THE ART OF THE STATE

State of Sabotage

> What is Sabotage?

The formation "Sabotage" was founded by artist Robert Jelinek in the area of the Documenta IX in Kassel in June 1992. "Sabotage" means the braking of conventions, the artistic interruption of processes of thinking and manipulational transfer. "Sabotage" is not a technic that transports meaning. Sabotage transgresses positions without presenting a new social order, provokes thinking by intervening in the official discourse. Sabotage is the experiment to brake up incrustation of an organised bourgeois society that insulates itself against all changes and tries to make thinkable new possibilities.

"Sabotage" began operating in 1992 as a small project and collective, later 1994 as Sabotage Communications - an art organisation and music label, then as a union of various sublabels brought together by their shared way of thinking and similar style of expression through different media. Since 1992 more than 100 international "public sabotages" have taken place in form of performances, actions, events and exhibitions. There are a number of flexible subdivisions which emerge as the needs arise and dissolve under their own inertia. The fields of activities of Sabotage defy definition of contents, theme and geographic concentration and therefore different projects and target groups are represented in different sublabels such as: Sabotage actions (1992-95), Alibi Service (1992-95), Sabotage projects (since 1995), Sabotage Recordings (1994-99) ...

The conception of Sabotage acts is not related to a special actor or the member of a social group, but to the participants of interacting events that are at the same time the spectators in front of which they represent themselves. "Irritation" is the ruling factor of all actions and performances. "Irritation" disturbs the conventional reception and guides the recipient back to him/herself. By little interventions, like the changing of ambient and situation, the user is removed from his/her obvious social intercourse (in perception, function and acting). Thus irritating feelings are provoked in the recipients that set in motion the interaction. The recipient of Sabotage Acts is standing alone. During the "Sabotage" the participants make use of this fact. They guide their interaction by regulating the access to their own subjectivity.

> SoS Territory

Welcome to Baldrockistan. The State of Sabotage.

A strategy of strangers, solidarity over sovereignty, and a subversion of surveillance.

SoS is not a geographic place, but rather a concept. SoS has no pre-defined territory, but one that is characterized by constant, and theoretically unlimited, growth. SoS has no indigenous population, but is open to all those who wish to join of their own free will. The territory of the State of Sabotage grows with each new citizen.

Yet the State of Sabotage is not a purely virtual community, it encompasses real state territory. In September 2003, SoS first hoisted its flag over its own territory on the fifth continent.

The Location
Geographical coordinates:
28-48-13 S
152-05-10 E
3211 FT

Baldrockistan is situated in Australia, a 2 1/2 hour drive form the coast of Baron Bay or Surfer’s Paradise. Baldrockistan encompasses a total area of 650 hectares. The area is full of canyons, stone arches, echo points and plenty of kangaroos. A natural site of land designed to protect the ecological integrity of ecosystems for present and future generations provides a foundation for spiritual, educational, recreational and visitor opportunities.

Population: 183 citizens, 7 residents, according to current State Register
Population growth: positive
Net migration ratio: not yet known
Sex ratio: 50:50 males/females
Ethnic groups: 60% former Europeans, 30% Aborigines, 10% Asians
Languages: global
Currency: CaSH 50ML
Anthem: title "Save our Souls"
National Food: Maraschino cherries
National day: August 30

Proof of identity (passport) must be submitted upon entering Baldrockistan. A visa is not required. SoS citizenship and passports are available in Baldrockistan, at all SoS embassies, as well as electronically at www.sabotage.at.

The SoS territory, with its natural stock of flora and fauna, already offers accommodations, a restaurant, and camping sites. In the next few years, artists’ studios, small apartments, a museum, and production facilities will be constructed. With an artist in residence program and scholarships, innovative and progressive projects in the fields of art, science and research will be realized on location. These include international conferences and workshops, as well as artistic interventions, architecture, installations, and events consistent with the state and location.

> SoS State Art

State diplomacy is conducted through artistic sovereignty and trans-nationality - art as state as a direct form of independent state art. The “state” is static by definition (both concepts derive from the Latin “status”). In our contemporary understanding the state is a kind of steely skeleton or matrix - constructed so that it can provide structure, grounding, and duration to a constantly changing society. Political scientists and state theorists, however, maintain that the state reached the apex of its development in the seventies and has since been in decline. Yet even at a time when the state is being pushed out of more and more areas of life and continues to lose esteem, it remains the highest existing authority - precisely because the state is more static than other forces affecting our lives. On the other hand, the state is inferior to these highly dynamic forces and lags helplessly behind the newest developments in science and technology.

The German concept of STAATSKUNST (the art of the state) alludes to the fact that in governments of previous centuries the balancing and equalization of manifold factors and powers was in fact understood as an art. The antiquated concept of Staatskunst also has another meaning: It reminds us that in former times the promotion of art and culture was seen as a state goal and rulers recognized that art and culture were essential components of their wealth and capital.

The SoS state is bound to this understanding of "state art" and strives for the development and promotion of its own SoS Art Foundation. In cooperation with various artists, artistic practices, models, visions and utopias, as well as trans-national characteristics, the new conditions of the reality of state and art will become visible. At the opening of each new embassy, new artists will be introduced to the public and admitted to the SoS Art Foundation. Depending on the location of the SoS embassy, local exhibitions and thematic events will be continuously presented. A worldwide exhibition in art locations in various other countries is in planning. The SoS art collection is always publicly accessible.

This text is compiled from different pages of the SoS website, www.sabotage.at/sos.