My
correspondence with Edith began when I received an email with an attached image
of the signage for the raffle.
 |
| Photo Courtesy of Edith Macia |
Our correspondence
continued with me emailing her questions of how she managed the raffle, how was
the participatory aspect received by the public, any interesting conversations
about the raffle concept with clotheslines or the California state legislation
with the “Right to Dry.”
I
intended to incorporate Edith’s experiences into my writing, which was planned
to be posted on the On The Line
website. This writing was part of my preliminary proposal to aid in the
documentation of the background and experiences from the raffle.
In
her email Edith shared with me how she organized and managed the raffle. I was
pleased that my proposal was not followed like instructions, but more as a
loose structure. One example of the methods Edith used at the Arlanza
Library location was that she collected names on paper for the raffle drawing instead
of distributing prefab raffle tickets. Edith mentioned how her signage was
effective by having the public approach her about what was being raffled off.
As
I began my first stage of writing, the bilingual signage is what provoked more
questions about the participatory elements of the raffle. I knew Edith’s
experiences came from either her research with the neighborhoods near Arlanza
Library or she could have been some how familiar with the area.
I
knew my single author approach was not appropriate, since I did not attend the
March 5th program. From my previous experiences with new media and research with digital humanities, I proposed to Edith and Susan
Ossman, Director of On The Line program,
that a blog was better suited for presenting the multi-voiced experiences and
research from the raffle. Susan and Edith accepted the blog idea.
This
blog, On The Line 2016 Public Raffle, has been launched to be a collaborative way of writing about the
public raffle, while utilizing new media to extend the participatory concept
from the public physical location (the library site) to virtual social spaces.
References
Fox, R.
ed. (1991) Recapturing Anthropology Working in the Present. Santa Fe, School of American
Research.
Lippard,
L. (1973) Six Years: The Dematerialization
of the Art Object from 1966 to 1972. Berkeley, University of
California Press.
Okely,
J. & Callaway, H. eds. (1992) Anthropology & Autobiography. London, Routledge.
Pink,
S. ed. (2012) Advances in Visual Methodology. London, Sage.
