abc : is a cross-disciplinary forum for makers of artists’ books and ephemera. It provides an opportunity to get together for focused critical and constructive dialogue, to contextualise work, explore ideas and to develop creative practice and theory.
"The perfect space in which mystery meets matter and conjoins, is for me the book"
Allil Enna Nangi-Ud
The focus will be to engage in critical discourse together around the Disappears piece of work - remember that?
The brief was: "to make something (book work) that's ephemeral in some way and whose theme is linked to this concept."
This project was inspired by Tom Trusky's wonderful work with his students at Boise, Idaho. It was sad to hear news of Tom's recent death...we are remiss in not having communicated to him how significant his projects have been to us at abc.
For our meeting these guidelines may prove useful:
Guidelines to Critical Discourse
The context: an environment where we each feel psychologically and physically comfortable, with an atmosphere of trust and openness.
Dialogue can be a shared experience and a chance for critical reflection…a critical analysis of peers' work…a learning experience on all parts... sharing it with one another…
an opportunity to take risks if you want to extend yourself & step out of your comfort zone.
It can also be a useful tool for learning to benchmark your work, argue for it, receive motivating reflection/ideas, acknowledge difficulties and discern which advice was appropriate to follow through on, and maybe too examine that which was not!
for discussion & dialogue:
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Think of how you can contribute meaningfully to the person and their practice/work
Ask appropriate/insightful/thoughtful questions
Be supportive without jettisoning critical faculties
for those showing:
- Think about your work: consider ways of talking about it
- what are its influences & context?
- Assess what you think 'works' & what doesn't... & why
- Consider really listening to reflection from others
- Be open to feedback that feels appropriate, or not
- Consider developing the work, ways in which you might move it forward
| Collaboration:
two heads are better than one - or are they? some "questions of collaboration" you could ask... does it involve risk? should it? who does what? how is that decided? do you behave or think differently from working alone? what is whose? who do you think you are? will this be up for inspection? are you attached to any part of the collaboration? do you want to own it? is real collaboration possible? how do you know? do you have to like the other person/people for success? how do you measure success? how are you measuring up? is the whole greater than the sum of the parts? who says? will it all be double trouble? isn't working solo simpler? is collaborating fun? should it be? who says? |
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with acknowledgement to Seekers of Lice
Quotes about collaboration from the great & good 'Every sin is the result of a collaboration' : Lucius Annaeus Seneca, Stoic philosopher
'I think it is in collaboration that the nature of art is revealed' : Steve Lacy, musician
'Collaboration on a book is the ultimate unnatural act' : Tom Clancy, writer
'Politeness is the poison of collaboration' : Edwin Land, scientist & inventor of Polaroid camera
'I think there should be collaboration, but under my thumb' : Elia Kazan, director
'If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants' : Sir Isaac Newton, mathematician & physicist
'The unconscious is our best collaborator' : Mike Nichols, director
'…together we transcended our previous work and made something better together than we could have done apart' : Cornelia Parker on working with Tilda Swinton, on installation - The Maybe
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lilla.visionworks@blueyonder.co.ukFounded by Lilla Duignan, artists’ books club is for students based at Bower Ashton