THE OTHER SIDE OF WHITE WALLS
A COLLABORATIVE ZINE BY PAIGE LANDESBERG, RAQUEL HUNG, AND ROD SAWYER 2017
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The authors of this zine are three young artists, all with varying experiences and perspectives. One thing that connects us is that we have all have privileged access to cultural resources through higher education. Another thing that connects us more closely is a passionate belief that creative work has power, socially, culturally, politically to better our experience. The final thing that makes our connection unique is that we all operate under the assumption that creative work means more than traditional art world artist-practice. We are all actively working to break down the illusion that the best place to experience creative work is within white-walled art world institutions. 2
Who gets to be considered a professional artist, and what is considered legitimate creative work is culturally limited to those of us who have access to certain spaces and resources. However, as you will find in this zine, the venues and contexts for creative work are everywhere; and the way creative process looks is different for everyone.
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This zine will be comprised of three sections, each representing a different author’s research pursuits on these ideas. By posing our separate explorations of art, process, economy and community next to eachother, we weave a narrative that reimagines creative work at large.
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Contents Reimagining Creative Work Paige Landesberg
Graffiti as Community Practice Rod Sawyer
Creative Process as Social Healing Raquel Hung
Conclusion: Why a zine? Bios
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Reimagining ReimaginingCreative CreativeWork Work
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paige landesberg paige landesberg
Key terms Art World The industry in which contemporary art (typically grounded in visual art) is bought and sold. Art World Institutions The venues and organizing structures for viewing artworks that support the Art World and often act as a middle man between artists and Art World patrons Key terms
Art World The industry in which contemporary art (typically
Cultural Products grounded in visual art) is bought and sold. The output of artist work that is commodWorld Institutions itized, Art typically art objects- like sculptures, The venues and organizing structures for viewing artworks that support the Art WorldArt andWorld often act as a for purchase, typically through middle man between artists and Art World patrons. institutions. Actual World This term is used throughout this book to refer to any people, places and industries that do not interact with Creative work the Art World. Literally speaking, the Art World is most definitely a part of the actual world. The ability to make An intentionally termbutused to this division isloose problematic helpfulto in refer explaining some concepts, for lack of clearer terms. the cultural and economic contributions that
artists make to society, which is not limited to Products makingCultural cultural The output ofproducts. artist work that is commoditized, typically art objects- like sculptures, for purchase, typically through Art World institutions.
Artist Creative work An intentionally loose to refer to the cultural This book will usecontributions the term termused artist tomake refer and economic that artists to society, which not limited to making products. specifically to ispeople who havecultural chosen to pursue a career producing creative work.
Artist This book will use the term artist to refer specifically to people who have chosen to pursue a career producing creative work.
Utilitarian use-value This term, similar to Marx’s use-value, will be Utilitarian use-value term,to similar Marx's use-value, will be used used toThis refer howtoobjects and occurrencto refer to how objects and occurrances function in a literal way. example, a cell phone's utilitarianausees function in aForliteral way. For example, value is to make phone calls and send text messages. cell phone’s utilitarian use- value is to make phone Symbolic calls and send text messages. use-value This term will be used to refer to how objects and occurances point to other ideas outside of themself. For example, the symbolic use-value of the latest iPhone model is to indicate a level of economic access and Symbolic social use-value status.
This term will be used to refer to how objects and occurrences point to other ideas outside Economic use-value This term, similar to Marx's exchange-value, will be of themselves. symbolic used to referFor to theexample, potential forthe something to be bought This usevalue responds to the use-value ofand thesold. latest iPhone model is to rules of the capitalist market and is isolated from the other twoaforms use- value. For example,access an iPhoneand has a indicate highoflevel of economic higher economic use-value than a Nokia flip phone. social status.
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Why question the art world, anyway? Contemporary art is an industry which offers great benefits to artists; For starters: payment, since it’s the market where artwork is bought and sold, visibility through having exhibitions, status through selling highly priced work or even being represented at all within the industry, cultural capital through networking and access to resources, and a place in art history, since the Art World writes the script. But it is also highly exclusive, and caters most to the ruling class, since they are the purchasers of artwork and the funders of institutions and projects. Corporations and wealthy Art World patrons financially fuel the industry, and in turn most of the products are designed in favor of their values and historical narratives. In this sense, the Art World as an industry loses sight of art’s purpose as a tool for expression and communication; often framing it solely as a strategy for making money. This industry standard leaves little opportunity for expanding creative discourses outside of the Art World, in communities and industries of varying economic classes and perspectives. And in turn, artists become laborers within an insular field, where their potential to open minds is limited to those who can afford access, and relate to the practices of the Art World.
