Art, Technology, Advocacy and Society
Art, Technology, Advocacy and Society
Coordinated by Tutok Karapatan
(c/o Karen Ocampo Flores) – Manila
15 February 2007, 2:30 – 5:00 pm
MKP Multipurpose Hall, Bulwagang Juan Luna, 4/F,
Cultural Center of the Philippines
Download NCR1_Transcript (PDF)
HIGHLIGHTS
Orientation to Kuro and WebSining
By Alan G. Alegre, Foundation for Media Alternatives and
Geejay Arriola, Project Co-Director, WebSining 2007
Al introduced himself, the Foundation for Media Alternatives (FMA) and its involvement in the WebSining Project, one of the flagship projects of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) for the last three years.
FMA, he explained, is an non-government organization focused on information and communications technologies (ICTs), particularly communication rights. It has been active in advocacies on Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) vis-à-vis the right to knowledge, culture and resources; and free and open source software (FOSS), among others. Albeit communication rights also include artistic expressions, FMA has yet to further dialogue with the artistic and cultural communities.
Meanwhile, WebSining has been basically a digital arts competition that showcases the deployment of ICTs as a means towards an artistic expression.
FMA’s engagement in WebSining began through Fatima Lasay, the project director of WebSining and an advocate of FOSS. Al said that it was Fat’s idea to surface the interrelationships among arts, knowledge, advocacy, access and communities within the space of WebSining.
Hence, for this year, WebSining consists of two components: the traditional digital arts competition and the so-called Kuro satellites. Kuro, which means opinion or even meditation, is a series of meetings organized and held in different communities throughout the country. The Kuro satellites have provided a space where the communities are given the opportunity to discuss art and technology in their own terms. Hence, these may be in the form of learning sessions, demonstrations, round table discussion, among others. So far, Kuro satellite meetings took place in General Santos and Davao City. For the former, the meeting was initiated by artists based in the academe while for the latter, DabaweGNU, a group of FOSS advocates led the discussions which focused on how proprietary software becomes a barrier for artists. Today, DabaweGNU is introducing the concept of creative commons to a group of local musicians.
The third Kuro satellite would have been in Bicol. However, this was postponed due to the super typhoon which ravaged the province. A meeting will still take place there but the organizers decided to focus on the use of art and technology for disaster management. The fourth Kuro satellite will be led by TutoK Karapatan (this forum) while the last one will be held in General Santos and will discuss “intellectual property rights.”
Another new component of WebSining is the introduction of an online voting mechanism which is meant to democratize judging. Although inputs from internet users have not been designed to be a determinant of winners, their opinions have been deemed invaluable to the judging process.
Geejay then provided an update on the Websining competition, which adopted as theme “Contesting Traditions.” Geejay explained that works submitted for this year’s competition demonstrate the interpretation of artists of the relationship between traditions and modernity. Traditions are usually understood as indigenous or simply the norms but she admitted that based on the entries submitted, this meaning associated with tradition has been blurred. Geejay added that digitals art in the country has indeed gone a long way since 1995, when she began working as a digital artist herself.
She said that there are a total of 20 entries for digital animation category, more than 90 entries for still digital images category and a lone entry for software art category.
She admitted that the judges have yet to arrive with a decision for the software art category given that there is only one entry. She explained that software art is indeed new, adding that the category recognizes that technology, particularly software has its own language and system.
Winners for the contest will be announced in February but the awarding will happen in March. The prize for digital animation is P70,000; still digital images, P50,000; and software art, P50,000. The WebSining project will also launch a CD Catalogue by then.
Panel of Discussants
Cris Rollo, Chair
Head, National Committee on Visual Arts
National Commission for Culture and the Arts
In behalf of the Committee on Visual Arts, Cris thanked TutoK Karapatan, FMA and the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP). Cris also provided a background on WebSining. He said that the first year saw a very simple contest that shortly afterwards, the organizers felt that the next project must go deeper. Hence, the second year of WebSining included an exhibition and a forum. It was the same forum that discussed the design of WebSining 2007. It was also during the same forum that there was a consensus on the nature and deployment of technology. Cris said that there was a consensus that the computer must not only be seen as a paintbrush but it must also be recognized that it has its own language. Thus, the software art category was born.
He explained that today’s forum (as well as exhibit) is an intersection of current and related initiatives by major actors for the project: TutoK Karapatan, FMA, and NCCA.
