My point isn't to split hairs around definition and semantics but
rather to underscore the emerging buzz around social practice art. And
by "buzz" I also mean "money." SPArt, a grant-making organization based
in LA, recently awarded three $10,000 grants
that they themselves characterize as social practice art. Winning
projects include an art-making workshop with former inmates, an
interactive broadcast at an LA swap, and a collective that will create a
"new space for women to learn and create."
The big question moving forward isn't whether social art projects—or whatever you'd like to call them—will proliferate. As this astute piece in Art News makes
plain, the movement is gaining momentum and shows no signs of abating.
Rather, the more pressing issue is whether larger, richer foundations
will climb aboard and funnel money toward arts organizations that roll
out more collaborative and interactive programming. Conversely, it will
also be interesting to see if arts organizations, looking for a piece of
the social practice funding pie, will radically alter their programming
or adroitly place existing programs under the social practice rubric.
We'll keep you posted. But you already knew that.
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