Friends
Apologies for my late arrival in this forum -- and many thanks to Trebor for helping with my subscription problems. I thought I would post a description of my interests in a  workshop/brainstorming session, responses are greatly appreciated.
The Elastic Test Project began as an exploration of immigration law in the US – both the Immigration and Nationality Act, which defines the categories of citizen, foreigner and the criteria for “naturalization”, as well as the interpretation of this text in the courts. We were considering the ways in which the normalizing impulse articulated in the law becomes negotiated or performed through the process of naturalization. For instance, “good moral character” is one of the main criteria for naturalization in the US, which then must be interpreted by the courts – we asked ourselves what is the standard against which such criteria are tested and measured, how is the normative citizen subject imagined and performed through the category of foreigner, how can one intervene in this process etc.
Given that we are negotiating standards of the collective imaginary, the project is collaborative in nature. We try  to develop and execute performative "naturalization tests" in various countries and locations (so far Johannesburg South Africa, Houston US and Alberta Canada, with the next installment in the UK).
We have tried to develop different approaches to collaboration: between the two artists who tend to the project, various local institutions, the venues as a marked places, workshop groups who help develop the tests (identified as citizens and immigrants).
In Buffalo I'm hoping to speak to some of you about our method, particularly as it relates to critical intervention - our main concern is how to collaborate with various groups and yet not "play nice" in terms of dominant discourse (we are suspicious of the "integration" model so prevalent in much work involving displaced populations). Some of our  workshop methods involve play and improvisation to help establish the structure of the tests. We are always seeking new collaborators, ideas for how to expand the project, and new channels for collaboration: how could such a location-specific practice engage media technologies or participate in social networks that are trans-local? Though each installment is very thoroughly anchored in local practice, the deliberate movement from one country to another is intended to more broadly examine issues of migration and naturalization globally. I would be most interested in suggestions of how to connect various types of located practice through global networks.Please see
www.elastictest.com
the particular installment we will use as a starting point is briefly documented at
http://elastictest.com/cangallery/canpics1.html
We have developed the website so far simply as an archive of the project, and are looking for ways to expand on this.
I look forward to meeting you in Buffalo,
Rozalinda Borcila
Romania/US