DIY: 2010 – Joshua Sofaer Indecent Proposal (Live Art & Yorkshire Sculpture Park)

An exceptional opportunity to develop a bespoke proposal for the Yorkshire Sculpture Park with curatorial support.

6 mid-career artists working under the umbrella of Live Art are given the opportunity to make bespoke proposals for Yorkshire Sculpture Park.

A site visit will include artist presentations to curatorial staff and an introduction from YSP about its history, scope and remit.

Artists will develop proposals specifically for YSP individually, and at a later date will discuss their ideas with the group.

The proposals will be collated and submitted to YSP for their consideration.

The YSP curatorial team will give feedback to individual artists.

YSP is a landscape laden with possibilities for the kind of live, interactive, and ephemeral interventions that have come to be understood in the UK as Live Art. This project – Indecent Proposal – wants to explore that potential with a group of experienced artists, and for them to develop bespoke ideas for the Bretton Park Estate. And who knows, maybe one or more of the ideas will actually be commissioned. Please visit www.ysp.co.uk to learn more about Yorkshire Sculpture Park.

All participants must commit to the entire process, both meeting days, and be willing to discuss their developing proposals with peers (subject to intellectual copyright). Modest bursaries will be provided for out of pocket expenses.

Dates, times and location(s):
Day 1: Thursday 19th August, 11am-6pm, Field Trip, Yorkshire Sculpture Park
Day 2: Wednesday 8th September, 11am-6pm, Follow Up Discussion, Yorkshire Sculpture Park
Proposals must be submitted by Monday 27th September

Application procedure: 
A maximum of 5 mid-career artists (self identified but as a guideline minimum of 8 years professional experience) will be selected through application. Joshua Sofaer will participate as the 6th as well as facilitating the group. Application is by CV and covering letter, assessed by Joshua Sofaer, Live Art Development Agency and Yorkshire Sculpture Park. Please include weblinks where appropriate. (If your work is not adequately represented online you may submit up to 5 images as jpeg or pdf files and/or up to 5 minutes of video up to a combined total of 5mb but please do not reproduce what is available online.) Please feel free to ask any questions by emailing [email protected]. Applications must be received by Friday 16 July 2010, emailed to [email protected]
Please note: for your application, you do not need to submit any proposals or proposal ideas for YSP. We are interested in artists and their work, not in specific ideas.

The artist: 
Often with an irreverent use of humour, Joshua Sofaer plays with established forms of production, appropriating and reconfiguring the chat show, competition, lecture, or museum display. He acts as curator, producer or director of a broad range of projects, including large-scale events, intimate performances, and publications. Sofaer was a winner of the first Bank of America CREATE Art Award. This is the largest participatory art award in the UK and resulted in a new work: Rooted in the Earth. Object Retrieval (UCL Museums & Collections, 2009) was shortlisted for a Museums & Heritage Excellence Award 2010. Sofaer is a highly experienced workshop facilitator for non-art participants, students and arts professionals. www.joshuasofaer.com

This DIY project is supported by Yorkshire Sculpture Park: YSP is an extraordinary place that sets out to challenge, inspire, inform and delight. With four indoor galleries and 500 acres of 18th century parkland, it is an international centre for modern and contemporary art, experienced and enjoyed by thousands of visitors each year. http://www.ysp.co.uk

DIY 7 call for proposals