S.E.A Reading Response #1

As someone who doesn't have a lot of experience creating art, Pablo Helguera’s piece was very insightful to see how the history of Socially Engaged Art started and where it is now. Before having done these readings I wouldn't have called my work art but Helguera’s distinction and definition of S.E.A would categorize what I do as art. Learning that S.E.A isnt restricted to traditional forms of art but has different facets of other fields was incredibly gratifying; to see the fields that I have worked in having a place in the creation of meaningful art made me feel welcome and valid.

S.E.A being art that is creation and working with society fits with what I imagined and hoped it would be. Reflexive of your environment, the people and the wider world and the movements within it. This was visible in Carolina Miranda’s article ‘How the Art of Social Practice is Changing the World, One Row House at a Time”, she references these different works that artists have created where they use space and community to address a social issue, teach an idea or to get people together for an experience.

The digital practice of creation highlighted in Adam Greenfield’s “Radical Technologies” saw the internet as a tool for information, communication and collaboration while acknowledging how its been taken over by large corporations and surveillance. It was relieving to see that Greenfield had the same apprehension I do when it comes to digital creation in a landscape that is often overtaken by large players.

That being said, I want to improve my digital art skills during this class. These readings delivered useful background information on this field while relieving me of the tension I have when it comes to my relationship with art.