la Fédération Français d’Art, another union or a new social role for the arts. I don’t see why we need a new union but I can see some of the advantages of federation modelled on the federations which represent the sports present at the olympics. But do we want that? Can the artist be representative of the nation? Star Academy and Britain’s Got Talent has led to Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year.
Training, discipline, drive, competition all to represent.
This idea of representation is derived from champions who took the place of their monarch and represented their people in combat. It’s about winning.
Today, these combats have been translated into sports of various disciplines, articulating different skills that can be directly compared in order to determine a winner. People watch these sports because they identify with the teams, the athletes or the nation. While some do identify with the discipline they are not the majority currently watching the Rugby World Cup.
I was a Montessori child and I prefer cycling, yoga and running, the only competition is with myself and honestly I am not winning. I did play badminton for my school and the desire to win has ruined the sport for me. Can artists compete in a meaningful way? On Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year or The Work of The Next Great Artist, painting (creation) becomes a spectator sport and the appreciation of the work is related to the likability of the artist. I don’t know what I like but I know who I like.
As a painter, the question of representation is something that happens in the pictural image and the pictural object but it’s not a question of me!
Je represente 7 jr /7 Mc Solaar, Dakota
I doubt art can represent the nation and today it’s not about creating identity but of questioning it. Perhaps the most important function of these sorts of federations is to get people interested, is to give outlets and access to youths who otherwise would never see a studio. This is the core of art it’s social engagement, how it interacts with society : as a source of criticism and sort of glue, allow us to be different together.
If there is one thing you should do if you see the FFA, it’s go talk to them and find out what they’re about.
Bricodrama 