Grand Union, in conjunction with Hooky Street Press and BAZ productions, hosted a 12 hour application writing all-nighter / ‘extreme writing event’.*
* Writing West Midlands terminology. Think abseiling whilst reading Terry Eagleton.
The Conservatives have just been elected with a sweeping majority. News has come through that one of their first policy decisions is to cancel arts funding with immediate effect.
Arts organisations have been informed that they have 12 hours to spend their remaining funding. This has prompted the announcement of a rash of ill thought through and frankly quite bizarre commission opportunities – to be completed before the night is out.
BAZ, as ever, have had their grubby ears to the art world ground, and have heard about this situation in advance through their Westminster based mole (Steve).
In preparation for this night of mass national panic writing, BAZ have set-up a temporary newspaper office at Grand Union – with a ping-pong table.
BAZ are inviting artists and writers to join them for this application writing all nighter as they attempt to deal with the opportunities deluge coming through the Fax machine.
Although we can’t be certain of the opportunities likely to be on offer over the course of the night, one of our other moles (Psychic Mike) has leaked these to us:
Tate Britain, desperate to hang on to arts funding, have announced an open submission Turbine hall commission for an art work that celebrates the Conservative party. The only stipulations are that the art-work must include Margaret Thatcher, foxes, hounds and gout. They are seeking expressions of interest in 500 words or less (budget £80 000).
If you wondered where their arts funding had been going up until now, Birmingham City Councils Cultural Commissioning Service have just discovered that due to an administrative error, the majority of arts money has been going into the 1999 Secret Santa Fund. Because of this discovery, they have announced plans for an ambitious commission to transform the disused Digbeth viaduct – The Great Big Viaduct Plan. The budget is one million and the application idea or concept must use water to express multiculturalism (600 words max).
To break up the evening and prompt inspiration, the night will also feature a series of vaguely psychogeographic walking breaks around Digbeth to observe the local nightlife, an ongoing ping pong championship and application aerobics.
Part 12-hour exam, part club night, part endurance writing event, BAZ invite you to stay up all night. No one will tell you to go to bed here.
One Applination under a Groove invited artists, writers and whoever wanders in from local nightclubs by mistake, to write all night in response to a series of quick-fire application writing challenges, tasks and briefs set by art-world ‘think-tank’ BAZ.
Participants were able to help themselves to energy focused beverages and a free fry-up as reward for the 12 hours of fictitious proposal writing.
One Applination Under A Groove formed part of Hooky Street Press – a new art-writing initiative co-ordinated by Chris Poolman exploring the role, use and value of humour in art-writing.
www.hookystreetpress.com
BAZ are an art-world ‘think-tank’ based between the walls of studios one and two at Grand Union.
www.bazbazbaz.com