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Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related institutions.
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I just attended a retrospective on the artist, Allen Kaprow, at the  
Geffen Museum of Contemporary Art in L.A..  Kaprow is best-known for  
the "Happenings" he organized in the 1960s, mixing performance art  
with audience participation.  His best work is goofy, non-sensical,  
and irreverent on the surface, but has a Zen-like kernel hidden not- 
too-deep inside.  The exhibition features several recreations of old  
pieces and opportunities for the audience to interact with art.

 >>>>>> Very open-ended stuff. <<<<<<<<
Like the opportunity to rearrange about 400 square feet of ordinary  
house furniture--ordinary except it had all been painted blue.
The Museum is recreating a 1968 piece called "Round Trip" with area  
teens, in which they will roll a ball of string, paper and cardboard  
down the streets of the downtown neighborhood, and, as per Kaprow's  
original instructions, continue to add more material, until the ball  
becomes too large to roll. They will then reverse the process until  
there in no material left.  Wild.

During my 80 minute visit, the gallery had visitors engaged on all  
levels.
There were plenty of chin-strokers--cocked-heads, folded arms.  But I  
saw a lot of people drawn into activities.
A young fellow spent forty minutes pushing blue furniture into a  
pile.  I joined in, placing six azure dining chairs in provocative  
positions, but didn't really feel a future in the activity, so I  
passed on.
Frankly, a lot of Kaprow's stuff makes me wonder, "You call this  
art?"  But I was often enough amused and surprised to leave the  
exhibition feeling pretty good.

If you can see the show, make sure to watch the little video in which  
Kaprow tells the story of his "Trading Dirt" project.  The results of  
some of his open-ended activities is some incredible story-telling.

A well-implemented open-ended situation can generate fascinating  
stories.  But not everyone can be expected to participate.  (Am I not  
spatial-natural intelligenced enough?)

I would need more preparation to apply this experience to the current  
topic, but offer this as a report and a reference point.  I think it  
is a viable case study in this discussion on multiple intelligences  
by multiple intelligences.


--Jason Jay

__
JasonJayStevens
JasonJayStevensStudio
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www.potterbelmar.org/jjss
536 Roosevelt Avenue
San Antonio, Texas 78210
210.818.0642

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