[NetBehaviour] Crisis_at_the_ICA:_Ekow_Eshun1s_Experiment_in_Deinstitutionalisation

[d.waterson at hushmail.com]

Hi Stuart, Rob and everyone on the list,

Slightly hesitant in being part the discussion, have been 
unsubscribing and resubscribing on and off. I will stay now - this 
list and most of the people who use it and furtherfield to me, is 
an essential resource for anyone dedicated in learning and knowing 
about contemporary art, the actual contemporary. Not just that, I 
have noticed that the audience and subscribers here sometimes 
collaborate, the energy is very different than traditional ways of 
creating, and feels deeper than what I am used to. Much more going 
on at many different levels. 

Until today I have always been lurking and reading the discussions 
and viewing a lot of the work submitted here, sometimes just 
viewing archives. My background is in painting, since working with 
peer students on projects at Greenwich UNiversity on computers, 
collaborative networks I have found a whole new world has opened up 
for me and it is actually very overwheling. Like Stuart said, it is 
like a secret has suddenly been unveiled. 

I am very disappointed with the mainstream art scene, it all seems 
so shallow and empty compared to the dynamic and questioning energy 
that comes about from new media art, still not sure what to call it 
- I have noticed that even some of the main people who practice 
this genre (is it a genre?) are not in complete agreement 
themselves about the term anyway. I think this is a good thing, it 
feels right that it is still in flux and changing all of the time.

I will be at HTTP Gallery tomorrow evening. Have been researching 
and finding great live art and media art for a little while, and 
Annie Abraham's work is really interesting, actually it's brilliant 
and I can't wait to see it as it happens in the space. The last 
show I saw there was Jeremy Bailey's and the performance he did was 
magnificent. Been following his work as well. I have also been 
looking at work by Renee and De Geuzen, but there is so much other 
stuff out there which is exciting as well, like the reviews on 
furtherfield. I would not know about digicult.it, neural.it, node 
london and artisopensource if this community did not exist, so I 
can understand why people are very passionate about it.

I'm afraid when talking about the ICA, I have nothing useful to 
contribute. It just does not feature in my life. I have seen 
exhibitions there, to be honest I have usually left bored and felt 
empty inside, which is actually how I feel with most mainstream art 
shows at the moment. I suppose it could be a generational thing, it 
looks to me as though this EKow guy is going to pinch many ideas 
from a culture which has genuinely grown from learning and 
discovery. And he's like the spoilt cat that pinches the cream. It 
seems a bit cheap and desperate to me - sorry:-(

I know there is a whole bunch of students subscribed on here just 
reading and learning and visiting projects, events and shows which 
is shared here. I also know many of them are shy and feel out of 
their depth, I feel like this. I still would like to hear from some 
of them. I have done it and now I feel much more part of the list. 
And I know it sounds corny, but I also feel part of an important 
moment of history. Things are changing and I know this, because I 
am part of the change.

Here is a site I have been enjoying lately. I have not seen it 
posted on the list yet. Hope you like it :-)
http://everythingvisual.net/?p=906
 

daniella.
A student discoverying worlds out there, not just my own ego.