Conversation with the Defenders

I sing a bit with The Defenders - a fabulous noisy rock band and a Tiree institution. The current lineup has members from the original decade-old line up and two newbies, Bernie on drums and me on backing vocals.  We have played 4 gigs so far this summer and the issue of 'should get paid for gigs' was raised. It was good to have the a chance for a slightly more formal chat than usual.

Conversation with Fiona and others

Homework was to hold a conversation for at least 15 mins with at least two other people. The idea is to begin to work with in the social context. Fiona got folk together to discuss the assertion "Access to art and art making is vital to sustain a compassionate, resilient and attractive community" Highlights of being involved in the process for me were:

• having a chat with others about a subject that interests me
• moments in the conversation that felt 'alive'; people were talking frankly about creativity and mental health
• the thin line between mindfulness and mindlessness and how we judge how people chose to relax/be creative
• realisation that the importance of product vs process is subjective
• sensing that the argument about Art vs Craft is a distraction
• people value public art (like the tiles in the small hall on Tiree)
• Fiona is thinking about a wind festival. Cool!
• the craft group needs space to make a mess
• A benefit of an art project in small community is that it allows space for differences and individuality to be expressed so allows appreciation of others views.
• the importance of the intention in setting up discussions like this.

Art and Social Practice via video conference!

Hello World!

I am taking a module with the University of the Highlands and Islands called Art and Social Practice. The course is based in Shetland as part of a BA in Contemporary Textiles and I am taking part with another local artist, Fiona Dix. Today is the third week. We connect with other people based in Shetland and Moray via video conference at Tiree's business centre. No worries about living on an Island if you want to do stuff! 

The course provides an opportunity "to turn any situation or issue into a potential context for your work". The first meet up left me buzzing with thoughts. What makes a great socially engaged art project? There are so many variables:

• the complexity of the social issue

• the degreee of involvement

• time available for involvement

• the importance of the 'product' or art piece vs the participants experience.

• how is success defined?

If these things can be agreed and understood at the outset, whilst building in a degree of uncertainty, the chances of a successful project will increase.

Our first session was inspiring, raising all these thoughts with fascinating websites and video clips to wet our appetites along with meeting the other participants.  Five in Morayshire, 8 in Shetland and us 2 on Tiree made for an action packed 90 mins.