ONASSIS PROCESS SPACE PRODUCTION + DRAMATURGY

Transcription

1 ONASSIS PROCESS SPACE PRODUCTION + DRAMATURGY

2 ONASSIS PROCESS SPACE PROGRAM PRINCIPLES What if we could DO six impossible things before breakfast? What if we took the artistic practice, the craft, the process of creating, the process of research, each individual trajectory that artists and other curious minds go through day in and day out, as the starting point towards a less product obsessed arts policy? What if we refused the precarity of our arts systems and institutions? What if artists and curators and designers and thinkers could take time to reconsider their practice without expectations and constraints of the production frenzy? So why artistic research? Why another residency program? Why in Athens? In Greece? What purpose and need will it address? Why would a Greek artist need this program? Or a Norwegian choreographer? Or what need does this program quench within the broader international artistic landscape? And how does this program tackle the very precarious, and widely accepted standard, of the project-based* economy? * In the words of an artist and choreographer Eleanor Bauer: So we travel very far to make work inside of empty rooms that are not so different from the empty rooms in the city we just left behind, maybe a grey marley floor instead of a black one, maybe there is a big annoying column in the middle of it, but one thing you know for sure is that the view outside the window is different. And how does all that is outside that window change what is made? Or does it only manifest itself in our personal lives? How is one connected to the world while in the room of one's own? If one puts the Mac of one's own inside the room of one's own, one becomes virtually connected way outside the window, but what about just outside the window? Do we care where we work or not? Can we think critically about the relevance of our presence in one place or another? Shall we challenge ourselves to include what is outside the window? Can we take hold of the international network and use it to our advantage instead of running around the globe chasing after the money and the space? Is it our obligation to move ourselves around all the time, as living breathing art objects or cultural ambassadors and messengers? Can we challenge the institutions to move more money than people every now and then? "I daresay you haven't had much practice," said the Queen. "When I was your age, I always did it for half-anhour a day. Why, sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast." Lewis Carroll To start with, this program and the resources it will offer, will hopefully create a community. A place where all the participants can interact with each other as peers. Regardless of age or how accomplished they are. To work and think and eat together as a community that does not strive for the next project, the next premiere, the next result. A community and space that is very much local. Locality that does not exclude the other. A community that has the ability to pause, to rethink how each one of us functions and creates. A space that offers time. Time to learn, to change, or go deeper, by doing and undoing.

3 MORE CONCRETELY Time-based: this program is for artists and curators and designers and choreographers and theatre makers and thinkers who work with mediums that are time-based, or those who would like to experiment with time-based mediums. Local: this program is very much rooted in the city of Athens and all the contradictions, beauty, tempo and light that it offers. Inter(national): this program is for artists and makers who live in Greece, regardless of their nationality, as well as for international participants. Self-learning: this program is not educational, but is based on the principles of self-learning and learning-by-doing. No gurus: this program will not have teachers or master-classes or students - instead it is based on peers who all have their individual craft and methodologies and questions, and who share their concerns and questions with each other without hierarchies. Welcome back: this program, and its different modalities and formats, is meant to be a place you can return to. If you have been part of one of the strands (Contextual Program, or individual residency, or artistic research fellowship, or workshop, or lunch) you are always welcome to apply (open call) again for another strand, or simply come and talk to the staff about your needs. And as a past participant, you are always welcome to drop by for lunch, or to borrow equipment and use the spaces (if what you need is available during that moment), or ask for advice, or use the library. The doer decides: this program functions on the principles of selforganization. To borrow one of the principles of an artist-run space, PAF (Performing Arts Forum), founded by Jan Ritsema: To say it differently: make it possible for others, not by retreating, not by withdrawal, or by being modest, on the contrary, making it possible for others is thought as active participation. Through action one offers and opens spaces in which others can take part. One proposes participation in an open rehearsal, a lecture, a conversation, a film or documentary showing and/or by cleaning up and maintaining all spaces. In other words: one does. The doer decides! English and Greek: both languages are the working languages of the program. Because some of the participants and guests will speak other languages other than Greek, most group activities will happen in English, unless a particular activity happens to be with only Greek-speaking participants. Hannah Arendt defines culture as the relationship between society and its objects. Culture is neither society nor art, nor religion, nor entertainment nor sports for that matter, but the nature of the relation of one to the other, of society to its objects. Culture is the attitude in operation when society confronts the images, products, and events of that society. If culture is that which forms between society and its products (including art), and community is that which forms between members of society, then we see that culture and community are of a similar nature, potential fields of activity whose shape and form are completely determined by how they are enacted, and whose guiding force is agreement.

