Body Talks (Mind, Bodies & Thoughts)

Notes on Spill Folk Academy, Day I+II (3/3)

2nd Day:

I) A quick check of who’s in the room: Artists (Hands are Up), Venues (Hands are Up), Support Agencies (Hands are Up), Venues (Hands are Up), Festivals (Hands are Up), Producers (Hands are Up), Writers (Hands are Up), Funders? Hands are NOWHERE To Be Seen…

II) What have we got today? 3 areas to explore: 1)Advocacy (Union?) 2)Monetary considerations (Fees & Levy) 3)Head of Terms & Rights.

III) Sharing: Knowledge. Skills. Resources. Spaces. Acquaintances. Spare Rooms. Experience. Savoir-Faire. Hobbies. Passions. Stories. Memories. What else have we got to offer?

IV) Timebank: To create or not to create? The feeling was Strong but not Unanimous about the idea of setting up a (new) Time bank for (live) artists. The question of its relevance was quickly brought up. Justified or not (Live Art Development Agency’s Director) Lois Keidan’s comment summed it up: “Why wasting energy reinventing the wheel where there’s so much resource [already] out there being underused?”

V) Cairo: Naming Stuff and Move On + A Lesson of Humility.

So where do we go from there? A bit difficult to predict on my part as I had to leave before the end of the second day’s afternoon session. Similar to the previous day, I left the room with lost of questions running through my head. Some were upsetting. Some were exciting. Some puzzled me a great deal. Some just kept coming naturally as I relived the day’s key moments & sporadic debates in my head. New Network’s launch, demise & legacy being one – the possibility of launching a NN-body like, in agreement, ruled out from the start and yet, I couldn’t help but sense its shadow being pretty much present in the room. Is it because its loss could have been avoided? Or was its loss premature in some ways? That’s not for me to say…

One thing I’m sure about Spill Folk Academy: Whichever way it’ll grow from these intense two days, we clearly started something…I’d like to think it’s a Movement (as subtle as it could be). But it could be at the very least a Sense of Realization (or even simply The Confirmation) from each one in the room – without having to become an officialized assembly – that sticking together is definitely the way to go.

Notes on Spill Folk Academy, Day I+II (2/3)

First Day:

XI) Insituationalization of Live Art (What does that mean? What if you don’t follow the procedures? The traditional stages to get recognized and supported? Are we talking about the (heavy) administrative side that comes with making work? Meaning: the bureaucracy around applying for platforms, festivals etc.? Or are we talking about as well the sense of etiquette that goes with the duty of being our own PR? Being at the right time in the useful place to talk to The People? How does one progress in such contrived environment then? How does the institionalization of my scene impact on the quality of the work? Its creator? On creativity in general? Is it what any fresh blood should be aware of when they’re first starting out? Is it part of the package of being a contemporary artist?)

XII) Good art. What about Bad art? (What’s Bad art? Could (contemporary) Bad art a direct consequence of its instutionalization? Is there as much Bad art as good art nowadays? Or even more? Who’s programming Bad art? Who’s responsible for its success? Good art for its audiences Bad art for its professionals = Snobbery? Good art for its professionals Bad art for its audiences = Misunderstanding and/or Ignorance? Good art for its audiences and professionals = Popular, Safe or Lazy?)

XIII) Scractch Culture = exploitation (Why do we need to Scratch work publicly? Have anyone heard of the word “demo” in the music industry? Surely scratching work, isn’t it what being in a rehearsal or studio room is for? Musicians don’t show their demos to their fans, neither their labels, so why should we, artists, go through this ordeal? Isn’t that a sign of institutionalization? Doesn’t it contradict the basic notion of live art, anyway? So what are the benefits to it?)

XIV) Welfare System: What is there for artists specifically? More transparency around receiving benefits & living off it (Models in Belgium & in France, could we use them as a starting point to create our own model? Does JSA recognize us as a professional status? What impact the Universal Credit will have on us? How to change mentalities & reform the system in relation to our profession? How can a model similar to France or Belgium exist in the UK when most of us are used to the idea of having different (art) jobs to make a living or of having a job that pays the bills besides our practice and make the balance between the two work to the best of our capabilities? And when you have a family, do you have the luxury to think you could live off benefits as an artist until your next “pay”? And what makes you live off benefits to run your practice? A choice, circumstances, a hope to have your break so you can sign off them once you get regularly paid? But we’re not aspiring to be Madonna, are we?)

