At the end of our Time Arts class we went and explored the area around Marshal Street. The purpose was to look, try to understand and engage in those who were participating in the free PARK(ing) Day. PARK(ing) Day by definition “is an annual, worldwide event that inspires city dwellers everywhere to transform metered parking spots into temporary parks for the public good” (parkingday.org).
The first parking space that I came upon was a group of ESF students and what appeared to be their professor. They where sitting down in either camper chairs or sleeping bags acting out a campsite. This project was extremely important to the students because no only did it count towards their grade as a project but supported their belief in the need for more parks. When asking them the reason for their set up they explained that they were environmental design majors and they made this space to reflect a campsite as so many camping grounds have been torn down in upstate NY. They not only pointed out negatives in the lack of parks but also the possibly of adding new green areas. One student mentioned that he got a question that said “ but why do this when after today this will still be a road”. I really liked his approach to answer this question, he responded by saying “ well, soon one day this road will have to be re-done, so why not add more grass to the sidewalks or add a median with grass on it”. I really liked his approach on futuristic thinking not reflecting on was has already happened.
When we first approached them they were sitting in silence. This is most definitely a form of performance art similarly, to that work done of Jon Cage. Allowing people to focus on the silence allows us to concentrate, commemorate and respect the important issue of nature being destroyed. By being in silence it is almost a synonymous exercise to Jon Cage. The idea that when people are still and quiet and listen to nature instead of hustle and bustling going on around them, then you can truly appreciate nature. So by staying silence I believe they were attempting to make us realize that when parks disappear then so does that naturalistic silence and that it will be replaced with the endless noise of cars.
This experiment was extremely successful for a multitude of reasons. One reason is that without words I could see that they there were attempting to be on a campsite and reenact the activities that are encouraged with those specific activities. Also when they began to explain their project they did not only just explain it but they provided examples of comments and questions that were asked by other people adding a mass of perspectives to the project. Also simply the fact that it made me more aware of a topic that I was not one hundred percent familiar with.
One parking spot that really grabbed my attention was a stand provided by the Everson Museum of Art. The project consisted of a double-sided board, which was all mapped out with Post-it squares. Upon inquiry, the woman told us that it was a mosaic where people can define what they believe art is. Each Post-it that was added to the overall board spelt the words art is and within each Post-it it contained the same words (art is). The Post-it had a blank space for people to write their response to what art is, allowing for a wide range of responses. Some examples that I saw was that art is, everything, anything ordinary, sex and the generic art is cool.
The board definitely allowed the public to be involved in this performance art. This form of art was fun, entertaining, expressive and educational allowing people to interact and also feel like they added something to the project. This project was also carefully placed in the parking space. Not only was it placed directly on Marshal Street but also they made the board double sided so that people walking on either side of the street would be able to see it and be able to interact.
Although this project was not directly correlated to the PARK(ing) Day event I still believe it to be effective. This project communicated a variety of things. One was that everyone has a different definition of what art actually is, showing that everyone has a different perspective and there is no one to say one is right or wrong. Secondly, that anyone and everyone can create something, even something like this mosaic board. Finally to make a connection to the Everson Museum of Art and the design pieces that there museum hold.
Although these projects are very different I still believe that they portray good examples of performance art. Some types that are interactive and some types that are to be observed. In addition, even though only one piece really related to the purpose of the day both got their messages across, which is the most important aspect of performance art.
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