"The Queer Art of Failure" by Jack Halberstam has been one of my bedside books since it was introduced to me by Dr. Judit Vidiella in 2018. When I think about street arts, I consider how Halberstam examines failure, unintelligibility, undisciplined approaches, and other perspectives dismissed by capitalist logic, which dictate what education, research, production, or public administration management should be.

For years, I've pondered a possible definition. What are street arts? What do we mean when we talk about street theater, theater in the streets, or outdoor arts? And for what purpose? Currently, I believe that, as a sector or lobby, assuming a definition can be strategic, although I still have my reservations about the need for this endeavor. Returning to Halberstam, I am well aware of what he points out, referring to Foucault, when he states that "to discipline is a modern power technique that promotes and depends on normalization, routines, conventions, tradition, and regularity, and produces specialists and administrative forms of government" (Halberstam, 2018, p. 20).

My friend Eva Marichalar always tells me that fascist capitalism likes simplicity. As a discipline of disciplines, outdoor arts are anything but simple. Thus, they are not easy to define and, therefore, to control. Neither by academia, nor by public administration, nor by the cultural sector itself. Outdoor arts are diverse and promiscuous, and therefore, it is not surprising that they disrupt certain hegemonies. Personally, I am increasingly connected to the discomfort they create.

While in Europe we can find several specialized training programs in street arts, most of them are practical in nature. In this sense, there are pioneering projects, such as those represented by the range of studies offered by FAI-AR in France, and the Street Arts and Contemporary Theater School (ŠUGLA), promoted by the Ana Desetnica International Street Theatre Festival in Slovenia, or, among many others, some newly created ones, such as SPASA, an intensive workshop organized by Cruma (performing arts workshop in Tàrrega) and creator Ferran Orobitg in Spain.

On the other hand, although the street has been extensively studied in fields such as architecture, contemporary art, or anthropology, among others, the perspective of street theater creators has not yet been fully integrated into academia. In this sense, networks like IN-SITU contribute significantly to thinking about the contemporary scene, but there is still much ground to cover in terms of university and scientific research. In these circumstances, it is not surprising that professionals in the field disagree when attempting to define the nature of outdoor arts.

At this point, I do not intend to assert that we should share the same viewpoint, nor do I believe it is necessary to limit, categorize, label, or even restrict. The very dichotomy between street and stage generates tensions that we could begin to overcome. But at a time when positive discrimination is necessary to foster equality across many areas, I believe in us as an open community with a significant journey ahead.

Among the various responses I obtained when asking about the formal and thematic characteristics that make outdoor arts a specific discipline, I was able to gather viewpoints as complementary as they are necessary. Without intending to conclude anything, I share the following approaches.

According to Manfred Eccli and Pedro Cavaco Leitão, from the Moradavaga Collective, "the words 'street arts' lack a cohesive concept, as it greatly depends on the type of artistic manifestation, the broad spectrum that the terminology encompasses, or what the person using it intends to refer to. From graffiti to street theater, from street music to a myriad of objects or actions of public art, the term 'street arts' can be used to define a multitude of different artistic expressions, with different objectives, origins, means of communication, etc. That said, there is one aspect that we can consider common to any artistic expression that can be found in the street: the fact that it is shown/presented/represented in public space, and generally at no cost to the audience. Therefore, to be clear, the term 'street arts' itself includes a specificity (the 'street' part) and a breadth that is difficult to define (the 'arts' part)" (P. Cavaco and M. Eccli, personal communication, August 23, 2021).

On the other hand, according to Nadia Aguir, former head of European and international relations at the IN-SITU network, outdoor arts represent a movement rather than a discipline. "I wouldn't say that outdoor arts, or more generally art in public space, is a discipline in itself. In public space, whatever meaning we attribute to it – outdoor spaces, non-conventional spaces, shared private spaces, anything not presented in a theater – a multitude of artistic proposals flourish, ranging from dance, theater, music, circus, and even visual arts. The boundary between performing arts and visual arts blurs in public space: all projects are imaginable, even permanent ones. And that is the strength of art in public space, which should rather be seen as a movement. What these artistic proposals have in common is that they look at the environment: the physical space, but also the mental space, the history of the place, how inhabitants explore it, live there. Whether it's a street theater project that respects the conventional stage/audience relationship, a participatory itinerant project, or an artistic installation denouncing climate change, in many ways, they all say something about their environment" (N. Aguir, personal communication, August 30, 2021).

Salvador González, coordinator of the Plataforma Arts de Carrer de Catalunya, believes that "outdoor arts are a discipline of disciplines, meaning they can encompass any artistic domain, from dance to circus, theater, visual arts, or installations. What determines what is or isn't outdoor arts is the space, specifically the public thoroughfare, the artistic intervention in that place where citizens typically circulate in their daily lives and which is intentionally altered by the presence of proposals that directly or indirectly urge people who watch or walk without being conscious spectators. The arrangement of urban elements, the audience, and prevailing norms make creation in street arts to be considered as its own discipline where, at times, it's difficult to have total control over the execution of the creation, which can be altered by interruptions in the public thoroughfare, external factors (noise...), meteorological and climatic conditions (rain, night, day...), through the reaction of people who circulate without being part of the audience. The streets also allow citizens to reflect on the spaces where the pieces or creations are produced, as they offer a new perspective on places common to passersby that are transformed" (S. González, personal communication, August 11, 2021).

Finally, Katiuska Valenzuela believes that "outdoor arts are inevitably associated with their context, the place where they are created, the conditions, the socio-political moment, and undoubtedly, the location where they are exhibited. Although they share the aforementioned with more academic disciplines, outdoor arts respond to public space and cannot overlook it. The play there is vital, there is an inevitable communication" (K. Valenzuela, personal communication, August 23, 2021).

Photo: Giroflé, by Circolando © Delphine Mathieu.

The text corresponds to an excerpt from the chapter "Conversas sobre artes de rua contemporâneas: desafios e perspetivas futuras" from the "Manual de boas práticas para a organização de eventos artísticos no espaço público" (Outdoor Arts Portugal, Bússola, 2021).

References

Halberstam, J. (2018). El arte queer del fracaso. Egales.

Jordi Duran i Roldós

Jordi Duran i Roldós holds a degree in Catalan Philosophy (University of Girona) and in Hispanic Philosophy (University of Girona), as well as a master's degree in Inclusive Education (University of Lleida, University of Vic, Central University of Catalonia, and University of the Balearic Islands). He also studied Artistic and Dramaturgical Direction at the Barcelona Institute of Theatre (ESAD). Since 2008, he has been the artistic director of the Dimitri Ialta project. As a cultural manager, he was the artistic director of FiraTàrrega (2011-2018) and co-director of the master's program in Artistic Creation for Public Spaces at the University of Lleida, in partnership with FiraTàrrega (2013-2017). As a teacher and researcher, he collaborated with the master's program in Cultural Management at the International University of Catalonia (2010-2017). Currently, he is a lecturer in Performing Arts at ERAM (University of Girona) and director of the Festival Z.