ARTISTS TALKING

BLACCXN AGM, Canary Wharf, London
16 November

My invitation to take part in Alana Jelinek’s art intervention told me little. Mundane instructions such as the time and place of venue were included. The only clues to content were references to BLACCXN’s “major shareholders” and “hedge fund managers”. The email inferred I was one or the other.

As I entered the corporate hub that is Citigroup Tower I was escorted to the thirty-third floor, and to a conference room filled with smartly dressed individuals who I assumed had some prominent role in BLACCXN.

A Power Point presentation was given on BLACCXN’s ‘Artist in Corporate Residence Scheme’, in conjunction with the ‘Arts Council Incorporated’. Video footage of an event at the Whitechapel Art Gallery showed BLACCXN employees attempted to recruit artists for their scheme. They were told “We care about art that compliments our brand”. Apparently not one artist asked what BLACCXN actually stood for.

Jelinek is utterly convincing as a spokesperson for the imaginary corporation BLACCXN. She repeats phrases such as “It’s been a wonderful year,” and “We are proud of our achievements”. At one point a spontaneous round of applause breaks out and I automatically join in. It is only when Jelinek makes absurd references to investing in “democracy” and “patenting ancient medicines” that the humorous undercurrent becomes too obvious and belies the rigorousness of the rest of the performance.

One could view BLACCXN as a wry critique on the monetary juggernaut that is the arts sector. This would be too pedestrian and thankfully what arises is more specific. I saw myself in these people, one of thousands of struggling artists back-slapping, hand-shaking and scavenging for that faint glimmer of light. At times this is an often neglected area – that the responsibility for change lies closer to home. Jelinek deals with it in an unnerving yet ultimately compelling way.

Jack Hutchinson is a multimedia and performance artist based in London.

Jack Hutchinson

Jack Hutchinson

jackhutchinsoncontact@msn.com | www.jack-hutchinson.com