Friday, January 16, 2009

Saturday, January 3, 2009

Performance Art Lab Rambles

Hey Everyone!

Okay I decided to set this thing up, our private blog. So here it is!

At first I thought it would be just for group discussions, but when nick said that he would like a place to ramble, I thought that sounded great. If anyone wants to post shit they are working on for feedback or just to show off, I know I will read it if its here. I think its a good place to put reflections on things we did, or even those ideas we come up with in the middle of the night. Its private, just for us, and I think eventually our class calendar can be connected to this blog, unless anyone thinks otherwise. I know I always find good links, maybe this is a good place to collect all of those things.

Alright, hope to see you guys on the SIXTH, everyone be sending your good vibes to those people on the idea fund panel or whatevs.

I am going to go ahead and post Nancy's email here, if anyone has any feedback, this is a good place to put it. Here we go:

Dear P.A.L.Z,


A huge thanks to everyone I got to see today and I hope I get the chance to talk to everyone else on the phone before the sixth but if not I feel confident in whatever decisions and choices are made on that day. My intention to meet or talk to everyone is really not to be heard first but that a dialog starts. For the very important meeting I am missing I think it is important that I speak up in a timely manner and prior seems better than post. (Trying to prevent the repeated play by play for the next meeting. And trusting that whatever decisions are made on that day are great and I can feel confident in not even being there b.c. I already said what I wanted to say anyway.)


- Documentation availability/archive (what makes it to the blog) (Updated note: Lindsay has a shelf she is willing to use and take on this archival/checkout system)

- Financial update, getting things returned, schedule our next fundraiser, is this fundraiser for sexyattack goes to L.A., is it for a house show. (Update: Currently Julia has the financials and is willing to continue doing them)





- Group projects/ Individual projects

- The BRAND of P.A.L. (again group/individual identities)







We are all aware (not in all cases but I would say most all) that we know who is a creator of an idea. Then that idea starts to become a base for other things that start to expand off of that idea. And then there are the people that put that idea into action, create the setting, hustle, put in whatever it is they do to make it happen, and then there are the performers that make it happen (and knowing they all need each other, all of equal importance). Elia has used conceived by, created by, performed by in the past. I would even consider adding - Documentation by Elia Arce. How important is this - No one has continued this example but I think it is more of an unresolved issue. I think having this information is important - but I am interested in hearing why it is not important. Lindsay you have a great idea for the house show month (by the way Brian just sent me a text saying he may have a place.) Anyway, Lindsay's idea is great (i won't explain it all here), I love it, want to do it, and I know that she has conceived this idea, it was influenced by PAL, PAL could do it, but if the idea was not done with PAL would it be curated by... anyway I want to acknowledge this idea as Lindsay's and acknowledge myself as apart of this idea and not the creator... people want to know/would ask- and I would say "well Lindsay came up with that idea." So why do we not consider this type of documentation? - this could tie into the issues with sexyattack - is it PAL, is it julia, is it julia and nancy - and so on... I do have a desire to deal with this and I lean back on Elia's experience (and feel comfortable with how lightbulb ex. was done) and want to really address this credit issue.




One of the other things for me is being aware that P.A.L. already has this brand - this idea - these people that do it - and that it already means something if we say P.A.L. If PAL is doing says it is doing something and then it does not - it reflects on us all - or if we pissed off the wrong people unintentionally - we all have to deal - and this is in different ways for each of us, it could be a thousand other things that we have yet to experience - but the key for me is that we are all aware - that we are giving time to consider each other, the different places we are all in, and the project. that we are trying to do what we want - what we mean - and we are really in it together - building onto what P.A.L. already is

(Nick Teel is awesome)


Part of my own thoughts over the past few weeks were based on planning vs. spontaneity. The greatness that comes out of both and when one is more useful than the other. I think for myself, if we are planning to do something like the blaffer, perhaps only one and a half practices is not enough - and that is about deciding as a group the priority of one thing over the other. I want there to be time for whatever needs to be talked about, argued through, whateve needs to happen - that it happens. It did not work for the elevator piece to be rushed and not discussed, and I realize how important that talking would have resolved many of the issues that occured. I am interested in each piece having the time that it takes to be what we want it to be, visually and conceptually. I still am in love with the blaffer piece - I don't even feel like it is finished and would love to do some kind of version of it for the John Reed thing if that option is even still open and if it isn't that we create another place for this piece to be done again - I really want to see where the dialog can go if we are doing it for a few hours a few different times, a few more people, just in the studio. (AND Brian has offered his place as a meeting place for the future.) I think that planning is of interest to me at this point within the group, knowing that we are meeting on X day of the week at Y location makes things easier for each of us to plan and make sure we can be there for whatever is going to happen - (Brian suggested having each person "host" a group performance much like that of participation art at the start of each meeting), also knowing which day of the month we will do individual performances - or whatever the schedule for that is going to be - how much of indiv. perf. we want to focus on. I think the group ideas are directly connected to the individual pieces and I would love to make this an constant part of what we do together but that it has a specific time that we all are ready and prepared or that we know we can do ind. perf. whenever we have one at any time we meet, or we have our own house meetings for our ind. perf. I really do not care, it is just in this stage I think it is important to have an idea of these things. After the 5th i know we will be able to have a better idea of what is going on as far as priorities so I don't want to drag on too much here. I don't really see a conflict between experimental, spontaneity, and the planning. But the planning job seems to get the dirty looks and the heavy sighs. And the spontaneity gets the someone isn't doing their job...it really is going to take us all saying what we want and that is really the point - I'm saying I am interested in the organizational part to help us plan our time, and whatever projects we want to do, dirty looks and all! I volunteer to man the calendar.

2009 luvs us!


Nancy