the Think Tank that has yet to be named

Dissecting the Sector

Posted by DINP on September 16, 2007

• Date: Sunday, September 9, 2007
• Location: The Painted Bride, 230 Vine St.
• Managing Director:
  Director of the Dept. for the Investigation of Failure (DIF)
• Additional Managing Directors:
  Director of the Dept. for the Investigation of Meaning (DIM)
  Director of the Dept. for the Investigation of Metaphorical Agency (DIMetA)

On September 9, 2007, a “Town Hall Meeting” was hosted at the Painted Bride in Philadelphia called “Culture, Creativity and the City.” The event has been deemed a great success by its organizers stating that “a rousing and important community dialogue began. At the heart of this dialogue were many of the core questions and ideas about how we, as Philadelphians, can harness the energy of the Creative Sector to consolidate Philadelphia revitalization and create the conditions to drive the economy.” This event related directly to this Directors previous investigation called “Scrutinizing the Cartography of Talent.”

DIF, DIM and DIMetA attended the meeting. This Director drafted a series of questions that were printed and distributed on notecards at the event. Examples of questions: What is the fundamental ideological purpose of art? How do we create a space for cultural freedom? Can art cause harm? The stack of questions was passed to the moderator during the panel discussion and the last question, regarding harm, was asked of the panelists. The questions themselves were conceived of while this Director listened to author Julian Stallbrass being interviewed on Against the Grain. The questions are derived from his thoughts on the subject of art and commerce.

Listen to the moderator ask the question here.

At the “Culture, Creativity and the City” event, an audience member passed in a comment that “Philadelphia should become the Creative Capital of the East Coast.” When read to the crowd, it was followed by a bolstered cheer. But Philadelphia is already the murder capital of the East Coast. Doesn’t that count for anything? If there is a direct correlation between the well-being of a city and the amount of public art made available to its citizenry, then how it is that Philadelphia, who boasts to have more public art than any other city in the nation, is also leading the nation in murder? Either the correlation is false, or the art that is being implemented for this purpose is a failure. Is the notion of the “creative economy” nothing more than a scrim? What hides behind that scrim, who is directing the backstage? Who benefits from the thin veil of our city’s arty surface? And what is really happing in Philadelphia when you peek behind the art to see the city for what she is?

KEYWORDS: community, gentrification, projects