We were invited to take part in the Flux Factory event Congress of Collectives in New York, which included a lot of the collectives we had already worked with or met at The Tent Show
Congress of Collectives is designed to unite collectives, individuals who choose to work collaboratively, and audience members. The three week-long series of events will examine the many forms of collaboration, participation, and self-organization and will provide a platform to generate new works, discussions, and enduring relationships. Congress of Collectives will include formal programming such as panels, talks, screenings, and performances, and informal programing, including dinners, impromptu discussions and actions.
The Congress was a forum for addressing key concepts, frameworks, and problems of working collectively; for sharing strategies; and for creating new platforms for future projects. Perhaps most importantly, The Congress was intended to promote enduring relationships between participants, and lead to an international exchange program between collectives.
This project was shaped during planning dinner discussions, in which over fifteen other local and international collectives participated. The Congress was developed collaboratively by artists, city planners, architects, arts administrators, film makers, and activists representing collectives from the US, Europe, and the Middle East.
Congress of the Collectives events took the forms of artistic production, workshops, panel discussions, film screenings, interventions, performances, and parties—all of which were open to the public.
