Journal I Week 2 Internship w SAM

This time round we had the following readings:

1) David Carrier - The Poetics of the Art Museum

2) Visual Thinking Strategies - Image Selection for Beginning Viewers

3) Iwona Blazwick - Temple, White Cube, Laboratory

4) Henry Jackson Newcomb - The Roles of the Artist & Curator, In Relation to The Exhibiting of Art

These bunch of readings gives a basic understanding of the roles of a curator, the art, the space, and interesting relationships in between them.

In David Carrier's text, he mentioned "in today's dramatic reversal of the relationship between art and its setting, art must accomodate the building". I truly believe that the space around the work is just as important as the work. Be it white space, 'shadowed' space, or the physicality of the building. This is due to the fact that art is being cradled in a vessel known as the building. And the growth of architecture in today also deem it to be a work of art. Hence the need to be critical about the both 'works' is especially emphasized in light of the growth of site-specific installations.

My question to all is how relevant is this to SAM, FP & NUS Museum? I do see differences in the relationship between the art and building with reference to the institutional/political baggages tied to each organisations. This affects the choice of work acquired to a certain extent, which de-prioritizes the accommodation of the building.

While we are talking about spaces, I felt that Henry Jackson Newcomb's text of "The Roles of the Artist & Curator, In Relation to The Exhibiting of Art" does surface some interesting things that I want to highlight. Brancusi did his exhibiting without the gallery, but instead he opened his studio to show his works. We do not see much exhibitions in an artist studio. However one show in 2011 caught my eye - The Art Garage, a show curated by producer, Terence Tan. A hall meant for theatre was decked with artworks (some on floors, walls, and even in their storage baskets). The works made sense of the space around them. It gave the viewer an experiential encounter of not just the works, but also the space. This project proved that we need not be limited to traditional art spaces like formal galleries. Through creative improvisations, spaces can be transformed and made into something completely new. The exhibition itself is an installation. We could take reference from Robert Morris's BodySpaceMotionThings exhibition at the Tate in 1971. In today's context, art cafes are sprouting up in town like 15 Minutes and the Orange Thimble. Such cafes allow one not just to enjoy a cup of good coffee, but enjoy it with art. I do have a exhibition at the Orange Thimble currently which you may want to check out. Probably in the future we could have more art restaurants and maybe even art spas?

Iwona Blazwick mentioned that the "This is Tomorrow" Exhibition held at the Whitechapel Art Gallery in 1956 emphasized the interaction between the art and the viewer. She also drew its comparisons to a department store. I like art exhibitions that engage viewers to a point where he/she 'purchases' something from the experience. The viewership takeaway from the exhibition is good while the exchange between the viewer and the art is even better. The latter has been heavily used in new media arts whereby the the viewer becomes the artwork. This interaction stemmed from the heavy influence of Marshall Mcluhan's famous theory of "The Medium is the Message". I wont go deeply into explaining that conceptual text. But what I do foresee in the next decade is more of such new media works are in the making. What we have seen and experience is just the tip of the iceberg. The gallery's role is to transform art from being a window to another world.

Journal | reflections on the first session at SAM

Why curate? What is the role of the curator?

The role of a curator, or, more essentially, who a curator is, can only be discussed upon an understanding of what it means to curate. Curating has been described as the acts of

1.       ‘caring’ for the art works in all its aspects,

2.       Communicating the significance of a collection to the public

3.       Filtering or selecting, much like the editor of a book. 

(This is of course a non-exhaustive list which could go on to include logistics of exhibition making, talent scouting, writing, art dealership, etc.)

However that being said, Flores, in his article, reminds us that the concept of curating itself can be culturally specific (in Thailand, for instance, the ‘curator is pantarak, which literally means keeper of things’, and ‘some Thai artists had initially thought the curator to be a broker, an assignment akin to marketing careers and commodities.’).

What it means to curate, and the role of the curator in the messy context of the contemporary is no longer clearly defined. Dealing with the commercial is now seemingly part and parcel of curating, especially if the curator is an independent one, and is thus more vulnerable in a ‘survivalist’ setting. Another factor that shapes the role of the curator is the institution within which he/she works in – exhibitions always have to serve to perform the institutional mandate, something that is perhaps most apparent in state museums. 

