The entryway to the Saint Paul Central Library will be commandeered as a site for the gathering of Twin Cities area texts of a socio-political prophetic nature. Taken from the historical record as well as the not too distant past, these texts will be read aloud around a luminescent campfire taking the form of a Hollywood style search light like one might find at a film premier.
The Follow the Light encampment will convene at sunset, and continue into the night. Canvas tents and cots will be set up to serve as personal reading and discussion areas, benches will ring the search light.
Nomadic in nature, Red76’s origins reside in Portland, Cascadia/Oregon wherein it was founded in the winter of 2000. The socio-historical landscape of the Cascadian region greatly informs the methodological underpinnings of their work. The group, often in flux and geographically dispersed, is the moniker for initiatives most often conceived by Sam Gould, and collaboratively realized with the assistance of Gabriel Mindel-Saloman, Zefrey Throwell, Dan S. Wang, Mike Wolf, Laura Baldwin, and many others.
Often situating itself in public space, or creating an atmosphere wherein the definition of space maybe have an opportunity to redefine itself, Red76 initiatives utilize overlooked histories and common shared occurrences as a means of creating a framework in which to construct their public inquiries. Social histories, collaborative research, parallel politics, free media, alternative educational constructs, gatherings, masking, and public dialogue play a continuing and vital role within the methodology and concepts of Red76’s work.
Along with producing many independent initiatives, on street corners, in laundromats, bars, and kitchen tables, Gould and Red76 have engaged in projects commissioned by the Institute of Contemporary Art Philadelphia, the Drawing Center, the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, Printed Matter, Creative Time, the Douglas F. Cooley Memorial Gallery at Reed College, 01 San Jose, SF MoMA, Rhizome/New Museum, The Bureau for Open Culture, The Walker Arts Center, and many others.