Social Works? Live (2019) — Social Art Library

By

Axis / Manchester Metropolitan University

Postcards hanging on a washing line at Social Works? Live. Photo credit: Jules Lister.

Social Works?: Live was a celebration and exploration of social art practice held at Manchester School of Art on 26 April 2019. This was a partnership project between Axisweb and Manchester Metropolitan University, as part of the ‘Models of Validation’ partnership.

Conceived as a festival of social practice, Axis commissioned 11 artists to be ‘stallholders’ at the event, each showcasing ideas and practice through performances and interactive sessions. Together we explored the ways in which—by working in the open—we can share and shape new possibilities previously unseen or imagined.

The artists were Eva He, gobscure, Harald Smykla, Jaron Hill, Lady Kitt & Louise Brown, Leslie Thompson, Mark Prest, Rabab Ghazoul, Rosalie Schweiker, Sharon Bennet & Sarah Dixon (The Women’s Art Activation System) and Social Art Network.

Eva He

Eva presented the receipt printer chatroom analog, ‘LOOO’—a computer keyboard of limited word-keys connected to a thermal printer that instantly prints out user-generated messages, which offer commentary on the current chaos of the socio-political climate. You can find out more about Eva’s practice here: https://madeinartslondon.com/pages/eva-he

gobscure

gobscure came in the guise of mary wollstonecraft, the feminist, internationalist and pamphleteer who was written off 200 years ago as a hyena in petticoats for being mad, bad, rad and bi! Participants were invited to sketch a map depicting a personal journey onto mary’s petticoat. You can find out more about gobscure’s work here: https://www.nudgingmeteors.space

Harald Smykla

Harald presented the temporary bureau for C.R.E.H.A (Centre for Research into Emotional Hygiene through Art), a performative research project investigating the emotional impact of art. Participants will be invited to recreate and process their memories of significant, emotionally charged art experiences in any kind in order to answer the question—can art move you? You can find out more about Harald’s work here: http://www.creativebd.org.uk/artist-commissions/harald-smykla/

Jaron Hill

Jaron collected ideas and submissions for the second issue of HERM, the zine for a queer arts collective based between West Yorkshire and London. The aim of Jaron’s stall was to interrogate and deconstruct the notion that London represents the creative epicentre for the UK, by providing space for creative and open discussion that validates and empowers people from diverse backgrounds, including those who do not identify as artists or designers. You can see more of Jaron’s work as one half of Jessen-Hill here: https://www.jesson-hill.com

Lady Kitt and Louise Brown

Kitt and Lou provided a drop-in service, the Social Practice First Aid Kit, with ‘prescriptions’ and resources (physical, digital, imagined, emotional) for social arts practitioners. You can find out more about the Social Practice First Aid Kit—and other work by Lady Kitt here: https://www.lladykitt.com/social-practice-1st-aid-kitt.

The Social Practice First Aid Kit at Social Works? Live. Photo credit: Jules Lister.

Mark Prest

Mark Prest—founder of Portraits of Recovery—presented ‘PhotoLoo’, asking how art might be useful to explore our feelings and our conflicted selves. Mark guided participants in making self-portraits using a set of instructions to explore feelings and internal conflicts – and the resulting polaroids formed a temporary gallery that visually articulates a better collective identity fit. You can find out more about Mark’s work with Portraits of Recovery here: https://www.portraitsofrecovery.org.uk/about/

Portraits taken in the PhotoLOO at Social Works? Live. Photo credit: Jules Lister.

Rosalie Schweiker

Rosalie sold and traded copies of the book, Teaching For People Who Prefer Not To Teach, which she edited together with Mirjam Bayerdoerfer and co-designed with Margherita Huntley. Visitors to Rosalie’s stall were invited to try out some of the exercises in the book. You can find out more about Rosalie’s practice here: http://www.rosalieschweiker.info

Sharon Bennett and Sarah Dixon

Sharon and Sarah presented the Bureau for the Validation of Art in which attendees at Social Works?: Live were given the opportunity to submit their work for Validation. Using a series of pre-set questionnaires, the Bureau’s officials came to a decision as to whether the art presented was valid as art, providing an official stamp and docket recording the outcome. To find out more about Sharon and Sarah and the Women’s Art Activation System: http://thewaas.org

The Bureau for the Validation of Art at Social Works? Live. Photo credit: Jules Lister.

Social Art Network

Fresh from their success at Tate Exchange the previous day, Social Art Network provided a space to discuss the development of resources for social arts practitioners.

A customised game of Jenga, at Social Works? Live. Photo credit: Jules Lister.

The event was also documented in a live publication created by Leslie Thompson and Rabab Ghazoul ...

Leslie Thompson

Leslie—a regular artist at Venture Arts studios—documented and depicted proceedings at Social Works?: Live through live observational drawings. You can see more of Leslie’s work here: https://venturearts.org/artists/leslie-thompson/

Rabab Ghazoul

Rabab, an artist and director of the Cardiff-based grassroots organisation Gentle/Radical, documented reflections, critical musings and provocations from Social Works?: Live—in the form of a live publication. Her summational talk invited participants to think about how our readings of power might inform our social practice work; personally, politically and institutionally. You can find out more about Rabab’s work here: http://rababghazoul.com/work