some diary stuff of todays thoughts:
alarm 8:50;
9:23 finally getting up. breakfast with swedish guest and french croissants from maroccan bakery. discussion about Pay A Day;
she says, I should write down all the thoughts about the difficulty how to judge what is work'. I agree that this is the main question in a way, but I find it too evident. I was more thinking about a piece/work, which fakes clearness in the translation 'money to work to piece' and by this creates a resistance that makes a point. Like a real composition, where the seconds are translated to euros. tom told me yesterday about the same concept in a project of Muziekfonds';
I state that I want to report my work, but don't want to end up with a 'diary of an artist';
visitor suggests, that I ask the sponsors, what they earn per hour, then divide the amount I got for this day by this number and work the amount of time I then get. I like the idea. Difficulty is that there are institutions with different salaries involved;
I speak about diagrams on the blog, but can't remember of what kind;
am I working, while we discuss this? and she then?;
whilst bringing her to the elevator I have this idea to every day execute another work cliché: an artist day (sleep long, treat yourself good at breakfast, having a walk to get an idea, watching city as if it was a piece, in afternoon start thinking about drugs), then a employers day (get up early, work with smoking breaks and coffee breaks, lunch of one hour, after lunch start losing time till 17h, for example by flirting with whomever, then going home and don't think at work at all any longer);
now 10:38 writing this diary after and whilst going through emails and some news;
at the toilette suddenly realizing, that I actually should announce this work to my unemployed office, so that I don't receive unemployed money for this working day. And that this would be as well a way to put the daily amount into relation: I get 44 Euro (before taxes?) per day, when I am not working. But the work should be announced to the social office by my interim institution then. would they do this for 23,84 (200 * 0,11917543 = 23,835086) euro? What is the (administrative) minimum for a days work? And: I would need a contract for every day I work with Pay A Day. Shouldn't I better do this in the end? Since the interim offices anyway don't care, which days exactly you worked? but the money gets one big amount again and the differences would be equalized. This is actually a system already, which tries to translate artistic work into a standard system.;
was I working at the toilette?;
11:23 research time: how many emails I wrote for Pay A Day till today? how money conversations about this project? How many documents did I prepare? and after this: trying to find out the minimum amount of salary per day at randstad.;
11:37 was only answering mails that I found when opening my email program. one mail was a funny formulated, but serious intended suggestion to program an old piece of mine. work for another project... also searching for the right working music. a 2,5 hours techno set should do it.;
how do I separate the work on pay a day and 'Social Piece', namely the performance act as he result of Pay A Day?
12:43 while finding out, that I send 32 emails about the matter since the 24th of april 2009 (and received 33 since 20 april 2009) and wondering, if it is interesting, that the emails I received are all during office hours, while my answers are spread over 24 hours, I update the blog and write on facebook an email to a curator, inviting her to follow the project.;
14:20 lunch break. Since the plumbers, who without any warning stopped the water in the whole building, were gone for 2,5 hours "because the shop was closed for one hour" (which shop? what are they doing at the only shop in Brussels, which closes for lunch? and how much did they earn while waiting?) and so couldn't finish there job, I had to take my lunch outside. I managed to spend the exact amount of my net income on one dish (plat de jour) and a glass of sparkling water: 10,50 euro:
;
during coffee after lunch meeting an italian friend and talking about the emptiness of the diary like documented misunderstanding of the concept ''research'' in so many projects the last years;
after break discussing legal issues for hours. found out that I can't be paid less than 60 euros a day. or I make it a volunteer's compensation. but even this is 37 euros or something. and again: if we collect the daily payments? and spread it over some virtual days later on? then the daily payments are loosing their symbolic power. then someone could spread 100 euro over 30 days... (and I wouldn't work much for this);
calling with the sponsor of this day, borealis. speaking about different things. realizing how difficult and maybe completley not relevant it is to communicate my belgian situation.;
decision, to first worry about the communication for now and then decide about how to balance the two concepts: 'Pay A Day' and 'Social Piece' (the working title for the performance in march, which should grow out of this working days). Meaning: the balance between the complexities of the subject 'the concept of work in the arts' and 'how to create a meaningful gesture without getting stuck in answering questions'. "does this make sense?" (would Shlom have said.);
did it make sense to blok the entire day for 23 euro? I missed a rainy day and two appointments (for other, beter paid work.) But keeping the day free, makes the difference between work and off time more sensible.;
19:00: should I put this thoughts online? also thinking at the after-lunch-coffee discussion. and: this is not representive yet for what Social Piece could be (if we get some days of payed work at least). but still, it represents the dilemmas. it also shows, that I worked for 1,27 an hour. autch...
Here the answers of Alwynne Pritchard as BOREALIS:
Pay A Day:
Does your commission fee represents your idea, what an artist should earn per day?
Well, as we have offered two very different fees, I would say it represents rather the difficult relationship that I think exists between money and pretty much everything else in the world.
How did you chose 'your' day?
I wanted Borealis to straddle the timeframe in which you're working, so I chose two days at either end of the project.
Does the kind of day - week or weekend - made a difference for your fee? Should it make a difference?
As I am answering this with my Borealis - institutional - head on, I will say yes, it does make a difference.
Would you find it weird to not get a free ticket to the performance of the piece, you payed for?
Yes.
Did you ever pay for an artwork, beside paying for entrance tickets? Did you ever commission a work of art?
Yes. Borealis commissioned new work regularly.
Do you expect me to work on this project/piece? How would you specify your commission, if I asked you to?
That it somehow relates directly to the questions raised through this kind of commissioning proces.
Did you check my blog/website before you decided paying me a day of work?
Yes.
Do you expect me to spent the entire day working? Should my working time be related to the fee? Would you suggest a logical formula for this?
No. I think it must be very difficult to define a formula for this.
Do you have a message coming with your contribution? Or a special question? Which one?
No.
In general:
Would you pay only for good art?
If I knew what good art was, I might be able to answer this question.
Who should pay for art? (society, artists themselves, other artists, sponsors, the actual audience, ...
I have no idea. I'm not sure it's ever going to be a good idea to make a definite decision on this one.
Who should be payed for art?
Or this one.
What should an artist earn per day?
Or this one.
What should be the relation between the fee and the work of art? Should their be an influence from one or the other side?
Or this one.
Social Piece:
Do you like the title?
Yes.
Do you mind, if the piece doesn't include music?
No. I don't mind at all.
Would you mind being actively integrated in the performance:
- as a member of the audience?
- as a sponsor?
I don't mind being integrated into the performance in any way a all.
Will you be there at the performance (10 March 2010 in Bergen)?
Yes.
Should Social Piece be related to Pay A Day? Should it reflect the sponsorship, the single fees and the raised questions and their answers?
Yes.
Do you have a wish for Social Piece?
That it gets people thinking about stuff they might not otherwise have thought about.
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