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2 years ago
AFH MONSTER COLLECTIVE PROJECT DESCRIPTION
ART FOR HUMANS MONSTER COLLECTIVE (AFHMC)
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
By AFH Lead Artist Paul McLean
START DATE: October 1, 2009
STAGE ONE: Formation
STAGE TWO: Production (Locus)
STAGE THREE: Production (Focus)
STAGE FOUR: Diaspora
TIMELINE: Four years (2009-2013)
STAGE ONE: Formation
ACTION>
CONCEPT NARRATIVE DEVELOPMENT (Solo + Collectives)
ARTIST ROSTER DEVELOPMENT
PRODUCTION DESIGN
SUMMARY
Utilizing web 2.0 infrastructure platforms, AFHMC will evolve on principles rooted in Digital Humanities and open source, moving towards cloud computing applications. Given the economic environment, AFHMC STAGE ONE will require no extraordinary expense for participating artists and organizations/collectives. AFH will provide initially a variety of options for MC artists to engage transparently in pre-production and development work. MC artists will be asked for 9 months (starting in November 2009) to produce a blog for their practice, as it relates to the “I Love You, Monster” narrative and collective themes, threads and interests. STAGE ONE will be moderated or curated only to the extent that the MC artist decides is appropriate to her or his process. This is meant to be an open and public practice, but the parameters of openness will be left to the artist to determine, in recognition that some prefer solitude in the conceptual phases of their work and others prefer more communal experiences. At the culmination of STAGE ONE, AFH will aggregate the results into an exhibition array. The format for the exhibition will likely be weighted towards digital and virtual presentation, although there will be components that are actual/brick and mortar/hard copy. Although the MC organizational structure will remain open throughout all stages of production, and artists will have many options for participation levels, after year one a core active crew is envisioned. Based on results and environmental conditions, AFHMC will produce a set of production design propositions, directed towards installation in actual spaces as abstracts.
STAGE TWO: Production (Locus)
ACTION>
COLLECTIVE ARCHITECTURE
PRODUCTION NETWORK
CONSTITUENCY
SUMMARY
In our second year of production, the AFHMC will produce small-scale projects, local in scope, in the tradition of “grassroots” campaigning. These AFHMC project sites will be connected via our online infrastructure, so that the progress and execution of productions can be supported technically, aesthetically and socially -effectively from within the collective. MC artists will be asked to form small sub-collectives, designed for sustainability and independence. Each sub-collective will produce on a nine-month timeline a project online with a local, actual exhibit component. The local exhibit will be documented and published through AFH-provided portals, although artists will be free to develop other vehicles and venues, if they so choose. At the end of STAGE TWO, AFH will coordinate and promote an exhibit of the local collective exhibits. Identifying and building local production pipelines and stakeholders/base support for artistic action will be a primary goal of STAGE TWO. Strategies for meeting production costs will be developed as production costs are identified through project implementation. Costs will vary from location to location, but we will endeavor to standardize expenditures and devise programs for meeting the collectives’ production requirements through a variety of means (see note below). AFHMC in STAGE TWO will also develop evaluation measurements to gauge the success and quality of local productions, metrics that we will then apply to the culminating exhibit, as a collective activity.
STAGE THREE: Production (Focus)
ACTION>
MOBILIZE THE COLLECTIVE
STABILIZE THE NETWORK INFRASTRUCTURE
ACTIVATE THE BASE
SUMMARY
In the third year of the AFHMC production timeline, we will tour collective shows through the MC network. MC Lead Artists will be asked to develop criteria for their productions, for their curatorial choices and for their presentation decisions. These will be shared through the MC network in an effort to develop best practices. The production format for STAGE THREE will follow the production format for STAGE TWO: nine months to produce the shows at local sites, followed by a three-month production cycle for an AFH-coordinated and promoted culminating exhibit. In STAGE THREE, however, local collectives will be asked to engage their communities as a feature of production process. Local collectives will use simple quantitative and qualitative analytic tools to determine their communities’ artistic interests and literacy. MC local sub-collectives will be asked to make programming choices based on these evaluations, and their findings and programmatic responses/determinations will be shared across the platform (and evaluated collectively). The AFHMC will then apply these measurements to the culminating exhibit. Logistical best practices for touring productions will be developed as an AFHMC activity. Costs attached to the MC STAGE THREE will be addressed as a collective responsibility, and met through a variety of means (see note below).
