Photograph by Xyza Cruz Bacani, photographer with a background in HK domestic work, featured in Para Site public program, Afterwork, March 2016.
Today's entry come's after a moment of contemplation. Now that the conference and workshop is finally over, one finds time to take in and digest the past few days.
In the sessions, discussion of words like, “professional,” and “industry” are daunting terminologies to most. When words are paired, or placed together like “creative-industry” or “professional-training,” it makes one think what it means to industrialize "creativity," or professionalize "curatorial work," same goes for the management of art, when one says art manager, How exactly do you "manage" and why do you put on this troubling role? It get's lost within the path towards the goal which is basically support for art production, and the nurturing of one's capacity to respond in an artistic and critical way.
Discussion within a safe space.
A lot of discussions have been put in the terminologies and structures of power that puts one's place farther and farther from instinctively acting on or responding to our everyday. This "industry," this "professionalized practice," was at question. A sense of openness and continued discussion was put on the table, during breaks, while eating, even at the moment of goodbyes, one further suggests for more discussion by recommending talks over desert.
I've been put into too many workshops in seeing that the chemistry between the participants really matter if one aims to come up with something productive. In this year's case, an initial prompt for openness, exchange and exploration is put forward and synergized by the twelve inspiring participants.
Continuing discussion during break.
Everyone and no one wants to be a curator. The position comes in a hesitant and daunting embrace. Because of the role that it has imposed in the past years - people are re-evaluating, doubtful and hands-off.
Curatorship has been linked in navigating around the art field via the people you know, your network, the same academic lingua franca, the subjective aims, the folded-arm pose, the diplomacy, the hierarchy, the airline footprint- all things unnecessary and alienating. Nowadays, it's a trend for hard-workers in the field to down-play, de-skill and prefer to be called producer, organizer, coordinator, researcher, mediator, facilitator, technician and collaborator.
When asked about the impact of the workshop, workshop participant Mahan Moalemi (Tehran) responded: “For me it was basically a sneak peak into the future. The so called young professionals can enjoy the luxury of moving around for a while before having to stick to official commitments. Therefore efforts that institutions like Para Site make toward making this movement possible is extremely valuable. A taste of the system that runs the art world made me question many of my preconceptions, and also brought me fresh insights into future possibilities, into what kind of position I can obtain and what kind of role I can take on. This was a privilege, one I will always remind myself of.”
Dysfunction No. 3, a guerilla action in Wuchang St. to disrupt elections in Taiwan, 1983. Organized by Chen Chieh-Jen.
An illuminating talk comes to mind from one of the conference days, the presentation of Amy Cheng, curator and writer based in Taipei and co-founder of independent art space, TheCube Project. Amy discussed a historical line to rethink the history of curatorial work in Taiwan.
Workshop participant Shormi Ahmed (Hong Kong) was able to speak personally to Amy Cheng and shares, “I had a chat with Amy over smoke and we talked about the ‘curatorial consciousness’ in Taiwan before the official history of curatorship. During her presentation I thought she was trying to categorise the artist rebellion/resistance in the curator category, however, in her chat she explained that that was not her intention. I quite like the idea of ‘curatorial consciousness’ as a starting point of exploration rather than a definitive term.”
Amy Cheng defines curatorial work in Taiwan according to the local reality, a frame-breaking action with independent consciousness. Further mapping out the social and historical context of Taiwan, and formative events of actions which include: Guerilla action, Dysfunction No. 3 (an action in Wuchang St. to disrupt elections), Nuclear waste protest, Driving Evil Sprits off Lanyu Island, Wild Lily Student Movement (noise movement in the form of counter culture), Broken Life Festival and many other actions and events apart from the biennial curatorial developments.
Students occupy today’s Liberty Square in March 1990 during the Wild Lily student movement.
She provides that the beginning of curatorial work and the most potent ones are the anti-pedagogical nodes and actions. She shares, “If we are to contemplate and establish the contemporary context of curating in Taiwan, I truly believe that the resistant and grassroots guerila movements involved outside the context of the art system are really most essential part that we should not ignore.” During the plenary discussion, Anthony Yung of Asia Art Archive commented that he noticed Taiwan has a very specific and elevated perception of curation and this can also be see through the publications produced in Taiwan in the history of curatorship and in Amy’s presentation on the value of curatorship and its relationship to guerrilla movements.
In one of the workshops with Tirdad Zolghadr, he speaks of an artist/curator/organizer group in Bandung who was not only contemplating on the subaltern, but actually got rid of it by speaking from within it, as a standpoint. Freya Chou of Para Site openly talked about her experience in the realm of curatorship and used the Taipei Biennale as a battleground - from the beginning, a mentor she worked with, emphasized the service to, “art” - and no one else. One member of the workshop summarized curatorship as both pedagogical but can also be emotional - value systems relating to humanity, can be primal but integral.
One is prompted to contemplate, if, we are in this field to contribute to the formation of an institution, a nation, or to nurture your peers’ ideas. Are we here to respond to integral issues, or confront ones innate capacity for art? To contribute to the field is one thing - but the manner in which you do it, is key.
You produce, organize, coordinate, curate, in a manner of speaking all in similar nodes, but it's the aims and goals that mark the difference. Perhaps one must have a daily reminder that, the aims and goals of what you do, can be as simple and as primal as - “art” itself, and nothing else.
Even in the midst of sharing a meal, the group decided to continue conversations. Undoubtedly, discussions will go on even after the workshop – to tinker, to ponder, to develop, to question, to talk, like conceptual artist Roberto Chabet had once said, “To Be Continued”…
