Saturday 8 December 2007

LEEDS INTERNATIONAL POOL
Rejected Proposals

In June 2007, Black Dogs were invited to make a proposal for an intervention at Leeds International Pool. We put forward plans for several distinct artworks, ranging from a series of ghostly videos to hardcore audience liver abuse. The proposal read:

Our intention with the proposed intervention in Leeds International Pool is to facilitate the audience to reflect on the history of the building and its wider context (the city) in a critical yet celebratory fashion - a good-natured ribbing with games and activities to prompt conversation.

The point of departure for our intervention is the widespread urban legend of the pool’s design omitting the thickness of its tiles and in turn not being able to qualify as an official Olympic-sized pool. This insignificant but tragic unit of measurement will feature subtly in many of the works included in the intervention.

The atmosphere we intend to create is a discreet unsettling of the audience through the layering of past activity and present celebration. This will be achieved through the audience’s simultaneous experience of participative and interactive artworks and games etc that form a ‘real-time party’, and the inclusion of works that playback past events or ghostly traces of past activity in the pool.

An illustrative reference point might be the scene in Kubrik’s ‘The Shining’ where Jack hallucinates a bar and partygoers that existed decades previous whilst enjoying a drink and chat with the (similarly imagined) bar tender.

Initial works that we have discussed to achieve this atmosphere will include:

An invitation to ‘Drink the Pool Dry’. Audience members are served from a bar stocked with drinks (alcoholic and non-alcoholic if allowed) the initial total of which equates to the volume of the pool. The drinks are served in units equal to the volume of a tile. Drinks will comply with H+S.




Leeds International Pool souvenir distance badges. Sew on patches are given away as prizes from games and/or distributed through vending machines. The distances are slightly less than normal (ie 499.78m badge).

Participative (Pool) Lounge Music. The empty pool is filled with old pianos that a performer/the audience are invited to walk across. The resulting music would highlight the unique acoustics of the space and can be recorded or transcribed to form a document of the intervention. Close work with H and S will be required to adapt the idea.




Water-sensitive ‘ice’ sculptures. The space is decorated with replicas of objects that used to inhabit the building. The replicas are constructed from tile-units made from compressed soap powder. At the end of the event they are melted with water as a performance (party) piece.





Pool music. Using underwater recording equipment the music that is played at the party will create the illusion that the audience is alternating between hearing it underwater and normally (as when the radio is played through the speakers whilst swimming). All songs are cut short by small but noticeable amounts. This sound piece may also include field recordings taken from when the pool was active.


Projected Pool Audience/Party-goers. Life size projections of films made of loops of people performing various actions and everyday things in the pool (diving, walking, talking, watching) punctuate the space. This would have a similar effect as the sound piece - a playback of past events into the space, ghosts in the pool.


These are initial ideas that we would hope to refine and develop to create a cohesive and accessible (yet surreal) environment for the audience to enter into and engage with. There is flexibility within the work to adapt to budget or health and safety practicalities and still achieve the same goals. Similarly the duration of the piece is flexible. It could last for four weeks as a conventional exhibition or be split into a number of events (this would be negotiated by developing the work more closely with the commissioner).

Black Dogs has strong links with a number of other Leeds-based artists and collectives who we are keen to work with where possible (see CV). Similarly our relationship with organisations such as Lumen and Leeds College of Art and Design have helped us access technical support and resources to deliver projects successfully in the past.

The opportunity presented by this commission is valuable for Black Dogs and would allow us to develop our practice and broaden partnerships in Leeds. As such we would be keen to make every effort to realise the intervention to as high a standard as possible and are willing to adapt to any changes that may occur.

Tuesday 4 December 2007

Thank you again to everyone that helped out by making/bringing cakes and cards for the stall today and to everyone that helped running the stall.

We still have quite a few cards left but a few of us were thinking of selling them on ebay, maybe as collections or as single cards and setting up a paypal account to the funds account laura and I are making. We should get on this asap though obviously.

Anyway, the news you wanted to hear, today we made a total of : £100. 23

Meaning that from the two sales so far we have a total of about £170.

Oh and one more thing, while speaking about ebay - Tanni and I were thinking maybe we should have a meeting and all start contributing things to sell on the site even if something like (I can't remember her name) but the artist that came in for a visiting lecture a while back who sold the photographs before they were taken., a small sketch or anything we could just make some more funds from.. I imagine we will need to speak about this on here over Christmas or otherwise meet in the New Year now.

Anyway thats all from me for now, I think I had too many mince pies. x

Tuesday 27 November 2007

Manning stall Tues 4 Dec

Said I'll do 2-3pm, maybe with Sally.
Think others have told Laura T when they're doing - but we need stock!!

Sunday 25 November 2007

email...

