Mailinglists as tool to build electronic communities

FACE 6.-11. Juli 1998 - Online Female Communities

Community requires effort, no way to get around that. The question is how to provide value that makes it worth the effort.

Tamiko (aus der FACES Mailinglist)

What's the focus of female online communities?

In general, the art of social networking is the basis for community building. To build networks and keep link systems running is foremost a feature of social fantasy and open-minded public life. In addition, females online are noted for their support structures, acceptance of other points of view, and lack of fear to present others. The female communities built up by electronic communication media are often personal safety nets in an otherwise male dominated professional and/or social life.

Face 2 Face @Forum Stadtpark Graz: The Body, Identity and Community in Cyberspace

Face 2 Face at the Grazer Forum Stadtpark (July 6-11) was not a Cyberfeminist conference, nor did it have a professional career building agenda. It was a meeting of women who ordinarily communicate in a mailing list called FACES. A Face-off in real life for discussions taking place on the rapidly growing communication forum, this live event gave an anchor point for round table talks to make clear what female online communities could become. FACES, during the past year, has become a model for the Pop~TOPIC female online communities and will be used as reference, and even an example.

Face 2 Face was organized by Eva Ursprung, curator at the Forum Stadtpark and a member of the FACES mailing list. The event was conceived of to give FACES an opportunity to meet and reflect on the theoretical concepts and artistic responses surrounding the issue: the body, cultural identity, and female personality in the context of the digital networks. A pre-event included an intensive RealAudio workshop with Vesna Manojlovic (Radio B92, Belgrade) and Reni HofmŸller (Radio Helsinki, Graz). Performance events, an exhibition, and a three day symposium were scheduled between July 8-11.

Communities in Cyberspace are examined on their capability of political action and their ability of creating permanent communication-structures, transgressing borders and cultures. Women artists, theorists, and hackers who come from different cultural backgrounds can save the experience of a common communication space in Cyberspace and share in an environment which is familiar to all of them.

Eva Ursprung, Face 2 Face press announcement.

The Face 2 Face exhibition included works by: Beverly Hood (Glasgow), who exhibited a CD ROM of Elevator, a group which works collectively in Scotland; Julia Meltzer (New York), who showed Baggage Claim, an midi-controlled audio installation that reveals memories linked to objects that connect four family members. Anya Westerfroelke (Linz) and Betty Spackman (Toronto), installed an excerpt of their multi-media installation The Reading Room. Their work is about memory, forgetting, and storytell.

A strong feminist tradition was demonstrated at Face 2 Face by the obvious inclusion of performance, an essential art form that was frequently a nuclear activity uniting women at feminist community gatherings in the 1970s and 1980s. Face 2 Face featured performance in the gallery and in the RealAudio webcast, which was transmitted nightly from the Forum Stadtpark studio.

i think that what kathy et others are doing ..as in the FACE settings projects ,,the recent event in graz ... the forthcoming gathering of eastern cyberfeminists in st petersburg ,,the kinds of gigs arranged by the FIKA FUTURA team in milan ..and this list itself ...are evidence of alternative creative contexts for the sharing of info and ideas, exhibiting of works .. debate ...dialogue ...communication ... sense of belonging to a loose tribe ....networking ... partying ..arguing ...bonding ... thses kinds of manifestations are to me far more exciting than the by now quite institutionalised asnd factionised big events ... far less generic ... more inclusive potentially of a wider range of particpants ... people particpate in such manifestations not to build their careers but to come together to show and tell .. a kind of swap meet ... to me it feels like a return to the DIY energy of 70s activism .. 80s punk ... 90s techno-tribal-rave non commercial parties.

dollyoko (FACES discussion)

Female Community Building and Cyberfeminism

Excerpts on the Graz Symposium

Russian Cyberfeminist Views:

The Face 2 Face symposium brought together women from eight countries, and gave the opportunity for them to discuss their projects, their theory and their regional conditions. The opening day, Alla Mitrofanova and Irina Aktugowana from St. Petersburg discussed the differences between East and West feminist theory, and the circles of responsibility of East European women. Mitrofanova, a theoretician and Net.art specialist introduced Motherhood as the essential factor for female power. It is in her view, the only clear difference between genders. Her opinion that women without children are forever marginalized divided the audience between mothers and fe-males. But she thoughtfully pointed out that artistic energy is often produced at the margins.

Aktugowana, director of Gallery 21, gave a historical overview of Cyberfeminism in Russia in a recent interview in n.paradoxa. She summarized by saying that Russian women act through men, because it is an act of good will toward their authority. While in the west, feminists act through male theory.

