EVENTWORKS 2017-2018
Who are we in our community?
What are our skills?
What is Eventworks, how can we realize its potential, and what responsibilities do we have as event producers?
We are Kelli Fox and Ryann Feldman, two undergraduate students in the Studio for Interrelated Media at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design in Boston. We went back and forth on our concept for Eventworks, and even now are conversing about its intricacies. Throughout this journey, one conclusion we have come to is that all of this work was not for us. Our concepts sprouted from personal interests, but, at its core, our work was about dissemination to others. Throughout every project, every event, we held precious the notion that all of this was meant to elevate something. What this undeveloped “thing” was, we hadn’t quite crystallized, but we could feel its essence. It stemmed from the impulse that what we were doing was pressing and necessary in a sociopolitical climate that diminishes the culture which surrounds us. So we worked, and we sat, and we talked; sometimes we cried. But we would keep going. Now, as we look back, we can say that not all the work we did was perfect. But it was done! These events left permanent marks on us as people, community members, and artists. This work changed us, despite the fact that it was not for us.
Each event was designated for a different community, and was executed in a way that directly reflected and uplifted them. Cage Match was our first taste; it was our first time appreciating the art of gathering the public together in an intentional production as a legitimate artistic practice and a craft to be learned. We wanted to provide a platform for non-conventionally accepted practices to be forefront, to challenge stigmas within the professional art world, and create an environment which welcomed experimentation free of judgement. The Studio for Interrelated Wrestling was the first time we felt we had truly accomplished this; like a beautiful and bountiful nest, we wanted to invite everyone into our creation, and they reached back to us with equal enthusiasm.
The notion of nesting kept emerging in our minds and in our work — the behaviour of birds and their ability to nurture and thrive in changing environments felt similar to our need for adaptation in our journey with Eventworks. Nesting, and the fact that nests function as both a resting place and a safe point of departure, guided us toward the conceptualization of PERCH, our spring event series. PERCH comprised of three events, each specialized to serve a different artist community. We highlighted femme, non-binary, and LGBTQ+ artists, performers, and activists, each simultaneously recognized within their communities yet ignored, and at times silenced, by society as a whole. PERCH served as a benefit for Planned Parenthood, and raised over $1000 for their cause; no matter the amount, finally being able to donate the results of our hard work felt like a tangible success.
We look back at each separate event and individual moment with varying emotions, but at the end of the day, we are proud that all of our events shared the common essential threads of outreach and upreach. We hope this archive activates both nostalgia and excitement for future producers as they continue on the spirit of Eventworks, hopefully with even more fervor and determination than before.
We all must fly from the nest and migrate as our environments continuously change.
12.28.2018