Yawn: Art Strike 1990-1993, 1-45 (1989-1992)

5 October 2012, dusan

“YAWN was an anonymous publication devoted to the Art Strike 1990-1993 and related issues. YAWN came out of several P.O. Boxes in the period from 1989 to 1992, sporadic in response to the responses and additional submissions that it had received to the issue before. Subtitled ‘A Sporadic Critique of Culture’, its scope was actually narrower than this would imply, if simply because its contributors came largely from the Mail Art, Neoist, and even more obscure networks which were internationally active at the time. The contents of this archive reflect this somewhat narrow focus.” (publisher)

“Campaign launched in 1986 by Stewart Home which called upon all artists to cease their artistic work between January 1, 1990 and January 1, 1993. Unlike the art strikes proposed by Gustav Metzger and the Art Workers Coalition in the 1960s, it was not merely a boycott of art institutions through artists, but a provocation of artists addressing their understanding of art and their identity as artists.

The Art Strike 1990-1993 campaign received next to no attention in contemporary gallery and museum art, but resonated chiefly in artistic subcultures, above all Neoism and Mail Art. “Art Strike Action Committees”, often run by single activists, existed in London, Ireland, Baltimore, Albany/NY, San Francisco, Montevideo, and Uruguay. An Art Strike newsletter “YAWN” was anonymously published by Lloyd Dunn in Iowa City and appeared in forty five issues during the strike period.” (wikipedia)

Most of YAWN was published anonymously, however, the following persons and organizations did get explicit credit for works that appeared in the publication: Agressive School of Cultural Workers — Iowa Chapter, Karen Eliot, Scott McLeod, Word Strike Action Committee NY, Anticopyright, Monty Cantsin (Istvan Kantor), Theatre of Sorts, Tim Ore, Smile, Andrej Tisma, Void-Post, Géza Perneczky, Lettre Documentaire, Pseudo-Karen Elliot, Liz Was, T. Marvin Lowes, Anatoly Zyyxx, Ralph Johnson, Stephen Perkins, Neal Keating/Bob Black, Eleutheria, Plaster Cramp Press, Leisure, Ben G. Price, Dumpster Times, The Exploding Cinema, T. Hibbard, Art Abolition Committee, Hakim Bey, International Art Dump, Gudgefuck, Sadie Plant, Institute for Research in Neoism, Turner Scientific, Geoff Huth, Bob Grumman, Art Strike 1990-2000, Keter Elyon, John Kennedy, I.M.I., Von Lechner, Dharma Combat, Lang Thompson, Fri-Art/Inexistent/Iput-ruine, Cracker Jack Kid, Blaster Al Ackerman, Decentralized Spanish Art Congress, Media Fast, ASAC UK, ASAC Eire, ASAC Baltimore, ASAC Latino America, ASAC CA.

The Art Strike Papers (online version of the book edited by Stewart Home)

Wikipedia
Authors

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