Article I: Name
The name of this organization shall be Guerilla Art Liberation Lives (commonly abbreviated “GALL”).
Article II: Purpose
GALL is about redefining what art is and what an audience does. Somewhere in the course of human history, art has been separated from its audience. Sculptures now stagnate in museum instead of living in common parks. Poems and novels are imprisoned by publishing companies to serve a life sentence on a book shelf – thrown aside by their authors like orphaned children, only calling upon them when they need some cash.
In ancient Greece and Rome, audience members were encouraged to sneer and curse at characters (and sometimes actors) whom they didn’t like, and cheer and laud characters whom they did. Ovid, Vergil and Homer wrote their poetry for the sake of performing it on street corners or in people’s houses for change, not to be locked away between the pages of some aging book.
GALL has come to bring art back to life, to say that the audience is just as important to the art as the so-bedubbed “artist.” We are not vessels; we are not prophets; we are merely instigators of artistic thought.
Article III: Membership
GALL shall be open to all full-time and part-time students, including BLS students as well as interested faculty, staff and members of the Fredericksburg community. The club does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, physical disability, national origin, political affiliation, marital status, sexual orientation, sex, gender, age, talent, or weird hairstyle.
Article IV: Officers
Section I: Positions and Appointment:
The officers of GALL shall include the President, Vice President, and Bookkeeper. Officers shall be chosen and trained by the former officers of the club on the basis of interest and dedication to the club the spring semester before their term ends. Officers shall retain their position until the end of their junior year. During an officer’s senior year, he or she becomes an executive elder. The duty of the executive elders is to demonstrate the responsibilities of the office which they hold for the fall semester and oversee the activities of the new executive officer and answer any questions and help with any problems that might arise over the course of the spring semester.
Section II: Duties
- President: Oversees all projects and manages schedules. Acts as a liaison between the administration and the club as well as a liaison between performers and other crew.
- Vice President: Responsible for knowing everything the President knows and, in the President’s absence, fills in the duties of the President. Also, would take over the President’s duties were the President to step down.
- Bookkeeper: In charge of taking inventory of all club projects as well as keeping record of all club activities, past, present, and future.
Section III: Qualifications
All members of the Executive Board:
- Must maintain a GPA of at least 2.00 each semester
- Must be a full-time student
Section IV: Attendance
Officers are required to attend all group meetings of GALL, unless a valid excuse is given a day in advance. Officers are also required to in some way participate in at least four performances, and attend at least three of which they are not directly involved.
Article V: Leadership
The goal of the club is to pursue public projects in the arts. As well, the intent of the club is not to create a stifling hierarchy to direct projects to a certain goal. That said, leadership for each project will be determined by the President on a project-by-project basis.
These leaders will be responsible for selecting the cast and crew they need, and keeping the Executive Board up-to-date on the progress of the project.
Article VI: Amendments
Any club members may propose an amendment to the GALL constitution. In order for an amendment to be passed, it must be unopposed in group vote. Amendments may be repealed by unanimous vote at the beginning of the semester or based upon relevant UMW policy change.
Amendment I
Club members must carry a marker at all times in order to potentially mark themselves as a performer.
- When in a performance, players must all mark a visible part of their body, clearly, with the word “GALL” written in legible, capital letters.
- No club member or audience member is required to participate unwillingly in a performance.
Amendment II
Performers must abide by all University provisions. The club does not assume responsibility for any damages, public or private.
- In the event of damages, responsible students are required to take appropriate blame.
- Individuals, not the club, are responsible for the content of their performances and gauging their audience.
Amendment III
Funding for each performance will be considered on a monthly basis, unless urgency assures thrift.
- Each funding request will be compiled on the second meeting of every month.
- Each semester, the Executive Board will compile a spending limit for the group as a whole and the spending limit for each performance. The remaining budget money will be announced the first meeting of every month.
Amendment IV
In the interest of protecting the UMW student and faculty population, art containing the following content must be requested by the club President:
- Profanity, obscenity, hate speech, etc.
- Stage combat
- Nudity (whole or partial)
- Public acts of pseudo-vandalism (e.g., giving a statue a hat to wear)
- 4 or more performers
- Amplification equipment
- Fake drug use
- Sexual acts
- Illicit or suspicious activity
Amendment V
No performance’s message shall necessarily reflect the stance of the club as a whole.
- Projects may be set up in tandem with other clubs.
- No performer may be coerced into representing a club that he or she does not want to.
Amendment VI
No fliers shall be made to advertise club meetings.
- The primary means of spreading word about GALL meetings shall be through pamphlets and word of mouth
- Individual events which require reservation for outside performers (poetry slams, jam sessions, etc.) may be advertised with fliers
Article VII: Mission Statement
GALL's mission is to support the arts in all forms in both the Mary Washington community and the City of Fredericksburg. GALL exists to break down the barriers separating art from its audience through means of street theatre, impromptu art, and planned performance events. GALL also intends to help other clubs on campus spread their message through more creative and direct means.
