performance - who work is shown beside etc.

Clare: thinking about trying to develop audience at moment

Sue: thinking differently about galleries - creating additional distance between artist and audience. Awareness of choices re exhibiting and audience - good to think about these in advance. What about the financial element?

Clare: would be nice to make some money!

Sue: Feels more nervous about making money since on course. Luck - right piece in right place at right time? Feel embarrassed about the financial aspect - finance over quality?

Emma: too dependent on people buying it?

Sue: not sure how other artists would view it

Emma: think about which artists