Valuing Labor in the Arts: Renee Rhodes


On April 19, 2014, the Arts Research Center hosted Valuing Labor in the Arts: A Practicum. This daylong event included a series of artist-led workshops that developed exercises, prompts, or actions that engage questions of art, labor, and economics. We have asked participants to send us their reflections on keywords, puzzles, or recurring themes that came up throughout the day. This post is by artist Renee Rhodes. 
 
Ok, so I have been working on a project with a friend and I am thinking about ways to get heavier on purpose, un-interface my need for collectivity, and to settle endless desiring and the pursuing precariousness.
 
I wrote a little shortie poem, related-ish…
part of desire and want and longing are done for survival
right, like if we didn’t hungrily want our mothers milk no calcium would get to our young baby bones and we would die
 
somewhere a long time ago i read that “our desires desire desiring”
what if we practiced loving the feeling of longing and gave up on the endless acquisition 
what if we practiced loving our collective indebtedness and stopped worrying about attaining freedom from it
is debt like an aura or a skin or a trauma or a memory or a true story about you
knowing so many of us are wearing these heavy auras makes me feel less lonely at least
I want to lead us on a group nap
a nap might be more productive and less harmful than keeping all these lights on