OBN: Activist Strategies

Cornelia Sollfrank (OBN, Berlin and Hamburg) discussed her personal work as a media artist, and her history of work with all girl groups: Frauen und Technik, Innen, and the Old Boys Network. Part of Sollfrank's strategy has been tactical interventions in male dominated commercial fairs, and the appropriation of logos. The actions have been subversive and necessary German feminist performance actions in the 1980s and early 1990s. The OBN concentrates on Cyberfeminism as a political and feminist activity, and a meeting during the Next Five Minutes is planned in Rotterdam, March 1999.

Economics and Cyberfeminism

Doris Weichselbaumer, a Linz-based economist, talked about the gendered division of labor in Science Fiction movies, and the economic implications of the Net. She analyzed Aliens (1 -4) for stereotypical roles, existing economic systems, and the various possibilities for feminist identification. She illustrated how the status quo of our society is represented in Sci Fi fiction, rather than futuristic utopias, by showing edited examples of film clips. She showed that, on one hand, there are possibilities for feminist empowerment inside the stereotypes of the film industry, and that the first superfem heroine, Ridley, was promoted highly for fighting and destroying the Alien, alone. The Alien, on the other hand, represents traditional femininity. The main fear which Weichelbaumer pointed out was the ultimate reproductive power of the female queen mother. In Alien, the positive image of female power through their biological reproductive role excludes women from the economic productive process. A metaphor which could help women protect their knowledge of mothering is provided in the Alien movies. As Weichelbaumer also remarked,

Is this an encouragement for females to get closer to the machine? Or, a concrete possibility of what these tools offer us.

Pornography and erotica

Maria Pallier ( Madrid) discussed her research based on a documentary film on female erotica which she produced for the popular TV program Metropolis, shown nationally on Spanish Television. In a short historical lecture, she explained how, in the 18th Century, the medical consideration of female orgasm was dropped when it was realized that the O was not necessary for conception. For Pallier, the female gaze is identification with the subject while the male gaze if the objectification of the subject. The question of pornography and the female gaze interests her from the perspective of female artists personal experiments. She discussed performance and video art, as well as experimental filmmakers, whose work could be confused with commercial pornography if taken out of context. The discussion centered around what precisely it was that turned women on, and whether they needed to see images. She understands that most women prefer erotic texts, the remark which she concluded the discussion with, because text offers more possibilities for personal identification.

Feminist intervention in print

Katy Deepwell is a theoretician and art historian who founded, and edits, the British feminist journal n.paradoxa. She sees her project as a feminist cultural intervention because the production of information on feminist art, and which information is selected, also produces meaning in art criticism. A relatively new publication, n.paradoxa began as a website, but grew into a print medium, an opposite reaction to the Internet. Her decision to go to print was complex, but she stated firmly that most women who seek out feminist theory are still not online.

n.paradoxa fits a basic pattern of thinking for the culture of the 1990s, and could serve as a model for feminist behavior. One of the goals for n.paradoxa is access to information, especially different practices and results. Online and in hard copy, it features an essential list of women's arts organizations, archives, and festivals. It is not a tool for community building nor is it an online community, but it serves as a resource and linking structure for female ideas and artworks.

Deepwell, who took on the role of critical respondent to each presentation during the Face 2 Face symposium, was a constant reminder that creative work done by women is not necessarily feminist. And, Grrls who want to have fun online are not necessarily cyberfeminists.

Exhibition, Food and Performance

Eating was an essential factor of the Face2Fface meetings, and the Face Settings project. In Graz, Evelyn Teutsch (Leipzig), took up the tradition of cooking as performance. On the opening night she prepared soup for 100 persons at the Forum Stadtpark. Like performance, cooking dinners is a traditional tool for female community building. Food performances were made by Veronica Dreier (Graz) who created an ice cream torso which was a focal point on opening night! Kirsh (Graz), a performance duo, produced Bloody Mary's -- drinks with a flair. Zana Poliakov (Belgrade), is author of Cyberkitchen, Zana's performance took place on the symposium table, where she spread around a basket of fresh fruit and vegetables, which she compared with net habits. She circulated a questionnaire that asked for the ingredients to make up the ideal hero.

(*)(*) SUper-feminisme

Margarete Jahrmann presented SUperFemper4mance, a server based action that reveals inner workings of Net protocol as a model for self representation in abstract forms and sound environments. The Femper4mance is an evolving work that takes each event for new content and context. Combining theory and practice, this work is a metaphor for the presentation of feminist ideas online, and for experiencing abstract processes as a live act. Being located on an art server and having a community based on links implies the following formula:

Hyperlink KONTEXTualisation=increase in net.credibility= direct transfer from symbolic and social capital into economic capital

You can navigate between datasets through objects with surfaces of data transfer protocols in the 3rd Web. You can acquire objects in order to display the personal data of the User. Understanding Avatars is not recommended as substitute for individuality but for shifting and permanently changing personal datasets. They can also serve as SUperfem VRMLAvatars, which are super-gendered, and define sex by transfer processes, transparency and text/ure, all which seem to have fe/male attraction.

