As I find it easier to have a conversation rather than reflect on my own, I recently set up the same blog on my own web site at www.karenwallis.co.uk to reach some more people. Here is some comment, with my responses, to my first post [3 May 2009] below.
comment
You say you want to situate yourself within the current art scene and offer direction for your future practice. Which begs me to ask aren’t you in it? What do you want to be in and do you know the criteria that will allow/ enable you to be in it? Is NOT having a direction for your future practice one of the criteria for inclusion into the thing that you have been excluded from?
How will you know when you are in it?
response
That’s a nice point – in the real sense of ‘nice’ picking up on a matter of precision.
Of course I am situated, as in placed, in the current art scene – and I’m not actually seeking to be somewhere else that demands different criteria to what I already do. It is a matter of others’ perception of the position I occupy in the current art scene. I don’t feel excluded, in fact I enjoy not fitting into any set style or manner of practice. However it would be useful to know where the gatekeepers and followers perceive me to be operating – so that the work I choose to make can be more effective in getting a reaction.
comment
You are wanting your work to be more effective. So do you want to change your work?
response
No, I don’t want to change my work. But there is always room for improvement and development. Just as one wants the next work to be better than the last so I’d like my future work to have more impact than my past work. I’m not talking about sensationalism either. My aim is always to generate a quiet sense of everyday reality.
comment
Ok so a number of questions then follow: Do you want to change the minds of the gatekeepers in the belief/hope that this will bring the greater impact? Do you want fame, critical acclaim or political change?
response
No, I don’t seek to change the minds of the gatekeepers. Any impact I might make on them in the future will only help them to apprehend what my work is about – it doesn’t mean they will necessarily appreciate it.
What do I want? Critical acclaim and fame are always double-edged. I would hate to be in a position where people assumed I knew it all and I’m not sure fame is worth the potential financial gain. Of the three on offer, political change would be top choice (in my dreams). Maybe it is possible in a small ‘grain of sand’ way, by helping to cause a shift or being a mild irritant.
