Tontine Exhibition Statement 2000 For the purposes of this exhibition, we have adapted the term “tontine” (tawn-teen´), which Merriam-Webster defines as “a joint financial arrangement whereby the participants usually contribute equally to a prize that is awarded entirely to the participant who survives all the others.” Unlike the original definition would suggest, our pact is not so much about financial gain as it is about ethical survival. As artists, we use the term to establish a richer prize for the Tontine: the promotion of collective artistic ideals beyond our individual subsistence. We believe that any ground laid to this point in history is ours to surmount, an artistic legacy to which we extend our pact. It exists so that its survivors may flourish. Tontine is an exhibition which examines our methodologies. It explores the extent of our affinities and bonds as artists, commonalities which have developed during the first decade of our friendship. Tontine affirms our mutual commitment to many concepts. We value mystery in art. We honor pattern, sensation, experience, intuition and knowledge equally. We reject any treatise that is not holistic in its treatment of history. We scavenge incongruities, disparities, and contradictions. We regard process and product as part of a continuum. We embrace context along with spontaneity. We seek the visual equivalent of alchemical transformation. We consider this Tontine an unimpeachable pact. Todd Bartel, Bo Joseph, Michael Oatman, James Scott Go To: Tontine Exhbition