June 2012

I normally arrive at MadLab a good twenty minutes before everyone else, so this month it was a pleasant surprise to be greeted on the stairs by a member of staff who excitedly informed me that there were already people waiting. I was then pleased to discover a few familiar faces and to welcome a new contributor.

James Pashley was invited to speak first as this is the last time he will be joining us before flying off to teach in Japan for up to four years! After taking to opportunity to subtly remind me that we haven’t got as far with our collaborative mapping project as we had hoped to do before he left (!), he showed the group his new website (www.instantpash.me). Designed to be a portal to a series of informal blogs which will chart different areas of his various adventures, I recognised that some recent developments had been effective in lending a sense of cohesion to the site, which I felt had been missing before. I also commented that while it did still feel a little fractured, I suspect that in the process of populating it with content it will find its own level and develop into something a bit more streamlined, with the possibility for sections to change or merge depending on James’ experiences.

James Pashley demonstrates his new website

Comments from other members centred (unsurprisingly!) around the featuring of Danbo in the photographic visualisation which head up each section. If you’re a regular reader of CRITblog you’ll remember that Danbo paid us a visit last month; an impressively designed cut-out-and-make cardboard ‘robot’ with moving parts. Asked if Danbo would be featuring in all James’ Japanese photos, he explained he is keeping an open mind about his expectations for the workload whilst out there and wasn’t sure how practical that would really be. This then led on to an interesting discussion about the relationship of photographic documentation to actual experience and the potential for falling into the trap of unintentionally focusing so much on taking photos that you remain one step removed from fully enjoying the experience of being somewhere. James wrapped up by impressing us with his Japanese, demonstrating the most important word he’s learnt so far… 'Bīru'. Yes, it means ‘beer’.

Following James, I shared my latest steps on some existing projects, including work currently on display at the Nexus Art Café in Manchester. I also took the opportunity for one last bout of shameless self-promotion by reminding the group about the next evening’s Private View of the Nexhibitionists show at which I will be showing some photographs of two recent workshops, one with Rolls Crescent Primary School and one with Nexus staff and contributors (though the Rolls Crescent work has been up since May and will be coming out in a week to move to the school itself.)

I then held my breath somewhat as I distributed the final published form of the brand new This Place Is project, which is replacing This Belongs To as the active participatory project in my practice and on my website. CRITgroup members have been central to the changes and developments that have shaped the final form of the booklet and recently completed mock versions for me to help assess the content and the experience of participating. It has, however, been a project which hasn’t always caused complete agreement and I have had the chance through this to pick and choose from sometimes conflicting feedback in order to try and ‘distil’ the project which best fulfils my intentions. The main criticism of the published document was the fact that I have not included a return address actually printed on it, which caused some members to question if I was making it harder for people to return their contributions. This was a factor I had already deliberated over and made a specific decision on so I was pleased there were no unpleasant surprises in any other areas of possible criticism I might not have thought of! I explained that I was reluctant to incur the costs of a P.O. Box (having already paid for printing) and didn’t want to use my home address for reasons of security as much as practicalities (such as in the insecurities of rented accommodation!) and as I was expecting most responses to be gathered through workshop sessions I had chosen to be a bit more discriminating in giving it out.  It was then suggested by Marcelle (our new guest who shall be introduced shortly) that it might be appropriate to ask an organisation or venue I already have links with if I could use their address.

Final copies of This Place Is booklets

Some other issues raised included the age old question of how to facilitate good participant numbers and it was agreed that giving people a specific time-frame or environment in which to get involved would be a good way to approach this. I recognised that my main downfall with regards to This Belongs To was a lack of promotion and outlined arts websites I had thought to use to get the word out. It was also suggested that seeking to ‘attach’ the project to an existing relevant organisation, using peer-generated content to build momentum, and making the benefits of participating clear (such as inclusion of contributions in exhibitions) were all important factors.

Marcelle, Annabeth and James discuss... something.

James peruses the DIY Art School prospectus

After a brief verbal wrangle around what my expectations were for the specifics of visual or written entries on to the forms (I perhaps naively maintained I had none!) we moved on to hearing from Marcelle, our newest visitor to CRITgroup. Having recently graduated from the Interactive Arts degree at MMU she explained how her experiences of being asked to generate ‘gallery ready’ content for a degree show had led her to question the validity of certain aspects of this process and that she had eventually resolved her process into a research project which aims to found an independent fourth year to the IA degree. This experimental curatorial project aims to question the traditional teacher/student hierarchy and facilitate peer supported, user generated learning and assessment. Titled DIY Art School, the project sets out to tackle current issues such as rising tuition fees and investigate what happens to graduates in the years following matriculation. Though Marcelle did end up contributing a lot to the discussions, she explained that her original motive for attending had primarily been to research the format of the sessions and see how existing projects with similar features to her own operated and might become part of a wider network.

Kevin Linnane took over and showed us some video work related to the 53 Views project. Interested in issues of psychogeography, especially around notions of ‘resonance’ and the qualities of places which mean people are attracted (or in some cases it may seem repelled!) to particular locations, Kevin organises and undertakes walks in areas which can be located in the wide view from his flat. These then generate responses to the environment, primarily in photographic form. Some discussion took place around ideas of pilgrimage and how the act of travelling can dislocate the walker from ordinary experience. Most of Kevin’s recent work has included imagery of water around the Manchester canal network and Salford Quays/Media City. This also generated conversations around the religious connotations of water and contrasts between concepts of desecration and libation as applied to urban environments.  Kevin then made the suggestion that CRITgroup members meet to join him on a walk round the Mancunian Way. This was arranged for Sunday July 22nd and we will be meeting at Oxford Road Station at midday. Kevin will ask participants to carry out specific activities at points along the route and we will also be using it as an opportunity to air the new This Place Is booklets. I’m delighted Kevin suggested this and really looking forward to the first creative collaboration for CRITgroup! If you would like to join us, drop me an email ([email protected]) and I’ll look forward to seeing you there!

Last but far from least, we heard an update from James Sharp who shared photos of his textile bunting for the Creative Recycling Gallery and brought along a developed form of his journal-based Stuff Stash. Some feedback James had received previously was that the paper pockets he had featured in the Stuff Stash might not withstand the rigours of daily use, so he has responded by including textiles pockets. It was agreed that this was an improvement not only for practical reasons but also because it extended the existing visual language of his textile work and allowed users to continue their experience of this element of his work.

James Sharp's bunting at the Creative Recycling Gallery

Juan uses the camera

That concludes my report for June as I had to leave pretty promptly (for once!) at nine, so I am just left to thank Juan Armellini for taking the photos and to remind everyone that we meet next month on the 25th of July when we look forward to a presentation from David Haley about his recent work in Hong Kong! Hopefully we will also have time to share and discuss the walk of the 22nd.

Finally, if you happen to be based in Manchester and actually reading this on the date of publication, I hope you can make it along to the Nexus Art Café later between 5 and 9! Maybe see you there!