The project Indoor Language takes as its starting point an enquiry into the compatibility between different professional languages.

Observing that different professions use vocabulary, grammar and linguistic modes in different ways, the project seeks in particular to compare elements of the language used in the art world and its associated discourse with those employed in other professional spheres.

The projects aim is to critically cross-examine the compatibility between art and other disciplines, through primary attention to the issue of language, its forms and uses. As a central tool in their research Drabble+Sachs organise a series of presentations and discussions. They invite specialists from non-art fields to present on themes associated with their profession and afterwards enter into discussion with a mixed public. The public is made up of art practitioners and invited guests from the specialist’s own field. Drabble+Sachs invite a special guest from the art-world to respond to the presentation and they then chair a public discussion, focussing on areas of compatibility and incompatibility between the languages of the fields represented.

The project responds to a moment where so-called “cross-disciplinary” practice, (ie: incidences of shared production between artists and other disciplines) is becoming more prevalent. This can be seen as a result of artist-led development stemming from the 90’s debates on art as service, post-autonomous and socially engaged practice. Simultaneously this prevalence is marked by the emergence of numerous agencies promoting and commissioning collaborative projects between art and science, art and business, art and technology and art and social work. The research also addresses the growth of the creative industries and their infringement on (and at times cooption of) traditionally ‘artistic’ languages and addresses the Europe-wide growth in corporate sponsorship of art.

As part of the project Drabble+Sachs are also carrying out interviews with art practitioners whose practices can be observed operating on the border between art and other identifiable discourses.

The project stages so far are:

Opening discussion between Barnaby Drabble and Hinrich Sachs about Indoor Language.

Rotterdam, Spring 2003

Presentation by Prof. Dr. Franz Liebl, Chair of Strategic Marketing, Witten-Herdecke University, Germany on the theme of Brand Hacking (pictured above) and Yvonne Volkart, curator & theorist, Zürich.

Literaturhaus, Basel. April 2003.

Interview with Oliver Ressler on the theme of Art and Activism, l’Espace Forde, Geneva. June 2003.

Presentation by Erling Fossen, Urbanist, Oslo and Maria Lind, Curator and artistic director at the Munich Kunstverein, on the theme of Urban Development.

H55 pavilion, Dunker Kulturhus Helsingborg, Sweden November, 2003.

Presentation by art-historian and author Dr. Dawn M Leach, and Net-artist and activist Sebastian Lütgert, on the relationship between Copyright, Intellectual Property and Art.

Schifflände 5, Basel, Switzerland. May 2004.

Downloads:

D+S indoor language.pdf

Ressler interview.pdf