Dear Taneesha

I'm not entirely sure what you are asking here. -------------is a gallery,
rather than a mentoring organisation. Are you enquiring about using the gallery
for the exhibition? If so please can you be more specific, or arrange to meet one
of us.

Perhaps you should ask your tutors for the help you detail below or visit the
spaces you are interested in and ask them directly?

Good luck with your exhibition, but - kindly - I don't think you'll get very far
with a generic email as below - you need to speak directly to the venue you are
interested in, about that venue.



On Thu, 8 Nov 2007 00:05 , fin5ta@leeds.ac.uk sent:

>
>To -- --- --------
>
>I am currently a Fine Art Level 3 student at University of Leeds, and I am
>researching and resourcing potentials venues and sites for our Degree show,
>which will take place towards the end of the next academic year in the possible
>months of May, June or July.
>
>I would be very grateful for any detailed responses including possible ideas for
>collaberations with art gallery spaces and sites within Leeds. I would like to
>organise times to visit venues, as well as found out information of the cost of
>letting spaces and the time schedules in which we would need to know when spaces
>are available and therefore deadlines into when to book exhibition spaces
>by.
>
>Also any help, direction or advice into curating our degree show will be much
>appreciated!
>
>Youres Sincerely Taneesha Ahmed.
>
>

Wednesday 21 November 2007

actual activity!

I agree we need to be less vague in time for Xmas. The groups are roughly divided by the loose groups Simon organised but better to do by task choice. Ultimately a list of tasks that is matched one on one to people is maybe the best way forward for now. (?)
ie Deadline: 1 weeks time everybody has to make 5-10 Xmas cards each. (one a day!) Choose a 'buddy' to nag you.
1 weeks time everybody has to make one phone call that might get a sponsor or donation.
Any ideas for fundraisers?

Monday 19 November 2007

framework for working


These are just examples of how the workload could be distributed which was discussed today.This would work well if there was a representative from each grouping, which would be rotated (weekly/monthly) in order to distribute work load. Or perhaps even delegate scribes to make notes. etc. The option to go to meetings will always be open for all year members, regardless to any current role they might have.

I think that using words like 'leader' and 'dictator' may be funny in some respects, but they also have unhelpful and un-neutral connotations- however it is really important for us to manage this project more efficiently, in a democratic fashion. In order to do that we need to have more meetings with all the student bodies ( or the majority if not all) present. Today was a good example of how this worked in collaberating our ideas- but there was also an overload of information, and not much resolution. it was all a bit vague. i think we need a criteria- of things we need to assess etc.we need a timetable/ with deadlines- if for a lot of us, we want this show to be a 'sucess'.

Minutes from today

Laura Riley - Internation Swimming pool
Laura and Sam By opposite shops and Primary Royal Park Road School,
Holly Parkingson gallery
Taneesha and Ki - City library gallery
Sophie – flannels
Lorraine - Office Spaces Leeds 13 stylee



Smaller spaces
Trinity Church center

Set up space 4th – 11th June
Last week of May to get it ready.

Friday 16 November 2007

Abesent group

Jess and I wanted to meet up on monday at about two after the semminar and lunch? Anyone who wants to meet is welcome, we're going to discuss more about a show after xmas and lots more mundane things.

Thursday 15 November 2007

meetings

katie rees said...

 maybe we could stay behind, have a meeting after one of our seminars to discuss things about funding?
katie

we should probably have a meeting soon. should we have it after/before mondays seminar or tuesdays seminar ? (or suggestions for any other days)

please comment. 



Wednesday 14 November 2007

ive added a link- to the right of me for think tank leeds... note.

Ive also been emailing venues- so far the range of responses has been helpful but nothing has clicked into place yet. We wanted to track down whether the international swimming pool could be an option, as was the idea of using the leeds library gallery. will keep you updated. x

Monday 12 November 2007

Free Stuff!!

Guys!
Free Postcards, business cards, stamps, stickers, etc etc at Vistaprint
Well....... almost free.... but so worth it! get on it now, or else!!

christmas cards!

My (very talented) friend has put some of his work on flicker. He is work is based around illustration and animation- and makes cute characters and scary creatures. and he has been making christmas cards!!!!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/19374239@N03/

The next sale will have more of an emphasis on christmas and we want to sell seasonal cards, and maybe hand crafted gifts, like christmas decorations , jewellry etc. We want everyone to generate some ideas for cards, and create them- they can be hand crafted original or prints... but i think its important that everyone has a contribution.

I also want to thank everyone that contributed in the stall today, in whatever shape of form- however it needs to be fair and balanced throughout the year group, so I think we might need to be put into smaller groups and then the smaller groups work together on similar fund raising projects in order to distribute the workloads, effort and time taken to organise 'sales' and events. In order to do this a register or rota could be made, and everyone therefore can credit themselves for contributing to the degree show.