Margarete Jahrmann at SUperfemper4mance

Face 2 Face conclusions

Face 2 Face began and ended around a table. Each woman present (and male guests) were offered the opportunity to speak, contribute and discuss. Each presentation, artwork, and performance event related in some way to the body and to identity. It was a working space among women to experience community in real life that had -- 'till then -- existed primarily in Cyberspace.

In Graz, the Face Settings project was also concluded. Many of the women who were initially included in regional dinner events, as well as other interested women around the world, have become the mailing list FACES. Face 2 Face meetings were essential to the original project, and were a coming together of the diverse cultural and artistic directions that gave shape to the project. In Graz, the meeting was realized from according to the wishes of the participants, from their point of view rather than the initial artistic direction of Wohlgemuth and Huffman. Indeed, as originally hoped, this Net.art work took its own coursemof action.

The FACES mailing list

Women online, defined by real life practice:

The FACES mailing list grew out of the project Face Settings, a series of performing installations and cooking events, initiated by Kathy Rae Huffman and Eva Wohlgemuth in 1996. The objective of Face Settings dinners was to introduce online communication to women in five cities, St. Petersburg, Bilbao, Belgrade, Glasgow, and Vienna. The goal of Face Settings was to bring women together regionally with by creative cooking, and dialogue around the table. Each regional group would united globally over internet through the website and by email. Through ongoing dialogue, the shape of Face Settings would be determined by the participants. The project was planned to be concluded with a large dinner, with representatives from each of the targeted regions present to discuss the process, show artwork, and realize communication projects.

In Autumn 1996 -- at a Vienna Face Settings dinner event, it was suggested by Margarete Jahrmann to begin an all girl mailing list, to continue the discussions, and link women around the world where Face Settings dinners had been held. The idea was a natural extension to the communication already going on between many of the women. Kathy Rae Huffman (an American then living in Vienna) and Diana McCarty (an American living in Budapest) nervously agreed to organize it, and serve as moderators. The FACES list was originally hosted by Internationale Stadt Berlin, and had 20 participants when it was announced at the Syndicate meeting during Video Positive, in Liverpool in Spring 1997.

Word spread fast, and the list functioned well due to the technical supervision of Vali Djordjevic (Berlin). After long discussions in Spring 1997, FACES was offered Cornelia Sollfrank, to become guest moderator and prepare the first Cyberfeminist International at the Hybrid Workspace project, the week of September 13-19 - the last week of the documentaX. The CI week was launched with a Face Settings dinner on the first Saturday night, to bring the women together around a common table. (link face settings images of CI)

Set up as a discussion list, FACES also serves as a networking channel for media artists. It has been especially helpful for traveling FACES. The default language is English, but women post in various languages. Surprisingly, at f2f meetings, usually convened at festivals or exhibitions, it has become evident that the same misunderstandings and misinterpretations which often show up in mixed gender electronically reduced communication forums, also pop up on FACES. One explanation is the language differences and cultural practices. But part is the nature of electronic communication between high spirited individuals. Luckily, the FACES women are very eager to meet at festivals, exhibitions, or conferences, and very often, simple f2f talks bring clarity to the opinions expressed in discussion. Today, FACES is hosted on the Cybergrrl server in New York City.

It is a volunteer activity, with no commercial aspirations. The list serves for preparing and organizing meetings and other events. It is used by the internationally distributed subscribers to inform widely about local events, exhibitions, and artistic projects. The accusation that FACES is building up a Cyber- elite group, or that it is Eurocentic, is a generalization and a condemnation without thought.

Anyone can join FACES, make a meeting of FACES anywhere at anytime, or in data space. There is no hierarchy, no funding requirements, no corporate structure, or brotherhood system.

In contrast to a club, or secret society, FACES is open. It is a space where women media artists (and especially those interested in Internet and multimedia) - their friends, curators, critics, theoreticians, programmers and related artistic people, can share ideas, projects, and all that stuff....FACES started off small, and has grown to over 130 in the past year. There are still a lot of unrealized ideas (like the archive of introductory biographies, links, etc.), but they will eventually come to be.

Each potential FACE is simply asked to submit a short biography (there should be no strangers on the list) and she is subscribed as soon as the moderators are able to log into the server. Since 1997, meetings of FACES have been held throughout Europe, in New York and Toronto. They have built a presence in much the same way as the West Coast (Silicon Valley) Women in Technology group. But, a list like FACES is not an organization. It is an experiment that develops spontaneously, from inside Net.life.