Wednesday 10.12.08
Friday, December 12, 2008
I work long hours in an office at a film production company, leaving me little time to make my work. But, I have a trusty assistant who is great and makes my work for me. Ironically my job pays for her to make my work. She has been an absolute star in the production of a wallpaper piece for a show tonight.The show in question is Big Wednesday, curated by Julia Rosa Clark and Dan Levi. It is a summer show with an after party at Whatiftheworld Gallery. Everyone’s excited. I hate summer shows but this one seems less random, more considered and actually curated. There is a lot of work on display but somehow it doesn’t feel crowded. The links are there but not too obvious.
But the curatorial model was a bit strange. A lot of time was spent on research and studio visits. A lot of artists were invited to show. The work was delivered to the gallery. A week before the show it was announced that not all the artist would be included and selection will happen during the hanging process. Artists are super sensitive. The whole of the young crowd started shitting themselves. Even the fearless Robert Sloon. But in the end everyone was included… except Lizza Littlewort. And obviously Littlewort is heartbroken and extremely pissed off. The curators are not responding to her at present.
RANDOM CONTEMPORARY 2So I made a wallpaper (see above image). The printers kept on fucking it up but tonight it is all in place. Thanks to my trusty assistant. I have a chat to Julia Rosa Clark’s dad in front of the print about the film industry. I realise he is looking at the image and a feel suddenly awkward. I grab anther glass of fine wine.
There is an after party downstairs at Albert Hall. Everyone spills over and the atmosphere is fairly pleasant. There is an art performance of a String Quartet as artwork. I am reminded of an exhibition I attended in 2003 at Bell-Roberts called Muse. Everyone is happy. Julia Rosa Clark gets on the DJ Decks and everyone leaves. Artist Dan Halter tries his hand with his new crap mix. Everyone else leaves. I was asked to play but am over it. I too leave. Suresh Roberts stays…
posted by Ed Young at 7:43 AM
15 Comments:
Then again I get to be the lucky one who's not in a creepy codependent relationship with Julia right now. Keep swallowing, kids.
Lizza
I don't understand - is a new form of curating implied, where artists are entitled to a place, because... they show at the gallery, they are 'friendly' with the curator/s or they live in the same town and swill at the same pubs?
To select need not imply 'to judge'. Perhaps we are witnessing the last rattles of the Curator as Author. Lets switch the roles. The aggrieved Littlewort has the floor, let the show begin. Aha, so some think she owes them???
Crap Show of B-Sides
Ed yours may have been the worst, but after you explained what you were doing up at that time of the morning and slapped me in the face, i got it a little. Just a little.
i liked the square format.
Jake
There were a total of fourteen works that weren't shown in the end, for various reasons, including Jan-Henri's and my own. A few of the works on the show nearly didn't make it either, again for various reasons. The curatorial process was an organic one that relied on a good deal of two-ing and fro-ing between the artists' studios, or electronic submissions and the gallerists, and apologies if there were any communication breakdowns in the process. We did send out a number of mails to artists with requests and deadlines (etc.) in the hope of maintaining clarity. The curatorial decisions were ultimately made by four people, not one as implied above. I believe we all tried our best to make a coherent show under a rather tight deadline. Thank you to all the artists who invested time and effort in producing work and to Justin, Cam and Ashleigh for their hard work and financial/ logistical support. Julia.
Hi Julia, this is the aggrieved Littlewort speaking. I can tell it's you by your inability to string a coherent sentence together, which symbolizes pretty aptly what my problem is here.
I don't actually have a problem with 'being judged', certainly not by you. what I do have a problem with how badly you treated people in the run-up to this show, while clinging on like a petulant kid to your full right to be as indecisive as you pleased.
In short, you are staggerinly self-obsessed and you fuck people around, and in relation to this show you fucked me around.
I know that you were clear from the beginning that the work may not end up on the show, but to ask people to jump through such hoops for an outcome like that is an abuse of power. It made me angry early on, as you no doubt realised from my rude email.
While the title of the show was Big Wednesday, it was not made clear that there was a 'rites of passage' theme. This kind-of emerged as you stumbled through your process, during which people were actually making work already.
None of this would really be problem if you actually answered calls and were civil.
And none of that would matter either, if you worked within a general context of support for fellow artists. But you don't. You trashed our efforts on the Fresh Meat show, you have trashed the very good work of your dearest friends and constructed doubt around their work which made things hard.
Your criticism does not come from God, you are often wrong and often boring and downright silly, just like everyone else.
So be kind and accountable, and all our support and good wishes will be with you, no matter what decisions you take.
Oh Boy! Cape Town artists hate each other again! The natural order of things has been restored.
Actually I thought it was by far the best group show ever at the whatiftheworld. I cannot see how Littlerwort's work would have fit into the show: the "irony" laden tendentiousness of most of her crap would have stuck out like a hammered thumb...
it was a shit show! nothing new
I also thought it was a rgood show, and I think Julia curates well. The plan, though, of getting people to make brand new work to a specific theme which you then may or may not decide to ever put up is, in my opinion, designed to jerk people around, and this is what pissed me off. It's also the kind of jerking around which smacks very loudly of Julia. I can't think of anyone else who would have found quite such a phenomenally irritating way to set things up.
Having been asked to make work for a "big summer show" for a gallery I show with, I obviously bent over backwards to produce something. Firstly I cancelled a holiday to make new work, then some of my older work was chosen so I relaxed, then at the last minute I was asked again to make new work, being told all the time my work was really wanted for the show. So I worked my butt off in the middle of hideous work deadlines and tax returns and other projects, and got the work to the framer in time.
I'm sure it must be very hard putting together a big show, but it has not been unknown in human history for people to make decisions which do not involve this kind of stuff. I have certainly never been irritated in this way before, and I hope never to be again.
That said, the other people involved in the show, like Ashleigh, Dan and the gallerists, were civil and straight with me and answered my calls and behaved accountably, so I have no problem with them at all.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=bd2B6SjMh_w
Dear Readers
Julia has written me a letter which I found clear and civil and good, and so I wish to confirm that this particular rift has now been amicably sorted out. I apologise for being hurtful, which is never a nice thing to do, and I would also like to say that, strange working methods aside, I think she contributes a high standard of engagement which does make it more interesting to be an artist in this town. Thankyou Julia for all your hard work putting Big Wednesday together. And thankyou to everyone else who has been patient during this spat.
Lizza
RAINCHECK?
No, reality check. I was cross. As a snake. Have you ever been cross? Well, then you should know what it's like. Sometimes they get so angry they kill each other. Sometimes they talk it out and simmer down. I'm proud to report that we have achieved the latter and didn't end up in pools of blood outside the Kimberley. It would have freaked out all the kids eating cupcakes in the Book Lounge.
Fucking fucking fuck, there I said it. Now I feel better.
cocking suck fuck fuck suck cock.
i have exercised my right to free unhurtfull speech, and i too feel better.
wally.
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