Art practices/Multiple-use name

Contexts

A multiple-use names have been used in a variety of contexts:

• Political: Jacquerie, peasant revolt hwere peasants were all called "Jacques"
• Academic/Mathematical: Nicholas Bourbaki founded 1934
• Fictional political resistance: I'm Spartacus, from Stanley Kulbrick's film Spartacus, (1960)
• Counter-culture: The Wallies of Wessex, squatters in Wiltshire, 1974

It is a name used by many different people to protect anonymity. It is a strategy that has been adopted by many unconnected radical and cultural groups, where the construct of personal identity has been criticized. This resource focuses on the multiple name as an Art practice used by such Art movements as Dada, Neoism and Art Strike Movement.

Multiple-use name functions in much the same way/s as a Collective phantom - except while multiple-use names are apparently individual names - with the format of a forename and surname (often a christian name and surname) - a collective phantom is in the form of an organisational name.

Origins

'both the term multiple names - and their use for political subversion - didn't occur until a group of anarcho-art punks from the London suburbs launched a 'movement' called the Generation Positive in October 1982, with a call for all rock bands to use the name White Colours. In February 1984 the movement launched its magazine Smile, and by the second issue (April '84) were calling for all magazines to use this name. In the fifth issue (October '84) the term multiple names was coined as a description of the concept and launched in a manifesto entitled "The Generation Positive Presents The Multiple Name Aesthetic".'

Examples

• Monty Cantsin see also Neoism
• Karen Eliot see also Neoism
• Luther Blissett see also Neoism and Psychogeography
• Karen Karnak see also Art Strike Movement, Asemic writing
• Chus Martinez - part of the Alytus Psychic Strike Biennial
• Tae Ateh

Exercises

1. Research your name: Use a search engine to research the name: is it associated with a particular space, time or form of production (class)? 2. Register an email account and an account with a social networking site with the name

Multiple use and Open Logins

See https://bblab.space/p/perfectusers for instructions

more: Open Login

Related practices

• Single person association
• Psychogeography

Related movements

• Dada
• Neoism
• Art Strike