Policy Making: The Agency of Visible Womxn
The Agency of Visible Womxn is a collective of Southend womxn, femme and non-binary artists. Founded in 2017 by Ruth Jones, the Agency has moved from an exhibition that mimicked a fictional institution to a growing group of womxn who act under, alongside or with the Agency to host reading groups, workshops, consultations, exhibitions and more.
What is a policy? A write-only document? The creation of administration for the sake of administration? The policies that affect our lives, that govern our bodies, our governing bodies, who is writing what for whom, and who will ever read it? What then could a policy for womxn artists in Southend look like, what could it be? And who would write it?
The works in this 2020 exhibition are created by womxn, femmes and non-binary people who have taken their policies where they’d like them to go. They might just be starting their thoughts, investigating an idea from all kinds of angles, but together,
these policies cover a lot of ground.
What is a policy? A write-only document? The creation of administration for the sake of administration? The policies that affect our lives, that govern our bodies, our governing bodies, who is writing what for whom, and who will ever read it? What then could a policy for womxn artists in Southend look like, what could it be? And who would write it?
The works in this 2020 exhibition are created by womxn, femmes and non-binary people who have taken their policies where they’d like them to go. They might just be starting their thoughts, investigating an idea from all kinds of angles, but together,
these policies cover a lot of ground.
Please note the gallery is currently closed to protect staff and the public during the coronavirus outbreak.
Meanwhile, enjoy the exhibition documentation.
‘Panel’ (Slide viewers, table and chair installation, 2020)
“Make eye contact with every member of the panel” (interview advice)
Panel is a response to the combative processes of art world progression, the constant requirements to “win” work by positioning artists in opposition with each other. Despite the consistent conclusions of literature reviews that its reliability and validity is unsatisfactory, the interview continues to be the main technique in selection processes. Allied with the romantic ideal of the artist who sacrifices their well-being for creative outcomes and creativity as a vocation that supersedes all personal needs, these silent presumptions lead to creatives perceived as an exploitable resource.
“Creatives are particularly vulnerable, because, although they are admired, there is a feeling that they’re going to do that anyway. There’s been a feeling that you can turn over your creatives without too much bother because there’s plenty more eejits out there. So, if we put protections in place for our artists, that resonates throughout the wider job economy." (Anne Enright)
Photos courtesy of the artist, The Agency of Visible Womxn, Southend and Anna Lukala Photography
“Make eye contact with every member of the panel” (interview advice)
Panel is a response to the combative processes of art world progression, the constant requirements to “win” work by positioning artists in opposition with each other. Despite the consistent conclusions of literature reviews that its reliability and validity is unsatisfactory, the interview continues to be the main technique in selection processes. Allied with the romantic ideal of the artist who sacrifices their well-being for creative outcomes and creativity as a vocation that supersedes all personal needs, these silent presumptions lead to creatives perceived as an exploitable resource.
“Creatives are particularly vulnerable, because, although they are admired, there is a feeling that they’re going to do that anyway. There’s been a feeling that you can turn over your creatives without too much bother because there’s plenty more eejits out there. So, if we put protections in place for our artists, that resonates throughout the wider job economy." (Anne Enright)
Photos courtesy of the artist, The Agency of Visible Womxn, Southend and Anna Lukala Photography
The Agency of Visible Womxn Policy Making, 2020 8 March to 02 May
Beecroft Art Gallery, Victoria Avenue, Southend-on-Sea, SS2 6EX
Beecroft Art Gallery, Victoria Avenue, Southend-on-Sea, SS2 6EX
