Portland State Magazine Winter 2012

l } to work with individuals in a neighbor– hood. For example, one group of artists set up a screen printing shop in a local library to help community members and organizations print posters, bulletins, and T-shirts to increase communication about their events. "You can create art that is relevant to people in the commu– nity," Fletcher says. The idea isn't new. Social practice as a term used in an started about eight years ago, says PSU art professor Jen Delos Reyes, who teaches a course on the history of art and social practice in the program. But its predecessors include the 1920s Dada movement, which com– bined various practices, such as mixing theater and publications. The Intermedia Society in 1960s Canada worked to create experimental artists' workshops, performances, and exhibitions. Today, social practice is especially relevant in a highly digital age filled with social media, says Allison Agsten, curator of public engagement at UCLA's Hammer Museum. "There is something about the element of human-to-human contact that is incredibly precious right now," she says. SOME MUSEUM curators may struggle with finding a place for social practice in the art world. Papalia says a gallery curator in Vancouver, B.C., lost all interest in him once he explained his social practice approach. Agsten acknowledges that some museums don't understand the artistic merit of some projects. Bur others, like Hammer and the Portland Art Museum, see oppor– tunities to foster dialogue with visitors ch rough social practice pieces. In October, the Portland Art Muse– um's Shine a Light third annual one-day exhibit expanded conventional concep– tions of art to include tattooing based on art from its collection, arc-inspired recipes from local chefs, and Papalia's walking tour. PSU students and faculty planned most of che exhibits. Social practice also provides differ- ent opportunities for making a living through an, Fletcher says. "I don't see the studio/gallery model as a sustainable practice," he explains. Overall, few artists score gallery shows-although that is the aspiration taught in many art programs. The system also keeps art in concrolled environments. In contrast, Fletcher says social practice artists can find funding through grants for specific projects. He and Delos Reyes point to prominenc artist Mierle Laderman Ukeles of New York City, who established a project in the 1970s to shake hands with every member of the city's sanitation depart– ment. The project led to his long-term relationship with the city as an artisc-in– residence. In Portland, PSU students Molly Sherman and Nolan Calisch have partnered to combine agriculture, social work, and education into artist-in- ON!: 01 US SALON residence positions with New Seasons Markee, tl1e Portland area grocery chain. 1he two will interview local farmers who supply the stores with produce and share audio from the interviews with shoppers ac the Concordia store, Sherman says. The project is an outgrowth of their Farm School project, which educates people about tl1e source of their food. Sherman, who moved from New York to attend PSU's Art and Social Practice program, has long been interested in education and says she would be excited to work in a high school teaching art. Rather than apply for a master's in education, she chose the art approach because ic gives her flexibility for uncon– strained creativity, she says. She sees hope in how other artists have sustained themselves through grants and other funding. Agsten agrees that art as social practice has a promising future as a new way for artists to work and for audiences to experience art. "I have more and more conversa– tions about social practice, and how to formalize the museum's role in fostering this kind ofwork," she says. "Ir's almost certain we're going to see more really thoughtful work in the future with much more visibility." ■ Su Yim, a graduate assistant in the PSU Office ofUniversity Communications, wrote "Business as Art" in the Fall 2011 Portland State Magazine. WINTER 2012 PORTLAND STATE MAGAZINE 15