ABOUT SPOTTED COUCH

Swell (velvet, organza and fabric paint), 8 x 9 feet, 2006. Copyright of artist Lissa Robinson

Spotted Couch Blog deals with the power of the arts to provoke discussion about social justice and crime. The idea is to bring social topics into the fray by focusing on diverse artistic practices such as visual arts, film, music, performance, fiction, literature, media and other related disciplines. The blog is intended to arouse or provoke readers while it stitches artistic tales about current or significant social, psychological or criminal events or issues.

The word, “spotted” means to mark or stain with or as if with spots — like a spotted couch or spotted honour.  A couch or a sofa is a place of honour for a welcomed guest, but as a thing an action it also carries other meanings and inferences such as to “couch” or express (something) in a certain manner.

Unlike the bourgeois, avant garde salons of the early 19th century, the Spotted Couch focuses on art that crosses all media, cultural and economic boundaries. The ability of artists to communicate complex situations in engaging and original ways, embedding dissent and being transgressive, make artists a prime social group in which we can reflect on issues of crime and social injustice.