Potlatch

Often cited example of the tribal Gift Economy

Definition

From the Wikipedia:

"The potlatch is a festival or ceremony practiced among Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast. At these gatherings a family or hereditary leader hosts guests in their family's house and hold a feast for their guests. The main purpose of the potlatch is the re-distribution and reciprocity of wealth." (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potlatch)

Potlatch (1954-57)

The bulletin Potlatch appeared twenty-seven times, between 22 June 1954 and 5 November 1957. It was numbered from 1 to 29, with the bulletin dated 17 August 1954 being a triple issue (9, 10, 11). A weekly until this triple issue, Potlatch became a monthly upon its 12th issue.

Potlatch was successively edited by Andre-Frank Conord (#1-8), Mohamed Dahou (#9-18), Gil J Wolman (#19), again by Mohamed Dahou (#20-22) and Jacques Fillon (#23-24). These last issues no longer mentioned the principal person who was responsible for them. Starting from #26, it "ceased to be published monthly."

Potlatch presented itself as the "information bulletin of the French group of the Lettrist International" (#1-21), then as the "information bulletin of the Lettrist International" (#22-29). The Lettrist International was the organization of the "Lettrist Left," which in 1952 imposed a split in the "Lettrist" artistic avant-garde, and from that moment exploded it.

Potlatch was sent gratuitously to addresses chosen by its editors, and to several people who asked to receive it. It was never sold. In its first issue, Potlatch was printed in 50 copies. At the end, its print-run, through constant increase, reached 400 or perhaps even 500 copies. Precursor to what became called "pirate publishing" [l'edition sauvage] around 1970, but truer and more rigorous in its rejection of market relations, Potlatch -- obeying its title -- was only given away for free during the time it was published.

The strategic intention of Potlatch was to create certain liaisons to constitute a new movement, which was to be -- then and there -- a reunification of avant-garde cultural creation and the revolutionary critique of society. In 1957, the Situationist International effectively formed on such a basis. One will recognize situationist themes as already present here, in the lapidary formulations demanded by this special means of communication.

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