In 1998 CAMP collaborated with Intersection for the Arts to present The Public Trust at Intersection October 9 – November 15.
PRESS RELEASE:
A collaborative exhibition about self-expression in public space organized by Clarion Alley Mural Project (CAMP)
Intersection for the Arts presents The Public Trust: A Collaborative Exhibition about Self-Expression in Public Space. Featuring young artists who apply a variety of legal, quasi-legal, and illegal strategies to the problem of cultural participation in a society based on passive consumption. Participating artists include graffiti writers HABLO, PEACE, SOME, muralists Maya Hayuk and Hope Algarin; film and video maker Kate Ellis; poster/sticker/mixed media propaganda artists Anthony Skirvin (WARNED), SEISMIC SOLUTION, TOGETHER WE CAN DEFEAT CAPITALISM, and billboard alteration group HOCUS FOCUS. The show will open on October 9th and run through November 18th. We will have an opening reception with the artists on October 9th, from 6-9pm, and a conversation and screening Friday, on October 16th at 7pm. Gallery hours will be from 1-5pm Thursdays – Sundays. All events are FREE.
The name of the show, The Public Trust, is intended to invoke the tension between two opposing views of the work presented. To a considerable public, this work is transgressive, a prank, vandalism, a violation of the social contract. On the other hand artists who do this kind of work are folk heroes to many, which suggests a widespread dissatisfaction with our public discourse. We will use the notion that these artists are in fact responsible citizens making an important contribution to the social good as the starting point for a range of explorations in mark-making, alteration, effacement, and commentary in the urban environment.
The installation of the show will draw from the aesthetic of the street. In general there will not be clear divisions in the space between the work of different artists and in fact some work will overlap and collide. Many of the artists will have work spread throughout the show. Guest artists will be invited to contribute smaller pieces as the show progresses. The transitory nature of the work will be emphasized and the show may continue to evolve throughout the month. Furthermore, the show will substantially spill out into the street. The gallery space will also serve as a temporary distribution dept for propaganda materials, especially during the opening.
