Interview With Mark Allen of Machine Works - Response

Interview With Mark Allen of Machine Works (Sarah Schultz Interview) - Response

Quote: 

“In life, there’s no guarantee what the outcome of 

an event or experience will be.  There’s always the possibility

that something will turn out to be not very good.  (…)  

I think that uncertainty generates a sense of possibility” (Allen 204).

Response:

Overall, I found it hard to choose just one quote that I could write about.  The words of Mark Allen resonate well with me.  I think that a lot of us, myself included, need to be more self aware and account for the failures that are bound to happen in life.  We are imperfect human beings attempting to make everything we do, everything we touch, a beautiful work of art, writing, or scholarly report as perfect and polished as possible.  Although that may be a good intention, we must also be aware of the fact that failure is an option; and that failure can be an exciting, positive thing.  Allen’s words on Open Field work in museums are a great example of promoting exposure to the development of an art piece and how anything, good or bad, can happen in that process.  Rather than viewing work that has been curated and hung in a museum, the viewer is also a part of the process of the piece.   “Work does not enter a museum until a bunch of people have decided it’s really good.  But in Open Field, things enter without anyone knowing if they’ll be good or not and sometimes without anybody knowing they're entering at all” (Allen 204).  The interaction between the artist and viewer is a very important part of the process of understanding art and its messages.  If people are able to see masters and professionals at their craft experience failures and successes, then it becomes this visceral piece of work that is more relatable to the viewer.  In short, I believe what Mark Allen is trying to say is that things are not always going to be what we want them to be, or how we want them to be read.  The uncertainty of it being a success is an exciting experience to be a part of, and that can only happen through Open Field work.

Questions:

                        1)   Should a museum be or become fully Open Field?  Would it become too chaotic?  (Transcending the barriers?)

2)  Would society benefit from seeing the professionals fail or make mistakes in their practice as well?  Through Open Field work, viewers are seeing every mark the artist makes and every potential mistake they are bound to make.  Would that bring interest to the work, make it more relatable, or give it more meaning to us?

3)  Could the uncertainty associated with Open Field work bring forth more inspiration and connection to art rather than a curated, static pieces in a museum?

Schultz, Sarah, Sarah Peters, and Susannah Bielak. Open Field: Conversations on the Commons. , 2012.