29th- Postcard exchange Experimentation
29th-
Postcard exchange Experimentation /Making
From earlier planning
Today I begun my postcard exchange work. I had already planned this piece with the concept of either writing on the clay or breaking the clay into small parts and distributing them separately.
This work centres around authorship and collaboration so I would like these lines to blur within the work. The concept of authorship and authority is something that resonates with me and seems fairly degenerative when creating work that is in any way politically involved. Although the position of the author would be easy to discover, should the work be and explicit tool to this. Or is it there to open the conversational barriers between people regarding the subject.
The concept of it being a postcard is interesting as they originate from around 1840. This is interesting as the same year british colonisers were moving into new zealand as well as other land masses.
1840
British Colonists Arrive In New Zealand, The Treaty of Waitangi was signed in 1840. The British government had sent a representative to New Zealand to calm Maori tribesmen. At Waitangi, in February 1840, the majority of the Maori chiefs agreed to cede sovereignty of the islands to Queen Victoria. In exchange for this they wanted the precedence of own lands and a guarantee of protection.
The same year-
First Postage Stamp, Under a number of reforms proposed by Sir Rowland Hill including a standard price for sending a letter (prior to this, it was the person who received the letter who paid how much was due depending on weight and distance traveled). In 1840, the first stamp is issued which featured a black and white portrait of Queen Victoria costing one penny (more often referred to as the "Penny Black").
Postcard exchange Experimentation /Making
From earlier planning
Today I begun my postcard exchange work. I had already planned this piece with the concept of either writing on the clay or breaking the clay into small parts and distributing them separately.
This work centres around authorship and collaboration so I would like these lines to blur within the work. The concept of authorship and authority is something that resonates with me and seems fairly degenerative when creating work that is in any way politically involved. Although the position of the author would be easy to discover, should the work be and explicit tool to this. Or is it there to open the conversational barriers between people regarding the subject.
The concept of it being a postcard is interesting as they originate from around 1840. This is interesting as the same year british colonisers were moving into new zealand as well as other land masses.
1840
British Colonists Arrive In New Zealand, The Treaty of Waitangi was signed in 1840. The British government had sent a representative to New Zealand to calm Maori tribesmen. At Waitangi, in February 1840, the majority of the Maori chiefs agreed to cede sovereignty of the islands to Queen Victoria. In exchange for this they wanted the precedence of own lands and a guarantee of protection.
The same year-
First Postage Stamp, Under a number of reforms proposed by Sir Rowland Hill including a standard price for sending a letter (prior to this, it was the person who received the letter who paid how much was due depending on weight and distance traveled). In 1840, the first stamp is issued which featured a black and white portrait of Queen Victoria costing one penny (more often referred to as the "Penny Black").
Therefore, the travel of the postcard could be seen as a type of metaphor for other things taking place around that time. I would some how like to tie this in with modern day colonisation concerning our corporate control over other countries and our climate control that impends our own values upon the rest of the world.
This could be done in a number of ways, one concept is using words from very oppressive figures around that time, writing these on the clay and then sashing the work for the viewer to re piece. Another concept is using a quote from books that draw colonialism and the west together- the tempest. This could be juxtaposed by a quote from the UK climate risk assessment of the autumn budget report. The words used would have to be carefully selected however, I would hope the viewer would investigate what those words originate from and then, for themselves, decide the overriding connection.
'An ethical task of the art world is that of cognitive decolonisation-to continue the project of dismantling hierarchies, relinquishing privilege, and standing In opposition to forces of exclusion (while not forgetting the ethical significance of play and pleasure).'
The above quote exemplifies a lot of what work outside of the gallery space can do. A Lot of the socially engaged work that is produced in a social space does not have the hierarchy of a label of single authorship. Therefore the work can not be taken as a western work and held above others. This opportunity is vital to remove any outstanding labels regarding non-western art.There is definitely an ethical responsibility of an artist and the art that is produced, this is something that is often ill considered. we are re-affirming our western privilege and therefore modern colonial power if we are not considering the ethics of our work at length. The latter mention of play and pleasure is still vital if done ethically, this aspect keeps a certain aspect of the art alive and therefore more valuable.
'An ethical task of the art world is that of cognitive decolonisation-to continue the project of dismantling hierarchies, relinquishing privilege, and standing In opposition to forces of exclusion (while not forgetting the ethical significance of play and pleasure).'
The above quote exemplifies a lot of what work outside of the gallery space can do. A Lot of the socially engaged work that is produced in a social space does not have the hierarchy of a label of single authorship. Therefore the work can not be taken as a western work and held above others. This opportunity is vital to remove any outstanding labels regarding non-western art.There is definitely an ethical responsibility of an artist and the art that is produced, this is something that is often ill considered. we are re-affirming our western privilege and therefore modern colonial power if we are not considering the ethics of our work at length. The latter mention of play and pleasure is still vital if done ethically, this aspect keeps a certain aspect of the art alive and therefore more valuable.
Above; Postcard
Below; Map of New Zealand
Comments
Post a Comment