A platform is a space where artists can meet an audience. It can be physical, mental or virtual
For Brighton Contemporary Arts Festival in 1977, Roger Ely and I presented artists in gallery and theatre spaces but also on the street, in the countryside, pubs, out at sea and on the beaches. Making that festival made me think about public space as a platform and influenced much of my future work.
Some art work was informed by the spaces it occupied and had the potential to give the space a powerful resonance. On other occasions it was celebratory or disturbing. The work was often placed so that the public encountered it by accident and so had to be wooed or retained in a way that was not necessary in a formal venue. As a consequence, we were reaching audiences who did not ordinarily visit arts spaces. This had many particular consequences like attracting artists with political intent and arts funders who wished to grow audiences.