Artists Embrace Bureaucratic Roles as Administrative Systems Become Artistic Medium

Since the 1960s and 1970s, artists have increasingly taken on bureaucratic positions, utilizing administrative frameworks as both inspiration and medium. Tehching Hsieh's One Year Performance (1980-1981) required him to punch a clock every hour. In 1965, Barbara T. Smith utilized a Xerox machine, while in 1977, Mierle Laderman Ukeles became the de facto artist in residence at the New York Sanitation Department. Stephen Willats initiated the West London Social Resource Project in 1972. The Artist Placement Group, founded by Barbara Steveni in 1965, integrated artists into corporate settings. Fernando García-Dory's Inland project (2009) addresses themes of food and agriculture, and Ellie Harrison's initiatives include The Glasgow Effect (2016) and campaigns such as Bring Back British Rail. This movement mirrors changes in the arts and postindustrial society.