Cris presentation’s focused on Mindanao and the artistic and cultural expressions associated with it, explaining that the forum must also be seen as a regional exchange. His presentation began with the work of Michael Akol which shows a sutured map of Mindanao, reminding of the various conflicts which took place and have been taking place in the region. Cris then provided basic facts on Mindanao:
• Second biggest island in the country
• Home to some of the poorest communities in the country
• Total population in 2005 is approximately 20 million or almost 20% of the total national population
• 6 Regions, 27 Cities, 25 Provinces and 411 municipalities.
• Multicultural (not just tri-people)
- Home to biggest Muslim communities in the country
- Strong settler history
- Diverse indigenous communities
• About 14.6 million (or 72 %) are lowland settlers
- 4.1 million (or 20 %) are Islamized IP’s
- 1.6 million (or 8 %) are Indigenous Peoples.
• Farthest from the Manila center
- Issues of marginalization and self-determination
• Diverse economies
- From traditional agriculture to large mechanized farms
- Commercial and industrial centers
- Issues of inequitable access to resources and opportunities
•Burdened with peace issue
- substantial military and paramilitary presence
- long history of cultural, political and religious conflict
The visual arts in Mindanao generally demonstrate a strong awareness of indigenous and traditional arts. Unfortunately, artists are confronted by barriers such as the few existing art schools (even commercial art centers are limited) and weak patronage and community awareness. The dominant themes of various forms of visual arts are politics; peace and conflict; indigenous knowledge system; vanishing traditions; poverty and inequity; personal journeys; social issues; technology; and community art. For each of these themes, Cris provided a set of sample art works:
Politics:
In Davao City, there is the yearly project dubbed as Miting de Avance, showcasing art works dealing with elections. Part of this event is a mock election. One of the works featured is an etching of photographs made up of campaign materials as well as an installation by Nonoy Estarte.
Peace and conflict:
The work of Ramir Tuazon shows a Muslim warrior while that of Michael Lagos features a tricycle, carrying the major parties in the peace process heading towards a single direction. A work by Lea Padilla shows peace vendors which interprets of peace as one that is negotiated or even bought. Cris’ terracotta work depicts a beheaded man, inspired by the fate of a soldier in his neighborhood.
Indigenous knowledge system:
Erol Datos’ Datu Kinulintang features traditional rituals. The words on the portrait speak of the sounds one would hear in the forest.
Vanishing traditions:
Some of the works notes that Maranao art has been vanishing through time. One depicts the Panghimuto tradition through the the mother and daughter. James Daez’s Tampuda Habalagon, meanwhile features the legendary peace accord across Mindanao. Kublai Milan provides surrealistic rendition of the timeless man of Mindanao while Chito Barreto’s gold leaf of horns shows deer being tamed. Another is the stylized version of the Sarimanok by Abdul Mari Imao.
Poverty, inequity:
One of the art work shows the process of harvesting sugar cane in Bukidnon. Cris said that reaping these canes start from the borders of the plantations towards the inner circles. The harvest of sugar canes is also a harvest of rats, a source of protein for poor families.
Personal journeys:
Nonoy Estartes interprets the disastrous flood that struck Camiguin.
Social Issues:
The two art works features abortion and prostitution. The slippers with red bands denote prostituted women – that the discarded ones only shows the dispensability of women engaged in the trade. The slippers with green bands stand for male clients.
Technology:
An exhibit of Ratfobya
Community Art:
The art works included are the totems of Lia Torralba; and installations using garbage found on the beaches.
Karen Ocampo Flores
Project Director, TutoK Karapatan
Project Manager, Slash/ Art Artists’ Initiative
Karen thanked CCP’s Sid Hildawa who was instrumental for TutoK Karapatan’s exhibit “Review: Pasang Masid” at the CCP. She said that TutoK Karapatan welcomes this opportunity to work with Kuro, which is also a new initiative.
The exhibit is expected to be more confounding that the previous ones: Dos Por Dos and Perspektiba. Review Pasang Masid combines history, museulogy and archeology. As Review Pasang Masid creeps into these and other disciplines, the fact that the exhibit is located at the CCP (a grand project of Imelda Marcos), further interrogates the position of artists and its role in cultural development.
