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I think that if artists and curators wish to act as conduit for social change they must be aware of the language that they are using and the audience they are addressing. If they proceed with a language of discourse that is inaccessible to their target audience, then their efforts are futile. >If as you suggest art can serve as a mediational tool, a catalyst >for dialogue, a platform for exchange (and change), then creative >means need to be explored to engage those who are involved with >socio-political issues outside of artistic circles. For example, >here in Washington, DC, where political dialogue rarely involves >input from the arts, and where the artistic community is >surprisingly disengaged from contemporary political events, we are >establishing a critical dialogue between the Art Department and the >School of International Services at American University where I >teach media art. Last week we invited a representative from the >cultural division at the State Department to discuss the role of the >artist in society and ways in which countries engage art as a >communications tool. I am not so naive as to suggest we are going to >change the policies of the US Government, particularly the current >administration, but it is my hope to establish dialogue that extends >beyond the boundaries of the art world, and furthermore, establishes >a conduit between politically engaged artists, curators, critics and >representatives in government / international relations, where the >front lines of cultural policy operate and endlessly fail. > -- Seth Thompson Wigged Productions [log in to unmask] http://www.wigged.net