THE CONCEPT

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The Workers Paradise sees itself as a pop-up artistic utopia, imagining new ways of creating, collaborating and practicing together. This space invites proposals of any kind in order to co-create this imagined community for two days. Performances, showings, talks, round table discussions, workshops, text readings, study groups, and more are welcome. You may propose to wear the hat/take the role of audience, convenor, performer, documentor, director, facilitator and to shift between these perspectives and roles. The aim is for new artistic knowledge and practice to be collectively generated and experienced together.

The Workers Paradise project refers to the title of a novel written by William Lane set in the context of worker strikes in the 1890’s which precipitated the rise of the union movement in Australia. Through his desire for a restructuring of labour conditions and worker rights, Lane went on to set up a utopian socialist settlement in Paraguay. Although this turned out to be a failed social experiment the questions and concerns behind this action are still timely and relevant to artists existing in the Australian climate today.

The Workers Paradise is a community and a platform to explore and propose modes of artistic work, and operates on the following principles:

 

* OPEN-SOURCE < knowledge and practices generated through a public collaboration and made freely available to all to use, modify according to the users agenda>,

* AUTODIDACTISM <education/teaching that is driven by an individual’s interests as opposed to a canon of knowledge as defined by an expert/institution>,

* UTOPIAN DREAMING <the act of conjuring up new, possible worlds in which artists reimagine the working conditions she desires to be artistically productive>, and

* COLLECTIVE CARE <the acts nourishment of and replenishment provided by the group, for the group>.

 

A climate of funding-poverty can mean that independent artists operate within an environment ruled by competition, individualism and a power dynamic which is more weighted towards the art institution than the artist. All this aside, if just for a weekend utopia was possible, what would you like to do, experience, be part of, propose, see?

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The Workers Paradise is a free event for people to partake in.  This allows it to not be guided by funding criteria or outside partner priorities so as to enable a space for processes and practices that sit outside of those formally recognised in the mainstream. It is our vision that the community created by The Workers Paradise will offer participating artists value by enabling a horizontal and inclusive space for exchange between other participating artists and audiences.  A platform that encourages an atmosphere of interaction, reciprocity, feedback and the opportunity to build support networks with other practitioners to progress artistic and creative practice.

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