So, why curate? For me curating allows for a focused narrative to come through, whether this is a narrative that is personal for the curator, or echoes the institution attached to the exhibition, etc. What is important here, is for the curator to be self-reflexive about his/her practice. 

I have failed to cite decently in this short reflection piece based on our first internship session at SAM last week, but I draw references here to Patrick Flores, Past Periphery: Curation in Southeast Asia and

Robert Storr, Show And Tell. Another book I have found very helpful in understanding curating is titled Who Cares? 16 Essays on Curating in Asia (http://booksactually.com/index/mathpaperpress/d/whocares.html)

Journal | Internship at SAM - Session 1 | Contentions and Constraints: What is the role of a Curator?

By Riya de los Reyes

Readings:

Patrick Flores, Past Periphery: Curation in Southeast Asia

Robert Storr, Show and Tell

The first session was casual, candid and informal even though Siuli told us to lay our "burning questions" down on the table from the get-go. The session was mainly about understanding how SAM functions as a government-funded institution, how it negotiates its role as a regional player in contemporary art and how it positions itself as a museum for the public. We got a first-hand account of what a curator at a contemporary art museum does and the duties that the job entails - research, outreach, organization, residency, etc.

What I gathered from the readings and the discussion last Tuesday is that curatorship is "an activity rather than the position, status, or convention [...] identified with the aura of the museum" [Past Periphery, p.10). At the same time, it is also problematic that curating has become a ‘buzzword’, with people throwing the word about and claiming themselves to be curators without properly defining what curating actually means. And this is understandable, since Flores admits that curatorship is a contentious term, on top of being a dexterous practice that – according to Robert Storr – involves self-discipline, selection, respect, representation and ‘art diplomacy’.

·         Understanding Curatorial Practice in Southeast Asia

In Past Periphery: Curation in Southeast Asia, Flores outlines how the curating of contemporary art has evolved in Southeast Asia, particularly in Thailand and Indonesia. The article also delineates “the shift from the modern to the contemporary” in Southeast Asia, such that curators consequently “serve[d] as conduits of artworks and careers, facilitating exchange between the art institutions, the artists and the public.”

I initially found the article to be rather dense (art history-ish) but upon close-reading, I noted that Flores tended to first put forward generic assumptions most people probably have concerning what curating is about and then proceeds to expound on ‘curatorship’ situated in the Southeast Asian context. He is basically trying to clarify these assumptions based on his knowledge of how curatorship of contemporary art has evolved in the region – to which he concludes that:

…the motivations of curators and the impulse of their practice:

1. extension of creative activity and theoretical/discursive reflection;

2. art education and communication to the public on contemporary art;

3. institutional power; and

4. professional development. (see p. 19)

·         What is contemporary art? Why curate contemporary art?

The curation of contemporary art functions as a means to bridge the generational conflict that arises “with the shift from the modern to the contemporary”. Flores notes Apinan Poshyananda’s observation of the “dynamism” shared by the contemporary and culture:“‘culture’ whose root defined as developing force...Different generations hold different definitions of ‘contemporary culture’. I am saying that being extreme is like perceiving culture from the perspective of a seventy-year-old versus seventeen-year-old individuals. Although coming from different circles, there must be some similarities when the two meet. [...] As a matter of fact, they should socialize and mix since they do live in the same period and society.”

The contemporary means “being in the same period of time” in the same way one might call peers within one’s age bracket as his/her ‘contemporaries’. This definition reflects continuity/change, particularly because what was considered contemporary years ago “was pretty much different from today”. The contemporary, therefore, is a critique of the modern... but very quickly and quite ironically can become self-conscious/self-critical the moment (and this is inevitable) a “new contemporary” replaces the incumbent. It is characterized by a shifting fluidity that exposes the dynamism – but also the fickleness – of the ‘here and now’.

But why bridge this generational conflict? Flores highlights “the link between the curation of contemporary art and the politics of heritage, democracy and globalization”. The contemporary discourse is inevitably intertwined with “issues of modernity and identity, which had been ratified quite strenously by nation-building projects in Southeast Asia from the sixties through the eighties.” This remains pertinent, with many Southeast Asian nations still uncertain – if not, in contention or in constant negotiation – of what ‘nationhood’, ‘heritage’ and ‘identity’ really means.