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A perfect example of this is the New Contemporary exhibition at The Art Institute of Chicago, which opened in 2015 and represents Edlis and Neeson's donation of their estimated $400 million art collection. The collection includes numerous artworks of Warhol, Jasper Johns, Jeff Koons, and other big name artists who are exhibited on repeat at every major art museum in the country.
How do we deal with this conundrum?
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Create opportunities for artists to do creative work outside of the Art World, in other industries and communities
By placing artists outside of the Art World, we create opportunities for critical thought and creative communication across economic classes
Which in turn would allow creative work to have greater impact as a tool for communication and expression, since it would reach more people in more places.
OK, I’m sold. so where is this happening? What are the platforms for this type of creative work?
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This will expand the job description of artist to include positions in government, finance, education, science, etc., etc.
This would create the possibility of art for anyone, not just for those who have privileged access
This requires incorporating more collaborative practices, where the artist is no longer working all day alone in a studio.
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Caroline Woolard Woolard is an artist who creates collaborative systems and projects for the solidarity economy, based in ideas around economic reform through cooperation and sustainability. In addition to a studio practice, her work includes city housing coops, bartering networks, and artist resource collections. Eyebeam Eyebeam is a non-profit collaborative studio that supports research and education for artists experimenting with technology with the goal of fostering social justice and imagination
Fritz Haeg Haeg partners with all kinds of families in different environments to convert their front lawns into “edible estates�; climate-specific productive food gardens. Projects are supported by arts organizations as well horticultural and agricultural organizations.
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Frances Whitehead Whitehead is a self-proclaimed “designist� hybridizing the role of the artist and designer. She founded the Embedded Artist Project which places local Chicago artists within the government of the City of Chicago to give artists a voice in local policy through sustainability and site-driven initiatives.
Mierle Laderman Ukeles Ukeles is the first and only artist-in-residence at the NYC Department of Sanitation. She collaborates with city workers to reconsider urban land use, and also creates projects that reconsider the value of maintenance in society.
Chicago Arts Partnerships in Education CAPE is a public and privately funded organisation that partners Chicago Public School teachers with contemporary artists in order to co-design curricula in public schools. Artist/teacher partnerships within CAPE are long term and foster interdiscplinary modes of research for kids through arts integration.
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Ideas and methods for distribution of creative work without Art World support
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CONTRIBUTE PODCASTS Podcasts are an awesome free CREATIVELY IN way to exchange stories and ideas. YOUR WORK PLACE You don’t need fancy equipment to record; most cell phones and comOR NEIGHBORHOOD puters have recording capabilities. The communities you are a part of professionally and at home may or may not already celebrate creative work. Think about where there might be room for creative work and try to find ways to make it happen. Reach out to local organizations and offer to help organize.
It’s free to upload a podcast and anyone can access it. Some cool podcasts to give you ideas are: Howsound StartUp (season 1) Transom Bad at Sports **Find in the podcast ap
ADVOCATE FOR ARTS IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS
BLOGS
ZINES
SKILLSHARES
All over the country, but especially in Chicago Public Schools, funding for visual arts is getting cut all the time. This takes away a major development resource for children as well as a career resource for artists. Donate or speak up on this issue!
zines can be about ANYTHING and given out ANYWHERE. People distribute them in coffee shops, on street corners, through the mail, at events, parties, wherever! Learn more about zine-making on instructables.com’s “Guide to Zine Making”: http://www.instructables. com/id/Guide-To-Zine-Making/
Creating your own blog is free and easy as well. If you want to share music, images, or writing, this is an easy option. Free sites: Wordpress.com Blogger.com
You have skills. Your friends have skills. Share them! Whether through hosting events or one on one exchanges, offer to teach someone about a skill or knowledge set you have in exchange for learning someone elses. Trade a cooking lesson for an Squarespace or web lesson. Learn more about bartering communities through Trade School, at: http://tradeschool.coop/about/
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Graffiti as Community Practice
rod sawyer Key terms Graffiti The marking or painting of a surface. Writing An alternative term to “graffiti” due to the negative connotations the word graffiti tends to carry. Tag A signature of the writer’s name. Throw-up A simple bubble or straight letter piece. These take longer to create than tags, but less time to create than standard pieces. Pieces A painting by a writer that includes letters, multiple color patterns, and takes longer than a tag or throw-up to create. Pieces usually have more complex in letter structure. Productions/Murals Large-scale pieces that usually include complex letter structure, characters, abstraction, or realistic characteristics. Outsider Art Art created outside of what is currently considered “normal”. Can be categorized but not limited to the use of different materials, mediums, or created by those who would not normally consider themselves or be considered artists.
