Friday 29 February 2008

'Cricket Bat’ – Sean Williams


This bat far outweighs my sway as an artist BUT approximates my cricket ability and reputation in Cheshire’s lower leagues, and is a beautiful object. I keep it in my studio and reminds me of past glories; for example, 75 on a difficult track at Hale Barns.
Join Neil Webb and myself for net practice this summer in the Bloc courtyard.

Wednesday 20 February 2008

Perceptions of an Elephant

The status of an Art Bat means different things to different people.

Blind Monks Examining an Elephant, Hanabusa Itcho,
1888.

Differences in perception are explored by the story of the blind men, or men in the dark, exploring an elephant and then sharing their impressions.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blind_Men_and_an_Elephant

Friday 15 February 2008

Gibson or Telecaster?


S Mark Gubb wrote:

'...I'd like to think my bat would be a late 60's Gibson Les Paul Sunburst, though it's more likely to be be re-issue Fender Telecaster.'








Art Rock!

Elephants as Bats!


The Elephant in the Room
Tensions between object and process in socially engaged new media art.


Ele Carpenter has suggested that her bat may well be a white elephant. Here's what she wrote:


Art bats... hummm: me thinks mine is a white elephant!
somewhere between bric a brac, and the fact that it's the thing in the room that no-one talks about because they don't know what i actually 'do'.
At the moment I'm writing about art which is not embodied through an object, and the problems with that. Objects are so much more resolved than processes. Although not always so much fun.


(could try find chocolate elephants for easter....!)

In fact that would be a good art-bat 'object' - a chocolate elephant on a shelf in Access Space.... see if no one eats it before easter...... (doesn't have to be white chocolate....)

Hewtitt and Jordan's Bat

For us the metaphor of the artists’ bat enables one to question the popular misconception of art being a universal or disinterested field of practice and that we can somehow compare the relative success or influence of each artist/player based on an agreed or common criteria.
We instead begin to see that there are many forms of bat, that they play many functions within the strategies and tactics of a range of different games, and that they have fans and as well as opposing supporters.

We will talk about difference in the artworld using amongst other things Habermas’s theory of the public sphere, the debased public sphere and counter public spheres.

Hewitt and Jordan.

Does the Bat make up for an Artists lack of Power?

Had an interesting chat the other day done at Access Space with Guy. Mused over the idea that the Art Bat was to fill a lack in the power and position artists have in society. This aspect hadn't occured to us before. Guy mentionned that the art bat might be seen as an aggressive symbol of power within this context which, of course, is an interesting point at this stage. We suggested that we alligned the metaphor of the bat more with the idea of holding an object which was used as a compulsary means of progression within a specified field, ie. within the game of baseball, without the bat the team cannot strike the ball, gain runs and compete within the game. Fundamentally, the batter externalises his hopes, his dedication, his love of the game through his actions with the bat. In this sense, an artists bat could be a defining piece of work in his career.

Saturday 9 February 2008

BLOG Up and Running

The Swing that Art Bat blogspot is now up and running. We would like this to be one of the most productive interfaces for taking the project forward from now until the opening and throughout, playing a huge part in informing how the exhibition space will evolve and the activity within Access progresses. The show opens on 29th February after the Art Sheffield 08 symposium has finished so please all come along. We will be presenting our 'Art Bat' and elaborating on why we feel that it represents us.
We are very excited by the series of talks and again these will be pivotal in adding new chapters to the project offering some thoughts for reflection. We will be at Access Space throughout the month for around 2 days a week and we will put the times and dates up on here.

Yours,
Horatio Eastwood and Terry Slater
No Fixed Abode

Friday 8 February 2008

Have Your Say!

Contribute to this blog by emailing your thoughts, ideas and views to contact@nofixedabode.org.uk or comment on the below posts.

Please also email us your pics, videos or anything else Art Bat related.

More posts to follow.

New posters!





Here's the Art Bat posters fresh off the press.