To explain contemporary art, Flores quotes Jim Supangkat:

...a very basic principle of contemporary art: to bring into awareness that the paradigm of world art in a modernist point of view, that we have been familiar with us so far, was based on a limited reality.

·         Curatorial Roles: Selector and ‘Exhibition-maker’

Flores and Storr similarly defined the curator as a selector, with the former distinguishing the curator from merely being ‘a keeper of things’ (also see Wikipedia entry about Curator) and the latter describing the curator as an‘exhibition-maker’. During our trip to the NUS Museum two weeks ago, Mustafa related his encounter with a woman who wrote a letter to the newspaper about a document featured in the exhibit (I can’t remember what the document was exactly but it’s something to do with the British returning to Singapore after the war). She became the keeper, the ‘guardian’ of that document. The curator –in this case, Mustafa – was not a ‘keeper’, but rather the ‘selector’ who consciously decided to include the document in the Camping and Tramping... exhibit.

Flores cites the art historian, John Clark, regarding the role of the curator: “selector; thinker; mediator of thought; cohort provider; talent scout; theatrical agent; journalist; market maker; cultural provocateur, prototype designer, entrepreneur”. Siuli, for instance, informed us of her role in choosing upcoming artists through the President's Young Talents (PYT) platform, which was apparently the brainchild of Ahmad from NUS Museum. Curators judge artworks, as well as artists – their techniques/craftmanship, the way they communicate their artwork and also how they prove their passion for their work. The curator chooses to place value on certain artworks, but also determines the value of the artist – effectively, promoting “a particular style of thought, through the dissemination of knowledge”. Curators therefore “validate the art in ciculation” (i.e., influence the ‘zeitgeist’ in contemporary art), and decide what qualifies as valuable artworks and who personifies a dedicated/deserving artist.

In his article, Storr likens the curator to an editor (which, of course, struck me immediately since I work in a publishing house). The curator as an ‘exhibition-maker’ is “the first, most critical reviewer in the way that a good editor is the first, most critical reader”. Storr emphasized two important 'values' of the curator/selector/exhibition-maker: Self-Discipline and Art Diplomacy. The curator has to negotiate the interests of the institution and the artists, so he/she has to make the call with regards to, say, the feasibility of the exhibition, and also to 'not give in to pressures' should artistic merit be in opposition with institutional interests. Quoting Siuli (though not in so many words), "As a curator, and particularly when judging/interpreting art or negotiating the institution's or artist's demands, you need to find/have found your 'core'/your own voice."

·         Curatorial Responsibilities: Representation and Respect

As such, I would like to bring up the points that I found most important and definitely relevant to 'finding one's own voice' as a curator - i.e. Representation and Respect.

i. Towards the artists and their artwork

Within the Southeast Asian context, Flores stresses that - as representatives of the artists - the curator "intervenes in making the voices of the artists heard, of speaking on their behalf in the global art world's main language, which is English, or serving as informant of foreign curators who roam the world for prospective talent."

Storr, on the other hand, believes that - as representatives of the artists - the curator is tasked to explain the artistic work by "revealing itself" (ie. 'showing', as opposed to 'telling') in and through the exhibition. Selecting and ascribing value to their work are not the only ways through which a curator gives an artist respect. He/She must be able to give "friendly skepticism" and be able to refuse (and "backed by clearly articulated reasons") the artist's suggestions, for instance, if they would be unfeasible/detrimental to the 'success' of the exhibition. Being critical, provided done with a generative/productive effect, is an expression of 'care'/cure/compassion to spot shortcomings and provoke discourse on how something might be improved.

ii. Towards the public

For a curator working in a public institution, he/she is supposed to represent the interests of the public and therefore required to treat the public with what Storr termed “democratic respect”. The exhibit catalogue, for instance, should neither contain ‘jargons’ nor should it bear the tone of ‘talking down’ to the reader but at the same time refrain from oversimplifying difficult issues.

