May, 2010

Published May 14, 2010 Artists, Events, Works, Exhibitions
James David Morgan

Open Engagement Conference Asks Questions at the Core of Social Practice

openengagement 500x326 Open Engagement Conference Asks Questions at the Core of Social Practice

Portland State University is hosting Open Engagement this weekend, where more than 140 presenters will delve into the depths of social practice.  Three featured artists, Mark Dion, Amy Franceschini, and Nils Norman, will join a host of friends, including Anne Elizabeth Moore, Temporary Services, National Bitter Melon Council, InCUBATE, and the always amazing Broken City Lab in asking some essential questions, like:

Can socially engaged art do more harm than good? Are there ethical responsibilities for social art? Does socially engaged art have a responsibility to create public good? Can there be transdisciplinary approaches to contemporary art making that would contribute to issues such as urban planning and sustainability?

The conference is the first in a planned annual series to complement the University’s low residency MFA in Art & Social Practice, proposed to begin in Fall 2010.

The weekend’s program is below, but be advised that the attendance is first-come, first-served.


Published May 3, 2010 Work by Groundswell
James David Morgan

Performance & Spectacle in Public Space: a sprout spaghetti dinner

sprout‘s dinner-theater series continues this month on Wednesday, May 5th.  The theme for this month’s dinner is Performance and Spectacle in Public Space.

It takes 154000 breaths to evacuate Boston 500x375 Performance & Spectacle in Public Space: a sprout spaghetti dinner
kanarinka’s “It takes 154,000 breaths to evacuate Boston”

Our performers include the following artists, thinkers, and doers ::

  • Milan Kohout is a member of the Mobius artists’ group. He is a political street performer as well as a visual artist. Originally from the Czech Republic, he now teaches Tufts University and performs in the Boston area.
  • John Bell is a co-founder of the HONK! Festival in Davis Square as well as the NYC-based theater company Great Small Works–as well as a co-organizer of these dinners! He will be taking a historical perspective on the theme, looking at how our relationship to public space and performance in that space has changed over time.
  • kanarinka, a.k.a. Catherine D’Ignazio, an artist and educator, will discuss her project It takes 154,000 breaths to evacuate Boston, and examine the role that fear can play in public space, especially in the form of public transport awareness campaigns, terror simulations in public space, and so on.

It will be happening just outside of Davis Square in Somerville, MA, at sprout (339R Summer St.) on Wednesday May 5 with dinner at 7:30PM and performances beginning at 8. A $10 suggested donation will help us cover expenses.