Autonomy, Participation, And - Clair Penticost

"Keep talking happy talk.. talking about the things we're spose to do... bubble gum, ice cream, pop corn and coke it must be true the at the world is a joke."- Daniel Johnston

Has the paradigm of the aesthetic encounter been redefined?
I ask should it... or is it? "Little boxes on the hill side, little boxes all the same." - Weeds Intro this paradigm shifted years ago. Illustration: Brian O'Doherty "Inside the White Cube - The Ideology of the Gallery Space" (1976 Art Forum)

If artists are as ignorant as most people, the structures of participation they offer audiences reproduce existing feelings of paralysis and powerlessness and ultimately contribute to prevailing cynicism about any kind of participation at all. "If ignorance is bliss then whip this smile off my face." - Rage Against the Machine

Solutions have to come from major media not artists or artist need to get the support of major media. Illustration: http://landshare.channel4.com/ Hugh, is a grower of meat and veg and an enthusiast for sustainable practices... even if this mean eating the occasional squirrel.

When artists take action in a public sphere with good intentions their actions tend to have a ironic sensibilities... irony is often lost to large portion of the public.
Illustration: Michael Moore, who isn't an "artist" but uses ironic humor to make a point.