During the course of Transartfest 2013 at SUPERMARKT Gretchen Blegen plans to compose a workshop as a working environment in the frame of Supermarkt’s DIY-Masterclass. Focusing on drawing, collage, text and the use of objects within a composed environment, the contents of this workshop will be an exchange of ideas encouraging physical engagement (work) within a given space. Providing the participants with select materials and taking place over a small period of time this workshop will be open to the SUPERMARKT community as well as to the participants of Transartfest 2013.

Work Statement by Gretchen Blegen:
“Looking at the structure of DIY culture I want to emphasize the communal aspect of the movement itself. Although the title implies otherwise, DIY is not limited to a pure Do-it-Yourself mentality – it belongs to a shared frame of mind that is often supportive of continual discussion, social awareness and creativity. Therefore, many DIY communities have a physical location where they meet and exchange information and skills. These locations bring individuals together and allow room for sharing ideas without reliance on expertise. Inside of a location that is grounded on the exchange of information, inside of SUPERMARKT, I would like to see how an altered environment provokes or diffuses collaboration in a condensed period of time. Taking place in an otherwise concealed area in SUPERMARKT – in an old fruit refrigerator and in an old meat freezer – I am interested in unraveling how a space alters a work ethic. How do people relate to their environments? To specific materials? How do people interact with one another in different settings? What is the importance of the outcome in comparison to the method? Bending the frame of a teacher/student workshop I would like to invite individuals to rediscover how the workshop can be a shared process of creation when allotted the time to work in such peculiar environments.”

Set-Up/Working Arrangement:
In the basement of SUPERMARKT two separate working environments will be parallel to one another. These environments could be described as working stations inside of a modified space (minor alterations with lights, objects, sound, etc.,). In an effort to allow time for development and rhythm, the duration of the workshop will be around 6-8 hours; the participants are however allowed to come and go at their leisure.

At the beginning of the workshop there will be a brief discussion regarding the term workshop – an assessment of how the term is used and applied in different fields of the arts today. After the discussion, I will distribute small envelopes of ‘suggested instructions’ to the participants. Interpreting the instructions and interacting with the space, we will have access to various resources and are encouraged to utilize the space as seen fitting. Working with ‘suggested instructions,’ objects, drawing materials and acoustic elements, the majority of the time period will be reserved for an active exchange of creation and discussion. Using this time and the surrounding materials in these peculiar spaces, we will be actively contributing to the environment and gradually forming an installation. Working with and apart from one another – as a student or as an instructor – the workshop will begin as a composed environment and will end as a site-specific space. Looking at how we use materials in given locations this interactive experience will be an example of what a days work manifests.

About the Artist:
Gretchen Sigrid Blegen graduated with a Bachelors of Fine Arts from Colorado State University in 2010. As a firm supporter of DIY aesthetic and practice, she has been active in a numerous amount of independent non-profits and DIY spaces in the Southwestern region of the United States (Ventero Open Press, Matter Bookstore, TITWRENCH FEST, Hammertime Tool Co-op/free school). Living and working in Berlin since September of 2011, Gretchen continues to support this exchange of ideas, experimentation, information and skills on a communal level in and outside of Berlin (Ausland-Berlin, Ponderosa Tanzland, Lucky Trimmer, AADK, SUPERMARKT). Recognizing the process and not the product as a key to progressive and creative thinking, her personal as well as collaborative projects are rooted in a continuous loop or an ongoing open discussion and exchange.

http://www.aadk.org/
http://pasture.tumblr.com/
http://titwrench.tumblr.com/
http://www.facebook.com/luckytrimmer
http://www.ausland-berlin.de/

photo credits: Gretchen Blegen