Saturday, February 5, 2011

An Artwork Called to Antagonize Me

Just recently I decided to participate in an artwork by Germaine Koh and the Surrey Art Gallery called, "Call." They sent out submissions for people to offer their phone numbers for serendipitous connections.
Having studied Art History as a discipline with the intention of working in the field I am often asked to define the "subject" of Art. And that was the subject of this "Call." Having just woken up my day started off somewhat combative. I was asked to identify myself but my caller was reluctant to give any indication as to who they were. They were immediately irritated that I had even answered my phone because the next question was, "So why aren't you working?" The follow up was "What are you studying?" Of course when I politely asked, "So what do you do?" I was rebuffed (confirming that this was a one-sided conversation). Then came the dreaded, "So do you think this is art?" To which I responded, "I don't think that's up to me to decide." She wasn't satisfied with that. When I gently suggested that she might consider the subject of the interaction we were having in that moment was creating something that might be considered art she was definitely not amused. She evenly insisted that the artist had not "created" anything and therefore this was not to be considered art, then on a dissatisfied note she end our conversation, "Well it's been nice talking to you. Have a nice life." An unwitting artwork with a not-so-sunny disposition.

Upcoming... "The Praxis of Walking in Contemporary Art"
On Hold... "Attempts at Understanding Feminist Art" or "Follow Your Gut: Situationist Vancouver(?)

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