“… do-it-yourself art works act as vehicles, tools or stages for the participants’ actions, thoughts and feelings. Direct physical participation in the museum, however, poses major display and conservation problems, as originals created by the artist can be substantially damaged when they are handled by large numbers of visitors. Theoretically, the issue is further complicated by the fact that unlike contemporary participatory works (such as Carsten Höller’s ‘Test Site’ at Tate Modern in 2007), most 1960s practices were conceived outside, if not in opposition to, the museum. Notions of lived experience, change, movement, and spontaneity, upon which a political discourse of freedom and self-discovery revolved, were considered antithetical to an institution, which, according to Kaprow, ‘reeked of holy death.” – Anna Dezeuze, Tate Papers No.8
Splendid! I love this picture. And I wonder: How much attention do you draw making these photographs? Do people react positively or negatively?
Some! I did have a guy come up to me in London last week when I was setting up a shot and saying “are you that guy?” thinking I was Slinkachu, so I said there’s a lot of artists out there doing similiar work, but he just said that he loved that kind of thing and resumed his jogging. I’ve never had a bad reaction yet – touch wood!
Wow, that sounds good. Thank you for the info. I appreciate your work (I am planning to have fun with miniatures now and then; some ideas that want out).