Serina Bernstein—FROM SITE TO COMMUNITY

 

Questions:

 

1.     "In addition to Lacy's commemorative boulders (which was only one of two parts of her contribution to the program; part two consisted of a ceremonial all-women dinner." (102) Why only females for the dinner?

2.     "Culture Action was defined not in terms of material objects but by the ephemeral processes of interaction between the local participants and the artists. Furthermore, the interactions were not restricted, at least in principle, to the time frame of the exhibition itself." (104) Why and how would the interaction continue, is it a mutually initiated continuation? What would that look like?

3.      "New genre public artists seek to engage (non-art) issues in the hearts and minds of the average man on the street or real people." (108) Why is art an effective way to create change, what about art making is unique from other forms of political engagement/activism?

4.     "For Mac Donald's community activism is not only against government interference in community issues; it is about 'bucking a long political tradition […] that champions radical individualism, disparages middle-class values, and reserves particular contempt for gentrification." (114) How do people reconcile their own desires with their desires for the wellbeing of the mass, or particularly the disenfranchised?

5.     "[Culture Action] Lauded by some as one of the most important public art events in North America in the 20^th century and criticized for its exploitation of communities and or reduction of art to a kind of ineffectual social work." (103) How can art activism be considered as effectual social work, how can this be measured?

 

Take-Aways:

1.     Community-specific is the new site-specific. (109)

2.     New genre public art is a pragmatic form. (108)

3.     A community is a construction that must be determined and identified based on certain guidelines. (109)

4.     New genre public art aims to "[shrink] the distance between the traditionally separate poles of production and reception." (109)

5.     New genre public art is distinct from public art in the manner that it engages the community with relevant issues. "We might describe this as "new genre public art," to distinguish it in both form and intention from what has been called "public art"—a term used for the past twenty-five years to describe sculpture and installations sited in public places." (105)