XV) Lack of Genuine Context around Diversity (When does the line get drawn between recognition & sympathy? Or will both always go together? Should being seen as a token always bother me? Can I turn it into an advantage? Or shall I go against it? Will I pay for it then? Or will it earn me (more? True?) respect? Will I subvert the diversity rules with my work? Yes, and how? By using shock – read it as inapproriate – values (according to the promoter’s concerns)? Ah, the ticking boxes culture will never end! Or will it?)

XVI) Stupid opinions about Live Art (What are they? Do we really have such dated opinion about audiences? Are we afraid of our audiences?)

XVII) The Whiteness of Live Art – brought up by @Fiercefestival (Conservatism of our craft? Or not enough colored acts? Can we talk about Equal Opportunities in the arts? How can we talk about it positively without sounding institionalized? What about the concepts of Ethnic Minorities, Migration & being a Foreign artist in a broader sense?)

XVIII) Tower Hamlets: Nudity being forbidden on stage by Law (Reactions?)

XIX) Afternoon Session: What Have we Got? What We Got To Offer?

XX) MANIFESTO

Notes On Spill Folk Academy, Day I + II (1/3)

First Day:

I) Moaning – or Morning? – Session: Get it out of your chest & let’s be done with it! (Did we succeed in doing it? Was the moaning gone & done with on Day II?)

II) Question: Expectations of being an artist? (What are they? What do the world expect from us? What do we expect from ourselves? Are my expectations only personal or professional? Do I need to think in terms of career? In terms of money? In terms of reputation? In terms creativity?)

III) Question: (Personal) Expectations of being an artist? (What’s the pinnacle of my journey? Showing work at the Barbican? Being invited by the British Council to collaborate with local artists in another country? Being a regular feature on a National Broadsheet? Being recognized by my own peers? – Which ones? – Receiving the biggest Accolade? – From whom? – Running my own space? Curating my own Festival? Enrolling on a PhD? Contributing to Research? Writing Academic papers? Struggling along to feel stable in my own practice? Or enjoying the struggle?)

IV) Centrism – London vs Regions (Are the Regions better at taking risks?)

V) Good or Bad Venues – According to? (My experience as a producer? Performer? According to Facts? According to personal, general, professional expectations (not being delivered)? According to the (poor) box-office? According to their (lazy) marketing campaign? According to (the lack of) trust, understanding, communication, collaboration, common aim, support & room for time, (re-)evaluation & flexibility between the two parties? What makes a good venue? The one who’s going to give you bums on seats? (Proper/More) Exposure? The one who’s going to bring (proper/more/significant) press? The one who understands your needs & makes sure your performance can be created/presented to its full capacity? Or all of the above?)

VI) Education Cuts

VII) Access to Audiences (Questions: How to get access to (more) Audiences? To the right audiences? To the relevant audiences? To the existing ones from a non-live art venue? Is access to audiences harder? More time consumming? A pratcice in itself? When do you need to think about it (in relation to your work?) To your practice? What about having or creating a following?)

VIII) Value of Live Art in : Economic terms. Cultural terms. Social Terms.

IX) The 9 to 5 culture: People who book work but don’t come to see it (Who are they? How many of those show no respect to the artist they book and his work? What does it say about the relations between them & the artist, in the short/long-term? What made them book the work in the first place if they don’t bother watching it afterwards? Thinking in economic terms?)

X) “If you’re selling tickets, you should pay the artists” – Yes, you should! (In theory…How about an understanding between the ticket seller & the artists? How about the artist’s level of experience, his work’s quality, the fact he/his work may not be ready, the fact he’s part of a mixed bill between newcomers, & big names? How do you justify his value to the audience if he’s not economically worth it? Can you pay him in another way? Can you pay for food, drinks on the night, for material, give an hour or more of your expertise to support him in the areas he needs it? What if selling tickets is your way to cover the costs? How do you share the rewards of a successful night with the artists? When does the ticket seller’s responsability starts and ends in this matter? Shouldn’t be as well the artist’s responsibility according to his own journey/experience/expectations to protect his property against exploitation?)