one town
“one art-day town”
every month we get excited for the possibilities we will be afforded at the new exhibitions of binghamton’s “first friday gallery art walk.” people line the streets, crowd restaurants, fumble through rain and snow just to get a glimpse of the “binghamton renaissance” in action. there is excitement in the air. free wine and cheese flow like water and people congratulate the artists and gallery owners and everyone is happy — then they all go home and forget about art for the rest of the month. to many people’s surprise, i am not anti-first friday, i am, however, pro-art… and have long witnessed the potential of the binghamton area to flourish in culture and art. i have also been run-down trying to help the area realize that potential. my question simply falls down like this. if binghamton is such a mecca for the arts, why do we see much, if not all, the excitement die after the first friday of every month? [with maybe with a slight lag into saturday]. also then, has the community realized their role in this so-called renaissance?
first of all, art must be an active part in everyday life, not just for the artist, but for all. language, education and community are all part of what makes the scene grow deeper and stronger. if we simply close the door on art and wait for the first friday of next month, we are not only doing the arts a disservice, we are doing it to ourselves.
secondly, the community support by numbers has been quite extraordinary. it is amazing to have to watch not to hit people in your car as you drive downtown on first friday. there must however, be active support for the arts community financially too. artists create in a community FOR the community [mostly]. the community must them support the artist so they can make more art in the community for the community. it is an endless cycle of support and creation.
in short, i am excited that first friday is filling some void here in this lonesome upstate city, but i ask and urge you to make all the arts a more important part of everyday life. without it, culture and community die. we must embrace art through experience — being challenged, enlightened, or justified. it is an integral part to the growth of culture in this dead city. we must all realize our city’s potential, the value of art and our part in this time of cultural change.
November 4th, 2005 at 6: 58 pm
Binghamton as an art mecca would have seemed a ludicrous statement even a year or two ago. That it only sounds strange is a testament to the incredible growth. First Friday is an amazing phenom but it is primarily a social event with art as the backdrop. This is not to complain, just to say we still have our work cut out for us. The “public” whatever that means, needs to really engage with artists and art before they make it part of their lives the other days of the month. And the idea that you can own/buy art is very much a part of that. And even us as artists need to be clearer about supporting the arts–look at the struggles Into Art store is having just staying open.
November 7th, 2005 at 8: 35 pm
What happens when we take politics,
or love, or sex, or religion, or passion, or ???
out of ART …
I see a blank canvas, an empty book, a play without words, a mime without movement, music without notes …
And you ?
November 8th, 2005 at 12: 32 am
are not all aspects of our lives involved in art? or do we simply want to see sunday-painters paintings on the wall? since when has politics not entered into art-?? goya? german-expressionism?, the abstract-expressionist movement?, etcetera…
if we leave our personalities, and our politics at the door, what type of “art” will we be making?
better yet, if someone says something we disagree with, why not voice your opinion… as opposed to just forcing it? art is a place for disagreement, discussion and freedom. unfortunately we have been force-fed too much fascist crap from the current administration that we begin to believe there is no room for dissent and true freedom!