Emmanuel Garibay
Chair, TutoK Karapatan
Emmanuel shared a few words, welcoming the participants and providing a brief description of the initiative. TutoK Karapatan is an artist’s initiative that advocates human rights. He said that the exhibit, Review: Pasang Masid has been deemed timely given the rise of extra-judicial killings in the country. Having CCP as a venue is also read as a boon as such social issues may be further disseminated to the public.
Mideo M. Cruz
Member, New World Disorder
Performance and Multi-media Artist
Mideo described the topic, “art, technology, advocacy and society,” as very broad that it becomes difficult to identify from which point to start. He mentioned that in the 19th century, the Luddites became so powerful that the movement entailed the services of the British army to pacify them. No other movement managed to replicate that of the Luddites. But recently post-humanism emerged which had the mantra, “man is dead.” This strain has also been adopted in the arts.
Mideo’s presentation was peppered with the different definitions of art and advocacy as well as images that link the previous concepts to technology and social change. Hegel, for instance said that art is a “catalyst of social change” while Marx viewed it as “mirroring society.” Joseph Beuys then asserted that “every one is an artist.”
Mideo pointed out that certain images, the end product of art, have actually defined particular peaks of history. Examples of these movement include the degenerated art associated with Adolf Hitler and Nazism; the cultural revolution of China; and socialist realism in Russia. He mentioned that the Yenan Forum of 1942 clarified the role of art in society and in the socialist struggle. Mideo added that at that time television was not yet available in the country; television would reach China 16 years after, in 1958.
Then there is the so-called mass media which is designed to reach the general population and therefore an effective way of “capturing [the] minds [of the people]” and “subjugating a people” – as historian Renato Constantino put it. However its operations and intentions are haunted by the big question of access. Moreover the issue does not stop with access as there is also the question of control.
Mideo also explained postmodern plurality, a concept that can be used in making one’s work available in the public domain. Mideo illustrated postmodern plurality through the case of Alberto “Korda” Gutierrez, who photographed the best known image of Che Guevarra. Korda allowed his work to be used by the public. But he made an exception – in using the same image for alcoholic beverages, products or purposes which would otherwise denigrate the reputation of Guevarra.
Mideo nonetheless echoed the point that technological innovation is a primary tool for cultural development. He ended his presentation with an excerpt from the Transhumanist Art Statement:
“Transhumanist Arts represent the aesthetic and creative culture of transhumanity. Transhumanist Artists are developing new and varied modes of art. Our aesthetics and expressions are merging with science and technology in designing increased sensory experiences. Transhumanist Artists want to extend life and overcome death. We plan to do so with vitality and amplified creativity. Emotions are integral to sensing and understanding life. We exercise a transhumanist ecology and freedom of self-awareness and self-responsibility. If our art represents who we are, then let us choose to be transhumanist not only in our bodies, but also in our values. The Transhumanist Arts embrace the creative innovations of transhumanity. We are ardent activists in pursuing infinite transformation, overcoming death and exploring the universe. As Transhumanist Art comes into focus, as the tools and ideas of our art continue to evolve, so too shall we.”
Open Forum
On Copyright, Copyleft
Victor Ilagan clarified that artists hold the rights over their works and have the choice on whether to exercise and waive these rights.
Al explained that copyright is a social construction of an existing political system. Copyright’s original intent is to protect creators and enrich the public domain. Unfortunately, the current regime defined by the World Intellectual Property Office (WIPO) and the World Trade Organizations (WTO) has skewed such intention and instead led to the shrinking of the public domain, which is a grave problem for developing countries.
It is for this reason, that patents, which is used for pharmaceutical products must be balanced with the public interest. Al asserted that in an age where technology is used as an instrument of power, people need to engage the current “intellectual property regime.”
Al said that there have been different responses of artists to this process: Some are using creative commons which allows artists to license their works but at the same time, shares these works to the global commons. He added that there is a strong assertion that artists have no absolute rights over a creation since this has been derived from various influences.
On Indigenous Peoples Rights and “IPR”
Cris pointed out that the adaptation of indigenous cultures into other art forms has also been a contentious issue. He cited as example tinikling, a ritual of a particular indigenous peoples and a dance performed by the Bayanihan dancers. In the past, the latter’s performance was construed as a violence of the culture of Indigenous Peoples. However, there is also an opposing view, flagging the concept of transcreation which is a separate process of transforming a particular practice into a theatrical production.
