[ connected-05 ] my thoughts

[vita.zgur at guest.arnes.si]

Hello everybody

I didn't write for some time now and i think it's time now. So…
Maybe i will have some problems about explaining the situation but i
will do my best. When i think of the empty symbol i think of lots of
things. What i want to say is do you think if empty symbols exist,
which are they and which are not empty symbols? 
I think people really like empty symbols because usually in everyday
life it means again – i don't have to think, it's easier. They can say
a lot, but do people see or understand them in this way? For me empty
symbols are everywhere. I think we can play with them only in that way
that we – let's say that we know what they are – are critical about
them. Try being really sincere for one day to everybody. Don't say how
are you just for the phrase for example. What i really don't like is
to be forced in one way of thinking, living, communicating, working,
... I mean i think we are discussing about stereotypes (=empty
symbols) really. Why use stereotypes? You think using them is
criticizing them? Or are we just repeating one and the same thing? 
How do these thoughts connect with ac or fs? I can say something about
ac that i would like everybody to know. I feel ac is a place where you
don't have to function within accepted social rules, you don't have to
pretend to be nice, you don't have to talk if you don't feel like it –
my point is that ac has the possibility of becoming a little bit
different … this is for me the most important thing  – maybe our
project on the ac side should say something about that. I mean maybe
we can play with stereotypes – i see a lot of them here around lately
and i am sure you are meeting them in graz a lot – and be critical
about them. And also this – i think art is a good way of showing
different views. I think an art project like connected can show us all
that - i called them stereotypes before -  there is never one right
thing, thought, feeling, one way of communicating, attitudes, work...
The basic things (that most people/places/projects lack to show/know).
 This i see as hard to do and in the end not so easy to live with. But
i think it's worth it. 

Maybe it is now time to start talking about our personal views. What
can we learn from eachother? I hope i will have to deal with totally
different opinions, none of them winning or losing, but supporting one
or the other, in means of feeling and exploring differences. It's the
hard way but a good one. What i want to say also is that sometimes not
agreeing on things is better than thinking the same about everything.
I think this is happening really everywhere now – we like to say that
differences are good and what would this world be if everybody would
be the same - but in the end we don't really mean that, because it
involves not so easy and comfortable life. It's easier to set the
rules. And follow them. 
But i don't need that. I don't need to be told what to think and to
do. And if i am then i rebel and fight because i feel i have no
freedom. I am thinking about this and my conclusion is that these
things happen because somewhere in behind there exists some sort of
hierarchy (people, thoughts, things) which is not so far from
authority (how things should be and how they should work) and i don't
want it. Maybe our project could be also a little bit more rebelious
in this way of trying to make some small environment (like ac and fs)
work different. My proposal is that we do a project that more involves
us on a personal level (understanding differences), that we work and
play with psychologies of people and places. This could be nice.
Bringing up new or different ones, the alternatives, not the accepted
social roles and "the" eye watching? 
I had an idea for my personal project of writing a small booklet about
ac in this way and for it to be available to everybody that comes
here. Like a small booklet of easy reading, words, games about the
ways how a (small) society could funtion. Not rules but the spectrum
of different varieties, alternatives. There would be no right or wrong
just all the possibilities that i've (and pec and ...) come up with
and readable for everybody. No high words no blahblah but something
just to think about.If you would like to, we can do it together as a
part of this project (maybe we can do one for the ac and you do it for
fs or vice versa or mixed). I will do it for ac anyway. Then we can
also set the »good« example  - because we are very different and want
different things - and do something like that for the presentation.
Maybe we can do this booklet together and include the exchange of
thoughts as cym already would like to do. I would rather have
something more than just a documentation of ideas. We can also leave
some free pages for the people to write something in if they have
something to say. 

I am not so interested in bringing people here and showing the places
that i like that cym suggested. Just the place on itself has no
meaning for me – i see it as an empty symbol. Maybe we can do
something like we are doing now via e-mail there on the spots. Maybe
everybody can choose one topic that she/he would like to talk about
with others (about the connecting, empty symbols, whatever …) – and i
see this as work. 
My dilemma is this:
Somebody proposes a theme and we are supposed to talk about it as a
part of the project. But there is nice weather, we could go for an
icecream, have fun … and in the end there is no discussion, no
crashing of cultures and opinions (because we all like icecream :)) or
ways of thinking, learning that differences are good, accepting
different views. I think that here comes again a thought that was
already brought up – some things cannot be connected or they don't
want to be connected. I would like some sharpness in thoughts,
critical thoughts – only then i will see the project as succesfull. 

Another thing – about bringing local people to Graz. We can show them
fs or spektral or our presentation there which i think is very nice –
if not for the presentation but just for them to see that we here in
ac are not the only of this kind. Icluding of gibanica's passport is
also good. But for the shopping i say no – this i see as a bate for
them to bite in and i won't be a part of it. So if we do a poster
inviting them to Graz, shopping cannot be on it. I would rather call
it a free trip to Graz with presentation of another gibanica project
and free time for them. I propose we give them some free hours and
they do what they like – go shopping or whatever. Then we ask them
what they thought about the presentation and what they were doing in
this free time and try to get the idea what are they thinking about. I
think it would be nice. Why? If we are trying to show them what we are
doing i think they should also have the chance to tell us what they
are doing and thinking, or shortly: we have a chance to get to know
them. Or another thing to think about: why do we need to show, or even
better, why should the people come and see?

Also I think it's good to have two »divided« parts – we have exchange
of local people from here and maybe we can do the other way around
also. The opinions that we get from both of them and us can be very
nice together. Differences, i hope! 
We could ask everybody the same question and the variety of answers
could be a nice thing to think about within connected project.

Also what i want to say has to do with including more people in the
project. 
I thought that the point was not to have too many people on the
project. I guess the reason why cym suggested that we include more
people is more of  something that has to do with us/you people not
really having time for the project and this is the way of saving our
asses – probably mostly the projects' ass. I still think we are
already a good number of people - 6 or 7? More for me would be too
much. I want people to be included but not so much in the working
process – when we are still looking for something we would like to do
- more in the »presentation« and organization. 
If you still want more people to be a part of it i have some people
who would be interested to join in and could be helpful in a way of
connecting artists and the two places in the future – because they are
also artists who know other artists and so on. And this you could do
also in Graz – finding more people in maybe Spektral or FS. Maybe just
to try and think a little bit more in the long term.
I thought that volunteering has more to do with them helping us
implementing our project. Also i think that now that we have this
mailing list and later this notebook of our discussions via mail
people can read what we - as artists - were and are doing. We can have
discussions with everybody after the project also.

I have more going on in my head. Some other time.

Sonce
vita