What is my live project?
I am linking my liver project to the work that I do outside of university through the organisation of Project4Change. I meet a lot of young people in unprivileged backgrounds and get to see what it's like to be in their shoes. The focus of feelings of uselessness, underachievement and stupidity within a school setting is very common. Issues more serious such as broken families, verbal abuse, physical abuse, alcohol/substance abuse snd child grooming do happen within these young people. These issues and the feelings of young people tend to be ignored and put aside. I want to use the emotions of the young people to create a participatory art piece through child-like wonder or games; I feel it is essential that it is addressed.
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Artist Inspo:
Yoko Ono
Katie Schwab
Roman Ondak - Measuring the universe
Felix Gonzalez-Torres
Phyllis Christopher
Exhibition Idea Focus
A new multi-million-pound sports Parklife hub will be built in the Blakelaw re-creation grounds. The project will see the site's existing facilities replaced with a new artificial 3G pitch, two five v five football pens, a skate park, an outdoor cycle track, and a children's play area. This project aims to provide a welcome boost for sports and exercise to Blakelaw.
https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/multi-million-pound-newcastle-sports-18695126
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Project4Change is local to the Blakelaw area. Most of the young people I interact with use the park, especially the skating park, to hang out if there are no community centre activities scheduled. It is the primary source of physical activity, taking their bikes and scooters to ride or socialising and interacting with other young people. Recently as an organisation, we sought out approval from the city to add more street lights in the park so young people can feel safe and make it possible to stay out longer during the winter months. We were saddened to be informed that the park that we fought to be safe for the young people is being taken away, and a sports hub will be built within its place. A sports hub might be seen as a positive considering its income to Blakelaw. Still, the Blakelaw community comprises council houses and families that rely on benefits for their rent and meals. Putting a sports hub where you need to use its facilities would be useless for the young people in the local community as they can't afford a regular membership. The park that has always been available to them was free to use to anyone. With its approval, the young people who frequently use the parks accessible facilities feel powerless to the situation; currently, it is being built.
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I want to create a participatory exhibition reflecting this situation, highlighting the emotions of the young people involved.
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For this particular piece, I am taking inspiration from Felix Gonzales-Torres.
Felix Gonzales-Torres
Felix Gonzalez-Torres is well-known for his conceptual art installations with everyday objects, that address themes like his experiences as a gay man, the impact of AIDS, love, and death.
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Felix Gonzalez-Torres “Untitled” (Portrait of Ross in L.A.) is an allegorical representation of the artist’s partner, Ross Laycock, who died of an AIDS-related illness in 1991. The installation is comprised of 175 pounds of candy, corresponding to Ross’s ideal body weight. The sweet candy, in and of itself, is a representation of love. Viewers are encouraged to take a piece of candy, and the diminishing amount parallels Ross’s weight loss and suffering prior to his death. Gonzalez-Torres stipulated that the pile should be continuously replenished, thus metaphorically granting perpetual life.
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https://www.artic.edu/artworks/152961/untitled-portrait-of-ross-in-l-a
https://www.wikiart.org/en/felix-gonzalez-torres/untitled-portrait-of-ross-in-l-a-1991
With this piece, I like the use of candy and taking the candy as symbolism for something else. The idea that life with a life-threatening illness can only be delayed and not cured is uncontrollable. The use of audience participation to allow the audience to take the candy is unpredictable itself, and you might not know if they take one, two or a hand full or decide not to take anything at all. The audience itself is a factor within the piece that can't be controlled but can only be suggested to which they individually independently decide how much candy to take.
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I want to add this sense of uncontrollability into my participatory piece. I will use the audience to be the piece's sense of uncertainty where they will be invited to take something. Due to the audience taking something, the room/space will eventually become empty.