Agency for Collective Action

2008-09
the agency for collective action was a collaboration between pvi collective and panther, (live art duo Madeleine Collie and Sarah Rodigari)

the alun alun, grounds of the sultans palace, yogyakarta, indonesia, nov 2009.

south project, ‘why gather?’ international symposium, jul 2008.

the project investigated ways in which we can activate disparate groups of people to undertake a shared action through performance and public intervention.

The aspirational intentions of the agency for collective action appealed to both pvi and panther; the aim of seeking out a commitment by all involved to take a stand and act upon it together. this commitment, whilst inherently absurd and largely doomed to failure, served to poetically highlight an innate desire to change and affect the landscape. it was largely this impossibility in all its magnitude that appeals and for us gave the work its currency, integrity and ability to have impact on an audience.

we at the agency for collective action were interested in the decisions we make as individuals and the way in which individual interests can inform and empower events. we were interested in the way individuals come together, make decisions, and unite to make affirmative decisions for a collective future. we find common cause among strangers and create small communities out of larger ones.  In doing so highlight the many tensions and individualism in a global collective.

creative team

devised & performed by: pvi collective & panther
production manager: the south project and Georgie Sedgewick
research provocatuers: Wimo Bayang & Ferdiansyah Thajib