4 PRODUCTION + DRAMATURGY

5 JOB DESCRIPTION The new Onassis Process Space - inter(national) artist-in-residence & artistic research program - seeks a passionate individual to fill the full-time position of Production Manager/Dramaturg, with the primary responsibilities of overseeing all production details of the program and future building, organizing off-site activities in and outside of Greece, as well as work together with the Director to develop dramaturgical and curatorial related concepts in relation to the program, building, and it s inhabitants. Candidates must have extensive experience managing production tasks within performing & time-based visual arts organizations, technical expertise relevant to producing contemporary performance and time-based visual arts, and a love for collaborative practices. And most importantly the ability and desire to work with artists, designers, thinkers and other curious minds in order to assist them to realize their ideas and research. This individual will report to the Director of the Onassis Process Space, and work, when necessary, with other staff of the Onassis Foundation, Onassis Stegi Athens, Onassis Cultural Center NY, the future Maker Space, and other departments of the Foundation s Culture and Educational pillars. MAIN ACCOUNTABILITY Production (60%) Line production of each assigned program component and managing the path each artist or activity takes prior, during and following individual residencies, artistic research fellowships, and group activities in-house and on-location. Draft and negotiate contracts with artists and institutional partners in Greece and internationally. Create budgets and track expenses for each program strand, as well as the overall annual production budget. Oversee artist hospitality including airfare, lodging, visas and coordinating local hospitality. Secure, manage and coordinate all aspects of program or event-specific equipment rentals and hiring of freelance technicians or production people. Sourcing of relevant fundraising and marketing information from artists, fellows, mentors, speakers, and other participants or guests including bios, project descriptions, videos, photos and other information as needed Work closely with the Director to finalize the initial outfitting needs and budget for the program/space. Source and keep track of stock for daily collective lunches. Provide general administration to the Director as necessary. Other duties as assigned and the ability to work nights and weekends. Dramaturgy/Content Development (40%) Develop curatorial, dramaturgical and other content specific ideas for the overall program, specific thematics, workshops, talks, thematic dinners, and other activities of the program. Monitor each residency, artistic research fellowship, exchange residency, and other activities - both in the studios, on location, as well as preparatory dramaturgical conversations relating to each activity. Be in the building, in the studios, on location during collective trips, and other fantastical and yet unknown places and spaces. Participate and contribute towards the development of the group Contextual Program. Participate and contribute towards the development of collective research trips (autumn and spring). Identify and manage partnerships for each activity, including locations as well as co-productions and funding locally, nationally and internationally.

6 MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS & COMPETENCIES Minimum requirements At least 3 years of experience as an arts administrator, production manager, or dramaturg in an interdisciplinary performing arts or timebased visual arts environment. Knowledge of Greek & international contemporary performance and time-based visual arts communities. Excellent knowledge spoken and written English & Greek (proficiency). Excellent knowledge of Apple & PC software such as (Microsoft Word, Excel, Powerpoint; Apple Numbers, Pages, Keynote; Google Drive Sheets, Docs, Slides). Optional requirements Valid Greek Driver s license preferred. Fundamental Competencies Excellent communication skills (Greek & English). Must be self-directed and able to work independently, but must also be able to work collaboratively with diverse groups of people and languages. Detail oriented! Behavioral Competencies Teamwork & Collaboration Initiative Communication Technical Competencies Familiar with basic event and post-production audio, video, photo equipment and software.