What is the Educational Turn in the Commons? Dr Emma Balkind
What is the Educational Turn in the Commons? Lecture Part 1 (link) (9:44)
Lecture Part 2 (link) (3:05)
Context
In these ‘talking heads’ videos, I am trying to make a connection between a few concepts to consider the educational turn in relation to the commons.
Firstly, thinking about the concept of the commons itself. The commons being a type of resource which is shared, and has a £0 value.
Secondly, considering discursive practices. These are used as a means to provide discussion within contemporary art and are often framed as ‘educational’ or ‘relational’ programmes within institutions (museums, biennials etc.)
Many contemporary commons initiatives have been formed through reading groups and informal means of postgraduate education. These projects often form as a result of financial constraints. I give the examples here of groups such as Sixteen Beaver in New York.
Some of these projects are either partially or fully dematerialised and available as online resources or groups such as AAARG.org
The postgraduate educational programmes I mention here are School of the Damned, and Dark Study.
Links list:
A history of the concept of the commons. ‘The Uncommonality of the Commons’ by Simon Yuill, which was produced for Emma’s discursive programme Estovers in 2013. http://www.frontiersinretreat.org/artists/simon_yuill/324_simon_yuill_the_uncommonality_of_the_commons (link)
Essay for The Shock of Victory, CCA ‘Exhibiting the commons’ by Emma Balkind https://graphicalhouse-cca.s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/7c292d5b-19bd-482a-8625-de1ff3c0d527EBEtC.pdf (link)
This quotes ‘Reclaiming the Commons’ by Naomi Klein in the New Left Review https://newleftreview.org/issues/II9/articles/naomi-klein-reclaiming-the-commons (link)
Sixteen Beaver space in NYC which ran Commons study groups http://16beavergroup.org (link)
Aaarg.org Artists, Architects and Activists Reading Group (available through a TOR browser at aaaaarg.fail) https://monoskop.org/Aaaaarg
Alternative MFA – School of the Damned https://schoolofthedamned.tumblr.com (link)
Dark Study https://www.darkstudy.net (link)
Back to The Educational Turn Learning Module (link)
