Art Pro Tem
A non-profit community based organization founded and directed by Margaret Parker and dedicated to bringing contemporary art to non-traditional spaces for the general public. It sponsored exhibitions and a lecture series, artTALKS, at the Ann Arbor Public Library from 1999 to 2002.
Exhibitions:
Videopolis
2000
Five video installations in store windows along Main Street, Ann Arbor, MI.
(part of VideoCulture: Three Decades of Video Art, a collaboration of venues in the Southeast Michigan area.)
Video installations along Ann Arbor's bustling Main Street investigate how the medium is being altered and challenged by visual artists, and how, in turn, video reflects our culture. Monitors play in circumstances where art is least expected - in shop windows in the heart of the business district.
E-scapes, by Rosemary Bodily; at Selo-Shevel Gallery
Fairy Tales, Home, Purses, by Allegra Pitera; at Atys/Mezzanine
Vanishing Point, by Mark Callahan; at Voilá
Cherries Through Time, by Stephen Wentzel; at Espresso Royale Caffé II
Dual Observation Cabinets, by Potter-Belmar Labs (Leslie Raymond and Jason Jay Stevens); at Renaissance
VideoCulture: Three Decades of Video Art, a first-of-a-kind effort, joins the forces of eleven museums, galleries, arts and education organizations to examine video art and its impact on contemporary culture. Along with ART PRO TEM the collaboration includes University of Michigan's Museum of Art; Slusser Gallery at the UM School of Art and Design and the Media Union; the Detroit Institute of Art; Cranbrook Art Museum; Wayne State University; the Center for Creative Studies; ArtSite (Windsor, Canada) and the Windsor Art Gallery, Windsor, Canada.
U-Shop
2001
Installations in five stores located along State Street, Ann Arbor, MI. Artists collaborated with stores to make installations that referenced the store's mission and interacted with shoppers
Curator: Gregory Steel
Adoration of the BarbieSpawn, by Patricia Olynyk and Jason Kaufman; at Vault of Midnight (comic book store)
Record, by Sadashi Inuzuka and Melanie Boyle; at Encore Recordings (new and used records)
Box, by Susan Kilpela; at Harry's Army Surplus (army surplus supplies)
The Beauty Within, by Mark Polio; at Persian House of Imports (Persian rug store)
Untitled 143, by Sophia Rasul; at Herb David Guitars
Hear/Here!
2002
Five soundscapes were installed in alleys in downtown Ann Arbor. Once activated by the movement of passers-by, the audio drew them in to participate in the sound event.
Curator: Allegra Pitera
Aleatory Sound Lace 1 & 2, and Calliope, by Helen Quinn; at the Conservatory
Detections Manipulations and Questions, by Andrew Sturm; at Cafe Zola
Memories of an Urban Playfield, by Gregory Steel and Rich Ordain; at Sunflower Cafe
Lilt Marathon, by Joe Ruster and Brian Thrash; at the Michigan Theatre alley
Teleacoustaphilia & The Kinesthesis of Roundness (May 6-19), by Kristin Worrall; at Arbor Brewing
It's a Brown Bag (May 19-30), by Anne Maria Hardeman; at Arbor Brewing
A Public Construction: the Bill of Rights
2003
A series of 10 Participatory Art Installations.
Art Pro Tem printed up the ten Amendments in the Bill of Rights on yellow boards, to resemble caution warning signs. We invited ten artist groups to post one of the Bill of Rights in different locations on 4' x 8' sections of fencing around Ann Arbor, adding their own interpretation within that space. During the show, the public added their thoughts and visual responses to the installations as well, to create a month long community dialogue.
Amendment I, by Assembly of Six; at 118 W. Washington Street
Amendment II, by Work Exhibition Space; at empty lot on Liberty Street
Amendment III, by Huron High School; on fence behind Community High School
Amendment IV, by Pioneer High School; on fence behind Community High School
Amendment V, by Community High School; on fence behind Community High School
Amendment VI, by UM Prison Creative Arts Project; at empty lot on Liberty Street
Amendment VII, by Art Oasis; on gate at 307 N. Main Street
Amendment VIII, by Ann Arbor Art Center/ Neutral Zone; on wall behind 117 W. Liberty
Amendment IX, by Art Pro Tem; on fence at 210 S. Ashley Street
Amendment X, by Concordia University Art Department; at empty lot on Liberty Street