STAGE FOUR: Diaspora
ACTION>
AFHMC INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITION
DOCUMENTATION
FINALIZE SUSTAINABLE COLLECTIVE INFRASTRUCTURE
TRANSFER OF LEADERSHIP
SUMMARY
The final year of the AFHMC production will be directed towards a single, significant exhibit project in a major international art venue. The scope of the MC exhibit will encompass the preceding projects and introduce new, dedicated artwork within the context of a strong narrative and encompassing array of New and Traditional Media. The goal of the multifaceted AFHMC installation, comprised of virtual and actual components, will be a transparent representation of MC actions and aesthetics, as well as a presentation of artwork of the highest quality and relevance. Real-time documentation/publication of all aspects of production will occur throughout the MC networks. The host institution will be chosen based on criteria that are determined by the collective and through a survey of accomplished art professionals. These criteria will be published in conjunction with the AFHMC, in the interests of standardizing best curatorial practice for the field. After the successful completion of the exhibit cycle, an internal election will be held to choose new leadership for the AFHMC, from within the MC, or the collective may vote to disband. At that time, the collective will appoint from a pool of applicants an MC archivist, who will be asked to form a sub-collective of archivists dedicated to preserving and distributing artifacts from and information about the first AFHMC exhibit cycle and participants. Costs attached to the MC STAGE THREE will be shared by the collective and the presenting venue, and met through a variety of means (see note below).
NOTES
Note on costs for AFHMC STAGES 2-4: The AFHMC is envisioned as a hybrid of profit/nonprofit arts organizational practice. We will attempt as a collective to design, as a feature of this production, an effective model for meeting production costs, which: will in no way limit free speech; will optimize revenue streams for solo and collective activities, where monetization of artistic output warrants economic consideration; collectively standardize valuation of artistic activity through a transparent, open review process; establish value measures with the help of accomplished professionals in the field, collaborating with AFHMC participants as a collective activity. One goal of this process will be to determine fair cost/pay structures for artist production. Considerations of local markets will be taken into account, as will the need for artists and the collective to develop cultural policy and implement it in the political/economic/social sectors. Another goal, encompassing the entire production process will be to mobilize the reform of public perception of the cost/benefit of artistic enterprise to the society in which it occurs, and to correct distribution malformations that adversely affect free cultural discourse and competency.
AFHMC will therefore seek to establish and promote a practicum for artists, so that we can live sustainably and productively, and contribute to the health of our families, communities, states, regions, nations and collective humanity. AFHMC will further seek to establish standardized objectives and best practices for our social ecology – as listed above (families, communities, states, regions, nations and international leadership). What do these stakeholders need to do and know in order to encourage the best outcomes for artists and the best artistic output for all?
Finally, AFHMC will promote artist responsibility in relation to our ecological environment. What must we as artists do to contribute to the sustainability of our societies in relation to our natural environment?
AFHMC will begin the process of addressing these concerns in the studio, then within the collective network. Using the powerful technological and social tools at our disposal, we will then engage society in the promotion of artistic excellence through a variety of means. These will include educational applications, innovation in art/economic exchange, political activism and social accountability. AFHMC will strive to invigorate the artistic media to improve general perceptual responsiveness and comprehension.
Ultimately, AFHMC will endeavor to produce a template for visionary living in union with benevolent craft practice, to make Art for Humans that inspires good action, good dreams, that is meritorious and worthy of preservation. Please contact AFH Lead Artist Paul McLean (art [at] artforhumans [dot] com), if you are interested in participating in the ART FOR HUMANS MONSTER COLLECTIVE PROJECT.
Participation guidelines will be released on October 15, 2009 and portfolio submissions will be reviewed starting in November 2009. Individuals and existing collectives are encouraged to submit proposals.
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