Self-expression How one chooses to present certain ideas, feelings, or thoughts that pertain to their character or experiences. Institution An organization or establishment usually governed by a certain systematic structure. Bombing Painting multiple places in rapid succession, usually with throw-ups or tags. Spots Different places where writers choose to paint. Space A specific area and the physical, mental, and emotional characteristics that it carries. The Buff The city enforced cover-up of graffiti, usually brown, white, gray, etc. Narrative The true stories of an individual that convey their life experiences. Legality Right or wrong as it pertains to the law, and not necessarily as it pertains to morality. Identity The character, qualities, beliefs, and individual characteristics that make up a person.
Today within America we pride ourselves on exposure to a wide variety of narratives of different people with different cultures. While a lot of stories are shared, a lot of stories are ignored and silenced. The purpose of my work is to explore the power of personal narratives within Chicago communities through the use of Graffiti.
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Many communities where people of color reside (specifically black and brown residents of all income levels) are under-served and under-supported socially and economically. Subcultures give people of color a chance to work outside the boundaries drawn for them by those who don’t understand the context in which their work is created. Graffiti has been an important underground culture that allows participants to break away from conditions within their neighborhoods. My work explores the ways that graffiti has created an outlet for black and brown communities that is essential fo r a sense of self-worth, preservation of identity, and unity. These quotes are from interviews I conducted with each artist.
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“A lot of us don’t have too much in common, and what’s dope is that it’s people of all backgrounds. You got that common ground that you can speak on, which is obviously graffiti.”
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“I call it writing. Graffiti is a derogatory term created by the media that allows the question of ‘Is this really art?’ to take place. If you call it that the conversation doesn’t even get entered to.”
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“I’m a big believer of letting my work speak for myself. Oftentimes when we’re painting in the communities, people walk by and say why don’t you paint this instead of that, but really sometimes it’s about creating that conversation with people and letting them know why we paint what we paint.”
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“One of my frustrations with it is that the people organizing these events, I don’t think they’re trying to make it a white space, I don’t think it’s a goal of theirs but I think it just ends up being that way because their not allocating the proper time to invite people of color to come. We need to be invited, we’re here.”
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Creative Process as Social Healing
raquel hung
Key terms Creative Process The process that individuals experience when producing art- this includes the visual arts (drawing, painting, sculpture, film, photography) as well as the expressive arts (dance, music, performance). Factors including memory, everyday experiences, interactions, and emotion are all involved when engaging the creative process. **it is important to note that the creative process itself is not exclusively oriented towards generating an end product. Artwork conception and idea development are both important parts of the creative process that do not involve the actual act of making art. (for a more detailed definition see “ ‘How Do You Feel About That?’: Creative Process as Social Healing” pg. ____, available as a PDF at www.raattack.com) Creative Production Any act of active creating or making that is engaged through various processes **This is not limited to what is traditionally defined as ‘art’ in hegemonic discourse. Creative production involves anything that utilizes creative thought including things like knitting and cooking Communal Spaces of Creative Production Spaces that facilitate dialogue between individuals using the creative process and creative production as mediators. These spaces hold potential for a type of social healing that is unique to the creative process. The exchange of both information and resources between participants in these spaces is essential in their effectiveness. EXAMPLES: knitting/crochet circles, painting parties, dance off’s. Any space where there are multiple individuals producing creatively together. (for a more detailed definition, see “ ‘How Do You Feel About That?’: Creative Process as Social Healing” pg. ____, available as a PDF at www.raattack.com)
Although the marginalization of particular groups of people in the United States is nothing new, the Trumpian era has ushered in a level of openly publicized acts of discrimination that are the accumulation of social tensions that have been building for years. Trump is merely the exemplification of these already existent social tensions. We are witnessing an active rise in prejudice, bigotry, and hate, and many of us feel helpless as to what we can do about it. A rise in hate crimes is being witnessed in the Trump era: There was a spate of claims of hate crimes in the US on Thursday, November 10 made on social media and to police, in which the alleged victims said abusers in some way cited Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential election. Social media was rife with accounts of sometimes violent incidents of hate targeted at Muslims, Latinos, and African Americans. (Sidahmed, 2016)
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Social and political change happen through dialogue. Communal spaces of creative production have the potential to facilitate important conversations through the creative process and creative production that promote consciousness raising in regard to the current socio-political atmosphere. The creative process and creative production act as important mediators in having these conversations and have the power to make individuals feel safer and more open to dialogue, and ultimately have the potential to initiate social and political change. In a time when a large portion of individuals are being subjected to discrimination and bigotry, these spaces act as a way for these individuals to feel safe and have their voices heard in ways that they have not been able to access in other places/spaces.
