Arbitrary Art Grant - You don't have to be good to win

Artists for a Work Free America and Vital 5 Productions are offering a grant that mocks all others. The entry deadline is Friday. Because few people have entered, undoubtedly suspecting a joke, the chances of winning are pretty good. The Arbitrary Art Grant is a joke, but it comes with a real payout of $500.

arbitaryartgrant.jpgCall it kidding on the square.

You have 5 4 days left to walk into a grocery store, construct a sculpture from the store's inventory and email an image to: info@vital5productions.com. All entries will be exhibited this summer at the Bumbershoot Festival in Seattle, and one random applicant will be awarded $500.00 USD.

This grant is open to all people in all countries of all ages and backgrounds. The winner will be announced on May 30th along with the outline for our next Arbitrary Art Grant in Writing. For more information, visit: www.vital5productions.com/currentevents Brought to you by Artists for a Work Free America and Vital 5 Productions.
Here's the romantic part.

We believe that no institution or individual holds the capacity to objectively judge who should, and who should not receive money to create art. We are all painters and writers, musicians and performers, and that through social conditioning we have been stripped of our natural desire to create and perform, and programmed to believe that art is for the gifted and privileged. If indeed all people are artists, and that the inherent nature of art is subjective; the current institutions disbursing public art grants are negative and isolating to the general art populous.
In 1993, Elizabeth Sisco, Louis Hock and David Avalos managed to ring the that-ain't-art bell by giving away $10 bills to day laborers just north of the Mexican border. The NEA withdrew funding. God knows the NEA didn't want to get caught doing anything for day laborers. (New York Times story here. Artist response to NYT story here.)

Back to this Arbitrary Art Grant, the latest in a string, none of which receive government funding (This one does). Even if you don't win the money, you're guaranteed to be part of the exhibit. I couldn't find in the directions "one entry per person" but it's there.

Finally, from Jen Graves' excellent profile of Seattle dealer Scott Lawrimore (Lawrimore Project), an anecdote from his early days as gallery assistant:

When he was working for Seattle galleries, he instituted a program: the $150 studio visit. He'd go to artists' studios but often would be unable to show their work for one reason or another, so he'd give them $150 in exchange for whatever they thought that was worth. "I always wanted them to, like, spit in a napkin and give it to me," he said wistfully. "But they never did."

May 11, 2009 7:24 PM | | Comments (7) |

7 Comments

By Flim Flamery on May 12, 2009 8:20 PM

Oh Ries you boring curmudgeon, go back to making giant kitchen utensils!

By Another Bouncing BallAuthor Profile Page on May 12, 2009 2:32 PM

Thanks Rachel. Note to self: Never say what the rules are. I didn't see it and read the thing twice.

By Another Bouncing BallAuthor Profile Page on May 12, 2009 2:30 PM

The show is just the emailed photos, which means shipping costs aren't a factor.

By Rachel Maxi on May 12, 2009 9:59 AM

Hey Regina,
The rules DO say only ONE entry per person. You might want to correct that so Vidal 5 is not bombarded with repeat entries.
Best to you,
R

By sanda aronson on May 12, 2009 9:40 AM

Who is paying for shipping of the art?

It would be great if any kind of application could just be sent in.

This competition is a bit tempting. About art competitions in general: Entree fees, cost of shipping (one or both ways), no insurance (rarely is there insurance for loss of art), and jurying annoys.

I have had success in competitions. I entered many so I could publish opinions that were critical of juried shows.

In the mid1970s, Women in the Arts, NYC had a show at the Brooklyn Museum, but the Museum Director was concerned an "open show" would not have that dreaded word "quality". So women in the group juried other women and the show was wonderful. (I don't think anyone was rejected.)

By Another Bouncing BallAuthor Profile Page on May 12, 2009 9:20 AM

Ries. You're right. The exhibit gets gov $. These grants are usually self-funded, but in this case, there is public money involved. R

By ries on May 12, 2009 9:01 AM

You sure about this "no government funding"?

As I understand it, Greg is getting the money from Bumbershoot, which, in turn, gets money for its arts programming from 4 Culture, Seattle City Arts, and the Washington State Arts commission.

Not to mention City of Seattle subsidisation of the Seattle Center.

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Another Bouncing Ball
This blog continues Art To Go, which I wrote as the art critic for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, beginning at the end of 2007 and continuing through March 15, 2009. ABB is an exploration of art in Seattle that extends outward, both geographically and by topic, touching on art, politics, literature, dance and whatever it is that the cat drags in. Its title comes from a poem by Delmore Schwartz, The Ballad of the Children of the Czar, specifically, "The ground on which the ball bounces/ Is another bouncing ball."
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Regina Hackett ... is the former art critic for the former Seattle P-I. I loved that job every day, but it's gone and I've moved on. As they say in the movies, to infinity and beyond.
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This page contains a single entry by Another Bouncing Ball published on May 11, 2009 7:24 PM.

Bring back the 1960s - Tavares Strachan does the Boyles was the previous entry in this blog.

Rooney O'Neil - Fear no art is the next entry in this blog.

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