...it is plain both as a practical matter and as a matter of principle that the ultimate decisions are made by the viewer. The job of the exhibition-maker is to do all that can be done so that those decisions will be well-informed, rooted in perception and, in a positive sense, inconclusive.

“Inconclusive” here means that the exhibition has to remain ‘open-ended’ as a space for discovery. The curator should not explain away or dictate the message/meaning of the exhibition, but rather craft the exhibit such that viewer thinks of it “as the beginning of a renewable acquaintance with someone or something that will take a long time to know well and whom one will never know completely.” (p. 27, Show and Tell)

By extension, Flores suggests that the contemporary art museum should be seen “in terms of either a ‘lure’ or an ‘activator’. Lure because it guarantees visibility (tourism, media, investment) for the locality in which it is situated and activator because it stimulates a new urban system”. He also highlights the tendencies of Southeast Asian contemporary art curators to ensure a ‘democratic’ representation of the region’s artwork and artistic community, so as to veer away from Supangkat’s assessment that modernity was based on a “limited reality”.

Conclusion/Comments

Although curatorship is a contentious term ("to curate is not the exclusive privilege of curators"), its role can be defined. It is important to anticipate what the viewer expects from the exhibit - to know how best to represent artworks and artists in an exhibition and how much the artwork 'reveals itself' to its viewer, and I guess also consider the institution's 'target audience' (in SAM's case, the public). The curator must balance the artistic expressions with the public's potential responses to them.

This also leads to understanding the different institutional intent influencing the character and nature of exhibitions, as well as how exhibitions engage its viewer. SAM apparently prefers to 'seduce' the viewer ("to lay the string that marks a trail in and out" - see Show and Tell, p. 25) rather than overwhelming them with shocking/'difficult' art that would confuse or turn off the viewer.

Over dinner, I talked about my love for fabrics (my mother used to run a dress-making business when I was younger). I initially disliked Indonesian batik (I preferred Malaysian batik). However, I developed an interest in it after my recent trip to a museum in Surakarta where I saw different types of Batik (e.g. batik Cina, different batik patterns denoting status, places, etc.) I lamented, "But I feel like there are only so many ways one can exhibit textiles..."

Siuli then informed me about Samantha Tio's recent exhibit: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/arts/handpainted-batik-makes-its-mark-on-fine-art-photography/501198. Admittedly, I have mainly seen exhibitions done by museums and therefore would like to explore and be exposed to how other art galleries or curating platforms (aside from museums) display different types of exhibits -- "to seek other perspectives and to find/maintain my own voice" as an aspiring curator.

Journal I Internship @ SAM

Our first internship session was mainly a conversation about the workings of SAM and the issues public institutions face in negotiating the various pressures from other government bodies. It was certainly an insightful dialogue on the role and responsibilities public museums have to both its audience and the ethos of contemporary art. One memorable takeaway for me was that curators of such institutions will have to be flexible in navigating through the various channels and parties that exert some form of power over the institution, but always remain firm in their personal and professional principles- "the core". Some food for thought!

Some thoughts about the readings given:

In a nutshell, Patrick Flores's article attempts to characterise and situate curation in Southeast Asia, while Robert Storr's piece focuses on instructing the curator of art on the dos and don'ts of exhibition making.

One illuminating point brought out by Flores is that the curator of today has to be firmly plugged into the contemporary. Now this begs the question, what is the contemporary? It is something which I find some difficulty in defining perhaps because its parameters are constantly changing, its meaning and interpretation constantly in flux. Flores describes the contemporary system as being created as it is practiced:

...the state of contemporary art is rather fluid, and given the uneven and asymmetrical modes by which modernity had taken root in these art worlds, certain practices and roles are practically makeshift, improvised and run on idiosyncratic rationality; the rules in the field are rather pliant, continuously modified by the practice of curators whose very practice creates a system, which had not existed before their sorties into this arena.

I think this brings some insight to the curator's position in the cultural sphere. We've discussed about the power the curator has in validating art through selecting and articulating. As a result, museums, alternative spaces and independent galleries etc create an ecosystem that generates and regenerates the art world as we see it, and is therefore part of the production of contemporary culture. It reveals to me, then, that the curator doesn't only need to be plugged into the contemporary, but s/he is at the forefront of creating aesthetic standards through interrogating conditions of the contemporary man:

Curation as an inventive mediation that produces exhibitions, events, careers, and values and the curator as an agent who actively selects and represents these within the social world of art becomes a compass that guides us as we navigate the vast realms of what is only vaguely invoked as the contemporary.

