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Art without Capitalism (The New Patrons)

excerpt
The New Patrons Protocol
François Hers
(p. 58-59)


The New Patrons Protocol defines the roles and responsibilities of the actors who work together towards the creation of works of art and their contexts.

This Protocol offers anyone in civil society who so wishes, either alone or in partnership with others, the means to commission a work of art and to legitimise an investment in its creation, requested from the community. It is therefore up to that person to understand and to express a raison d'être for the art.

The Protocol proposes that artists bring art into life, and that they act with those people who so wish and who give the forms and concepts created a use value.

It proposes that the mediators who nurture relations between the artworks and the public, also establish a link between the artist and the patron, and beyond that, between all the players concerned. As guarantors that the high standards of the demand and the creation will be met, these mediators—with the other players—assess the relevance and feasibility of the project. They propose the most appropriate medium and artist, as well as the technical, legal and financial competencies needed for action.

An artist's initiative may also be taken into account by such mediators if they deem it likely to meet the demands of contemporary situations. The mediators then connect the artist to the needs of the community which they represent and which grants them the means to act.

The mediator proposes that the political players and the administrators of public and private, for–profit or not–for–profit organisations take into account the patrons' initiative and mediate between them and the community in which the artwork will be housed. Should they so wish, they can, either alone or with other individuals, be responsible for a commission.

The mediator proposes that researchers in various disciplines promote recognition of the necessity of art, put into perspective the action engaged in, and base it on an understanding of the situations and challenges which can be shared more broadly.

By engaging in the sharing of equal responsibilities, all the players agree to use negotiation to resolve the tensions and conflicts inherent in public life in a democracy.

The work of art becomes the emblematic expression no longer of a single individuality but of autonomous people who wish to forge society by giving common meaning to contemporary artistic creation.
topicsFrançois Hers, Xavier Douroux: other titles






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