#browncouncil

Brown Council – Monday May 27th 2013 – PSM Lecture Series

  Two members of the performance based art collaboration known as Brown Council joined us to finish off the PSM Lecture Series for this year. Diana Smith and Kate Blackmore talked us through some of their works created since the group was born in 2007. They kicked things off with Milk Shake (2007), a video work in which all four artists dressed in DIY skeleton costumes each drank a liter of milk and danced in a style reminiscent of endless rap and R&B music videos. It was amusing to say the least, and hard not to consider the objectification of women all over MTV, but honestly the whole time I was waiting for one of them to throw up, it was all I could think about.

(Brown Council 2012)

The four women met at COFA and share an interest in how we perform various roles in our lives: gender, love, intimacy, artist, etc. Their work is heavily informed by the 1970’s and they choose to explore feminism through humor and parody. “Women do have a sense of humor.” This is quite obvious in works like Milk Shake (2007) and One Hour Laugh (2010). I find myself once more wondering about young Australian artists and the fine line between sincerity and piss take. Big Show (2009) leaves me (again) in fear of witnessing projectile vomiting as one of the groups’ members scoffs down bananas for four hours.

(Brown Council 2012)

I can appreciate what they’re doing, but not all of the works resonated with me. I found Remembering Barbara Cleveland (2012) evoked a more genuine and thought-provoking response within me, as well as Mass Action: 137 cakes in 90 hours (2012).  These seemed more serious and both paid tribute (to things real and imaginary) to women, be they bakers of the CWA or forgotten female artists of the 1970’s. I’m still thinking about and deciding exactly what to make of Brown Council, however I loved their motto from 2011 they kindly shared with us in a candid moment, “Think big, be loud, take up space.”

 Image References:

 Unknown 2012, TheAustralian.com.au, viewed Sunday June 2nd 2012,

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/arts/women-explore-the-themes-of-life-in-contemporary-australia/story-e6frg8n6-1226335673335

 Unknown. 2012, AltMedia.net, viewed Sunday June 2nd 2013,