Tilting at windmills is an English idiom that means attacking imaginary enemies. The expression is derived from Don Quixote, and the word "tilt" in this context comes from jousting.
The phrase is sometimes used to describe either confrontations where adversaries are incorrectly perceived, or courses of action that are based on misinterpreted or misapplied heroic, romantic, or idealistic justifications. It may also connote an importune, unfounded, and vain effort against adversaries real or imagined.[53]
I took the above image in ASSOS car park near Barnsley while doing a projection to support the NHS I had walked close to the building in 2011 when I was doing lots of walks with Richard and thinking slightly ironically about pysco - geography.
When we did writing in the home and the street I don't think me and Richard were directly involved in the education work in the school. It worked more in that we did some thinking walking and writing together as our part and you picked up some threads from this in the school and worked with some of the ideas with the kids. I think this was quite a good way to work as it kept the art outside of the school and allowed bits to ebb and flow in and out without making tools plans or cookbooks.
The Art bit of our work was not collaborative and it could maintain itself within its fragility. The work we did was for itself and we were trying to work, think and author together - not work with young people as co-producers. Looking back this project was the first project where I was working as an artist rather than facilitating arts activities. I say this in a way that suggests that this was better or the best way of working yet I'm not sure it actually is, at least in terms of doing research and not just making art.
In some ways when I look back to this project it feels a little like I was a different person; or perhaps had different priorities. To keep talking about form I think I had an idea of what art was - as form and I was comfortable with my idea of this. The academic work was project work, distinct from 'my own work" and was about finding paid work so I could carry on doing what I was doing. Richard says he feels like he was a different person then, when we went on our walks and although his journey has been very different to mine in the last 6 years there is still something different in a fundamental way in how I approach or imagine what I'm trying to do, it feels different.
I wonder then if within our book there is something about ideas developing and unfolding across the projects. There are clear points where things started to make more sense and points where we move apart. I see two forms of action the first is a genuine attempts to unfold living knowledge in ways that speak of change. I never really buy into this as I'm not sure the university is the place to start this as a genuine endeavor. The second form is more a subversion, to question from the inside the universities given position of power and place of knowing. Both forms may be tilting at windmills and an attempt to find redemption or chivalry as a knight errant companion of the Guild of st George. I wonder if there is something old fashioned about the way we are thinking of form and if every form is in a state of collapse combination and renewal.
Maybe instead of Knowing from the Inside (Ingold) we could do Questioning from the Inside. I am tired today I am trying to create change from within the University but the structures are very strong. I like the way you and Richard somehow created your own mini world in writing in the home and in the street, but there were links across, the children doing the photographs and Irna and Will working with Mariam, there were cross currents across the projects and they layered over time.
ReplyDeleteI think looking back there was something interesting about the clarity of roles - feeling like you /we had some level of expertise and clarity of role - not sure it was the right thing but it did feel nice at the time
ReplyDeleteI am going to do a blog about Wrong People.
ReplyDelete