Well I was glad when your prompt said to use the question as a starting point rather than just trying to answer it because, frankly, I have never heard anyone use the term participant instead of artist, though that is how I prefer to define myself. I assume that the intent of the question is to compare our use of “participants” rather than “audience,” since us socially-engaged artists are just redefining everything we touch! It’s interesting, and I find it a little naive and self-important as well, since those who view and respond internally to visual art are participating too. Basically I think of it as some sort of engagement continuum, starting with putting something on a wall or a plinth or whatever and ending, well, maximum engagement hasn’t yet been reached I think. I have been pretty successful participating in my art project over here at the Berkeley Art Museum the past few months, not art-ing. I built a bunch of looms and people weave on them, and I am around sometimes to tell them how, and the people who want to come in and teach and manage the weaving studio we have built do so. SO I would define my artist role as initiator/participator, and the aesthetic of the things we are making and the relationships we have, is totally open to whatever direction the (not audience) “people doing this who aren’t me” drive it. At first I was going to type this response on paper and send it to you guys, using it as a direct example of a participatory work, since that version would require engagement of others to fulfil my vision, of this reaching you. Mail carriers, and whoever received and re-typed this would be participants. Since I can’t ever do anything before a deadline I am just e-mailing you and when you cut and paste this text you are participating, but totally not an author of the text, as those who maintain the solar panels that power my internet service provider are also not. BUT placing it in your blog context affects it, legitimizing it in some ways and also making it available for critique by anyone who’d read it, so that’s art more than participation since it changes the aesthetic again. Readers who have thoughts about what I’ve written, you are interpreting and responding to it and making decisions, so I say you are making it into the cultural item that it can be, you made it in your mind! Actually I didn’t do anything at all. I think that’s the best kind of interactive, social work, is when people are moved to experience something without any loss of personal agency. This kind of gentle, non-coercive movement is my goal.