Cris mentioned that the Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act’s “free prior and informed consent” actually includes dances, music and herbal medicine. But with the current “IPR” regime, it becomes difficult to be pigeonholed into such arrangement.
Geejay then shared a case where Tausug and Davao artists had a falling out with a partner non-government organization in a project held at the Centennial. She said that the NGO claimed ownership over the script and the music used for the project. This was countered by the artists, who asserted that the script and the music belong to the communities.
On Balancing Sharing and Sustainability
Mideo said that various considerations have to be made by the artist who wishes to share her/his works and at the same time earn from her/his works, that it becomes difficult to set the parameters of what can be shared and what must be kept for a living. Mideo cited that the works of the New World Disorder are free but he who is a member sells his paintings.
Karen echoed Mideo’s view, that there is a need to study the parameters of sharing and exclusivity. She shared that a student asked her advise with regard to a project where the student’s clients wish to purchase her work on a one time deal, which depriving her of royalty fee should her work be used in the clients’ other projects. At that time, Karen could only advise her student to read the Intellectual Property Code, while asserting that there is no way of disassociating the artists from her art.
Geejay also explained that sharing one’s work depends on one’s social consciousness. She said that there are artists who believe that the well-spring of creativity is so abundant that they feel that they can easily reproduce and even improve their works which have been shared or lost.
On Fair Use
Claro Ramirez said that there is a thin line between exploitation and education. He asserted that artists must be responsible enough to waive their rights to education. Although artists are also entitled to royalties in the event that their copyrighted works are used, they must also be sensitive in profiting from what they have already been paid for.
Mideo seconded Claro’s view, adding that there are some artists who could not perform their own compositions as the rights over their work rest on the companies who produced their albums.
Al explained that fair use which provides for the freedom to use a licensed product for educational and research purposes is hardly mentioned in the Intellectual Property Code, which is patterned after the Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Agreement. There are likewise debates on fair use. Al cited as example the opposing views of Joey Ayala and Gary Granada. While the former is vehement on piracy, the latter encourages listeners to reproduce his CDs, which for him, can potentially lead to huge audience turn-out in his concerts.
Other creative responses to IPR
Another creative response to IPR includes compulsory licensing, which can be exercised by the State. In the Philippines, this was done during the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos. Expensive academic works, including medical textbooks were reprinted in cheaper form to make them available to students. Authors of these works were still awarded royalty fees. Compulsory licensing may also be used for pharmaceutical products, especially for critical illness.
Compulsory licensing is one of the flexibilities within TRIPS and one which government must use.
Al also cited the open access movement which contends that public funded research must be made available in the public domain for the plain reason that public paid for these research works.
Another creative response is the creative commons which Philippine artists may use. Al asserted that given the complexities of the IPR regime and range of creative responses, there is a need for spaces for dialogue between the artist and cultural workers on the one hand, and advocates in civil society, on the other hand.
Al also shared the models which are being considered the communities using free and open source software. A distinction was made between the cathedral and bazaar models. In the former, there is a tendency to first master the components and the end product before this is released to the public at an expensive price. The latter, meanwhile, exposes an initial output to the public which is encouraged to improve the output. Unlike in the cathedral model, the end product of the bazaar is free to use, distribute and modify, provided that any modifications are shared to the public for free.
Mideo later asked whether FOSS products are being terrorized by proprietary software proponents. Al said that the contrary is happening, although the FUD (fear, uncertainty and doubt) method has been deployed against FOSS.
Synthesis and Closing Remarks
Al summarized the major points raised during the session, particularly during the open forum. Some are reacting that everything has been commodified. Hence, the recuperation of the “community”. Such commodification leads to enclosure that people who lack the capacity are deprived of access and participation. While there is a recognition of the rights of creators over their works, a balance must be made between individual rights and collective rights.
The panelists then reminded the audience of their upcoming activities. Cris reminded that that the announcement of WebSining winners is slated in February 25 while the awarding ceremonies as well as the launching of the CD catalogue will be held in March. Mideo invited the participants to Perspektiba 3, an exhibit at the University of the Philippines and to a forum with Jun de Leon and Alice Guillermo as co-panelists, also in UP. Karen asked the participants to stay until evening for the opening of the exhibit, Review: Pasang Masid. Finally, Al flagged the Kuro Satellite forum in General Santos.