Also- we need to organise a meeting. any ideas of how we does this pragmatically and fairly ?

Stalls & Money

Just a quick one to say a massive thank you to everyone that donated cakes etc/helped on the stall today. We haven't counted the money made yet but will let you all know how much we made tomorrow.

Also so we have loads of time in advance to get extra prepared for the next one (no excuses!) we have booked a stall for Tuesday 4th December, again in the union and from 2-5pm so that we can sell more cakes and christmas bits and pieces, ie. cards, drawings, books, badges, anything you can think of! If you have any suggestions please post them on this :).

One more thing - Laura and I are in the process of setting up a bank account so that we can keep all the money safe and sound! ... If anyone has any spare money lingering you want to put into it just contact one of us for more info!

Hope this is all ok with everyone?

Phoebe x

Anyone need help to log on?

If anyone needs a handhold to start on this blog can you let me know - I will try to talk you through some time. Love Jess

Cakes

I am bringing some cakes to lecture today.

Thursday 8 November 2007

Testing 123...

Just seeing if I can get this to work now... I guess if you're reading this I did ... woo hoo!

cake sale

CAKE SALE at the union. 2-5. monday the 12th ? next monday

Please makes lots of cakes- or give away something to donate clothes, art, crafts, jewellry etc.

I think its important for everyone to try and contribute in some shape or form, for this to be fair and productive. As laura and pheobs have put in the effort.

Thanks. Tanni. x

Emailing

I have been sourcing and emailing potential leeds venues.

using LVAF[ LEEDS VISUAL ARTS FORUM] http://www.lvaf.org.uk/view.aspx?id=3

There are some really interesting venues including PSL http://www.projectspaceleeds.org.uk/

Went to ESA- Im going to organise a meeting with them, to which we can discuss how to source and organize researching for possible venues, for the degree show.

Emailed Karen Watson @ esa.

Hi Karen,

Thanks for speaking to me today in regards to the degree show. It would be
really great to speak to you in greater detail in terms of what our options
are, and how to organize and source potential spaces. Please get in contact
with me with possible dates and times.

Taneesha Ahmed, fine art level 3 BA.

x




Also- cake sale organised by Laura and Phoebe next week

Tuesday 6 November 2007

Catalogue or book?

As I mentioned today - be interested to find out who is happy doing layout type stuff for when we get nearer the degree time as it would be great to have a means to commemorate/catalogue what we do.. I can to a certain level but I am not very quick and it would be too much unless load shared. We could think about formats / printing too if anyone knows good deals out there.

In the meantime every body should try to get some work in progress pictures saved in a good quality format as you never know when they may come in handy!

cheers
Also thought about maybe doing contact type business cards for each of us in maybe a coherent consistent style for the show if funds permit(?) what do you think?

Friday 2 November 2007

east street arts



we went to east streets art for leonors exhibition- and its was really interesting to see what she did with the space. there is an 'situation' or event this wed- if anyone is interested in going let me know.

10:30 @ esa, patrick studios.

http://www.esaweb.org.uk/

Thursday 1 November 2007

Let's Capitalise on Christmas!

How about if we joined the postcard and sketches and cake sale thing in to a Christmas gifts sale thing?

You know.... the whole 'original art" card sketch cake gift store......
perhaps in addition to bake sales we could sell sketches.

possible ideas

hello! think we should meet up as a year group face to face to discuss what possible ideas people have for the actual show, if we want to do it in uni or somewhere else? definitely good to start fundraising now though! we should start writing to artists for the auction thing cos it raised loads last year
holly

postcards

Yeah I agree that we should do the postcards, anything we can sell for loads of money will be great. Let's get fundraising. We should try and get a venue before Christmas for a massive Christmas Party and sell tickets and raffle tickets? (usually companies will sponsor us byt giving us free wine or stuff for prizes)

Press and Marketing

I'm up for being on the Press and Marketing - got some experience of it over the summer.

but yeah - this one can probably wait
i think doing something like they did last year when they invited celebrities etc to do drawing and then auction them would be a good idea to raise a bigger amount of money in one go.

cakes

Laura, is organising a cake sale. I think this is a great idea, because we do need money, at least to generate more money. Does anyone have an idea about budgets ?

cakes for capital.

title

firstly, can we discuss the name of this blog? why probability?

Wednesday 31 October 2007

First Post

I was thinking that there was an worryingly lack of comunication and foresight for our degree show and decided that we would need a place to document ideas, processes, events, and general administration for the following year.

I also think that this would also be a good place for people to make connections and themes within their work, for the enventualities of then curating our own degree show.

This will be open, for everyone to join- i will get the addresses from all students- and then invite everyone to participate.

N.B. this isnt an art project, but a forum for potential ideas and plans to be open for discussion.