Here’s a grass-roots project that sounds like it draws inspiration from the book-crossing movement , where people were encouraged to leave a book in a public space like a bus, train or cafe with instructions that whoever wanted it could take it, read it then pass it on in the same way, except this time using artwork. From the Scamp site:
“Free Art Friday is a relatively new art movement that’s rapidly gaining in popularity around the World. Artists create a painting, sketch, sculpture or installation and leave it on the street. The piece can then be picked up by anyone and claim it as their own. Finders are encouraged to email the artist and tell them how and where they found it. Free Art Friday are asking all painters, photographers, illustrators, sculptures, graffiti artists, taggers, cartoonists or any visual artist to contribute a small piece of work that will be hung/placed/or left on the streets of Dublin on Friday 23rd January for anyone to take away”
What a cool sounding idea – I have no idea if it will work, but its still a groovy notion and I’d like to think it would go down well; its always good to take some art out of the usual gallery context since that can be off-putting and intimidating to a lot of people (although of course many galleries try their best to reach out to a wider public – art should be for all). I’d be really interested in hearing from any of our Dublin readers who are either planning to take part in this and leave a piece of their own work to see if it is collected or readers who come across any such art in the city on the 23rd. Presumably the more people who take part and, importantly, mention it later, the more likely it is to be repeated.
Sat, Jan 10, 2009
Art and animation, Conventions and events