20 Feb TYB – Critique with Hayley Locke
What is the work?
Creating a space for encounter for Mothers & Babies at the Craobh Rua Community House. Considering site specificity and the social context, allowing the work to be a space for non art audience and create a platform for their responses and engagement.
Why are you doing it?
To see work in a new context, to collaborate with 3 other artists, to fulfill the remit of the grant awarded, to engage and co produce new work with audience: Mothers & Babies.
What is your material investigation?
Ground based forms, tactile relational objects, art to be in not just look at. Drawing as language – childrens language. Labyrinth as womb, metaphor for journey – labyrinth on the floor. Considering the work as a tool.
Does the material inform your practice and if so, how?
Yes, safety, floor, comfort, texture and surface dictates function. Fabric made by children for children. Mirroring as a form of mother/baby interaction, how we learn non verbally – mirroring as a language in digital printing. Material attempts to capture and deliver desired outcomes for audience
Mothers: Comforting, cocoon, restful
Babies: Puzzle, play, touch
What did you discover from your writing workshop with Lara?
The 3 columns exercise focused my writing. I produced 3 sentences that I will continue to work with. Some are still too vague.
- My practice uses a collaborative approach with participants, we create soft sculptural objects to interact with (co producers).
- In non art environments (outside a gallery context) we create spaces for encounters.
- In this space, is the experience about time for encounter, a novelty interaction or can a deeper meaningful relationship with the ritual of making be nurtured. (making extending to relationships, dialogue and creating together)
Are they any key artists, philosophers, writers that are central to your practice?
Nicholas Bourriaud – Relational Aesthetics, Boris Achour – Games whos rules I choose to ignore, Helio Oticica – Tropicalia (1967) Parangoles – exploring the rituals of Brazialian culture, colour, dance, costume as sculpture in both art and non art contexts. Phenomenology “expressing complex human realities”. Katerine Grosse – Digital printing of painting/drawing, draping and suspending. The solid minimalist forms by Iran de Spirito Santo ‘Untitled Corrections D’ 2008
What are the links between your making, thinking, reading and reflecting?
Hickey – Air Guitar: Encounters outside of a formalized art space
Bourriaud – Relational Aesthetics: Exploring methods for art and encounter
Whitechapel – A Manual for the 21c Art Institution: Context & Audience
Jacobs – Situations-Rules of Public Art: Creating a supportive environment, listen (deeply), trust, care. (see blog post for expanded notes)
In the session we will be analysing a small number of artists works that present questions around material and context to help you sift through your own ideas in readiness for your 500 word CS abstract.
Additional discussions with peers included a call/correspondence with Stefan Schaffeld on audience engagement. Email correspondence with Brigitte reflecting on writing.