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Below are a few online resources for art-making and creative production. These sites offer ideas, projects and methods for your own creative endeavors.
www.thevirtualinstructor.com This site provides individuals interested in painting and drawing with tool lists and descriptions about the features of different materials as well as links to pages that explore the fundamentals of art, including color theory and the elements and principles of art and design. There are tutorials and options to submit your art for an online critique, although a paid membership is required to access these. Everything else is free.
www.instructables.com This site is a place where you can explore, document, and share your creations. Through free information exchange, individuals can access step-by-step DIY tutorials and users are able to rate, critique, question, and dialogue about projects as well submit general questions and answers regarding projects.
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www.artistsnetwork.com This site provides free tutorials for art making, including painting and drawing. These are categorized as art lessons by genre, drawing lessons, and medium-specific painting lessons.
www.craftster.org This is an online community where people can share DIY (do-it-yourself) craft projects. There are tutorials for individuals who need some guidance on projects as well as forums where you can ask questions and share ideas. Forums are classified into 30 major categories including knitting, crochet, pottery, jewelry and trinkets, cooking, and image reproduction techniques.
www.meetup.com Meetup is a site that brings people together based on hobbies and interests. You are able to select different categories including arts, hobbies & crafts, book clubs, music, dance, and much, much more & find groups in your area that meet up to do these things. It’s a fantastic way to meet people who are interested in the same kinds of things you are, and brings people together to talk, support, and teach each other!
**if you are interested in tutorials and techniques regarding a specific project or medium, often you will be able to find resources by simply doing a Google search of the information you need to know.
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the following pages contain suggestions on creative activities you can do if you aren’t sure how to begin creating. the activities presented can be done alone, but also work very well in a group setting. for more activity ideas & tutorials you can visit any of the websites previous mentioned; instructables.com is especially useful. 11 enjoy!
** i will be updating my blog at www.raattack. com with more creative activities- stay tuned!
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Self-publishing is one way that that people can claim space for their creative work to exist without requiring a white-walled room for display or any form of institutional approval. Historically, zines have been taken up by various subculture groups as a way to share ideas without permission or a motive to profit. They have been used as a strategy not only by those who identify as artists, but also feminists, queers, punks, prisoners, geeks, children, politicians, religious groups, and so on. They can be cheap and fast to make, requiring no art-based skill set and very little technology, and easy to give out, making self-publishing and zine culture largely accessible to the general public. 50
Our decision to self-publish this zine is a result of our refusal to allow our research to be standardized in the form of an academic text whose lifecycle begins and ends within the boundaries of art world institutions. As we finish our time as undergraduate students at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, we hope to use the knowledge gained from this research to expand the limits of art and creative production, giving them the potential to reach a broader audience.
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bios. Paige Landesberg Paige Landesberg is an interdisciplinary artist from Westchester, New York currently living and working in Chicago, Illinois. Her work often takes the forms of print media, podcasting, writing and self-publishing. Through a collaborative, research-based approach to art making, Paige interogates the role of the artist in contemporary society as well as how creative work becomes a cultural resource to people of all economic classes. To learn more about her work: www.paigelandesberg.net www.theprocessandthebrief.com
Rod Sawyer Roderick Sawyer is an artist from the south side of Chicago. Rod uses photography, videography, and writing as ways of expressing and exploring his own personal narratives as well as the personal narratives of others. Rod uses his thesis research as a space to explore the personal narratives of black and brown communities throughout Chicago. To learn more about his work:
Raquel Hung Raquel Hung is a creative producer, researcher, & writer who was born in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire and raised in Madison, WI. She is interested in the intersection of creative practice and community, and is specifically focused on exploring the ways that art and creative practice facilitate different types of communication & how this can positively influence and impact local communities. To learn more about her work: www.raattack.com
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