Sean J. Patrick Carney will produce a series of short-form articles examining the state of DIY artist warehouse collectives in the western United States following the tragic 2016 fire at Ghost Ship in Oakland and the birth of the legalized recreational marijuana industry. The pieces will examine the relationships between these artist groups, gentrification, the commercial real estate market, and the creative tech industry. While artist collectives are important breeding grounds for anarchic, experimental culture, Carney will explore how the makeup of their participants—and the influence of capital—can sometimes instead reinforce existing power structures.
Sean J. Patrick Carney lives in Austin, Texas. He is a frequent contributor to Art in America; his writing has also appeared in VICE, artnet News, Glasstire, and FOUNDATIONS, among others. Previously, he was a co-director and faculty member at the Bruce High Quality Foundation University. Since 2009, he has operated Social Malpractice Publishing, an independent artist book distribution label. His podcast on contemporary art and comedy, Humor and the Abject, has received a Net Art Grant from Rhizome and a Creators Residency at Kickstarter.