8/7/2019 User generated documentation

1/2

In my Critical research I have been analyzing theoretical

positions for socially engaged practices. I focused on

identifying models for analyzing socially engaged art

practices.

Why are we watching this? asked Susan, one of the more vocal members of the

reading and discussion group at an elderly community centre in South London.

The film I had chosen to show them as part of an outreach programme was

beginning to perplex the restful bunch and only two of them had the energy to

analyze the presentation. Once I put the abstract film on mute, I found the

enthusiastic response and discussion that followed typical of the weekly

meetings; engaging, historical accounts of experiences that were remembered in

complete detail, recalled at brief opportunities between unrelated stories. Myattempts to direct the discussion towards the programmes theme were futile

when meddling in the memories of so many, soon residing as a responsive

listener and translator for those hard of hearing. This event organized by myself,

as part of Film and Video Umbrellas Free to Air programme, a series of

community engaging activities, lead me to reflect upon the critical approaches

developed for socially engaged practices in contemporary arts.

I am interested in how this event, organized between myself and the members of

the reading and discussion group, required consensual co-operation and

participation, that form a criteria for analyses socially engaged practices. I

would therefore like to present and apply specific critical models that question

our understanding and analysis of contemporary socially situated practices.

In this paper I would like to investigate conflicting evaluative frameworks that

are applied to participatory practices.

The subjective, experiential nature of participatory art has

forced critics to analyze the work using less formal aesthetic

judgments. What I found is that good participatory art works

are constantly changing though each interaction, that does

not suit well for traditional visual analysis.

Each critic I studied implemented different value systems for

analyzing relational art, each critical framework attempted

8/7/2019 User generated documentation

2/2

to measure quite ephemeral material. When looking at this

work from a secondary source, analyzing the artwork

becomes misjudged and presumptive.

USER GENERATED DOCUMENTATION

Society now uses social media to broadcast and document

our experiences in everyday life. Performance and

participatory art can use this to support their artworks and

provide accurate documentation.

Luke Jerram Play me Im Yours is the installation of public

pianos all over the world. This public art work discussed inAnalysing the critical fields for participation displayed use of

social media and user generated documentation. The tales

and encounters that are curated by Jerram online and

uploaded by participants (members of the public) provide

accurate and appropriate evolving documentation.

Participatory art that is focused on personal and shared

experience must be anaylsed through audience responses.

Social media provides a platform for all participants to

express their experience of the project. Not only giving the

artwork valuable documentation, it also enhances the

participatory practice ethos.

My recent engagement with social media and real time user

information is due to two major aspects. After looking at

methods for analyzing participatory art in my work user

generated media feels like an appropriate avenue. In an

overview the dissertation made me question howexperimental and unquantifiable information is analyzed.