In other words, I think one can say that the curator creates the contemporary while being part of it. As a conduit of culture, the curator identifies and presents social notions, and also creates recombinant ways of seeing art and the world.

For Storr, he sharply states that the curator/exhibitioner is not an artist, but is a mediator, an advisor, a channel and a translator of ideas all at once. He strongly stresses the responsibility and obligation the curator has to the artist, the institution and the public. I think Storr refers to the curator largely as the middleman who is required to ensure that exhibitions do what they should with everyone's needs being met.

I think Storr's point that "the most important contract of all exists between the exhibition-maker and the public" is rather important, especially when it involves public institutions. It reminds me of what Flores said in his lecture that the curator is also very much a "patient" to his/her audience, and that the art and the intentions behind its presentation loses value if not rightly communicated. While there is necessity to ensure that shows remain open-ended, the curator ought to bear in mind how it will be received. As put by Storr:

...it is plain both as a practical matter and as a matter of principle that the ultimate decisions are made by the viewer. The job of the exhibition-maker is to do all that can be done so that those decisions will be well informed, rooted in perception and, in a positive sense, inconclusive.

The curator thus has to be sensitive to the tensions that underlie the meaning of their shows, making sure that the audiences remain enthralled and also have the space to conceive their own responses. I believe that is where the challenge for the curator lies.



Stef

Journal I Day 1 Internship with SAM

Reading Material - "PAST PERIPHERY: CURATION IN SEA", Patrick D. Flores

Some thoughts I have in mind wrt this reading that we failed to discuss due to our overflowing dialogue.

1) It is not helpful to divide the 'independent' and 'institutional' curators. Patrick mentioned that curators that move in and out of both respective contexts carve a peculiar space within which they practice curation and break through the membranes of the art world. However in our context, there isnt much opportunities for curators to move in and out of the 'independent' and 'institutions'. It is a said achievement for one to progress from the former to the latter. But I am curious to know what incentives are present for him/her to move the opposite direction?

The exchange of ideas in such a movement combines both of them into a whole sphere of curatorial positions that is independent of institutional politics, notions of authority. This progression has the potential to allow art to manifest itself into a purer and saturated form - one that is true to its form and free from political restrains.


2) The 4 curator tendencies are someone similar to artistic tendencies - Past exotic artscape, renewal of tradition, advocacy, and search for the new. What I like about such similarities is the curatorial community of artists as curators, and curators as artists. Such tendencies serve as a base starting point for a whole progression of ideas and inspiration to be augmented through a conceptual discourse and eventually evolving into a new work(artist) and a new angle or position(curator).


3) The future of curation may move beyond found and intangible spaces. In some situations, curators are actually just asked to write curatorial introductions for a particular collection of ideas or narratives. Their roles will supersede exhibitionary practices while increasingly becoming more sought after in approaching unique angles into ways of seeing things. This is due to the fact that many other current roles of curation has the potential to be 'substituted', but we cant possibly substitute the curators ideas.


Daryl

phase 2. Internship

 PROGRAMME         

________

Dates
13 August- 2 November 2012 (12 weeks)

NUS Museum I   Thursday 5-8pm
Singapore Art Museum  I   Tuesday 6-8pm and/or Thursday 6-8pm
Future Perfect  I   Wednesday 5-7pm and/or Friday 5-7pm

(The internship is not a full-time commitment. It will require a minimum of 3-5 hours/ week contact-time with the respective institutions' curator-mentor. However it is to be noted that you may be expected to meet outside official hours to work on assigned projects.)

Concept
With the completion of the workshop, programme participants will embark on a 3-month Internship programme where they will be afforded the opportunity to work closely with practitioners across different spectrums of the arts and heritage industry, developing practical work skills to build upon the theoretical foundations from the workshop. Participants will get to join in on-going work and develop a new project under the auspices of the institution, and according to its mandate.

Participating Institutions

         NUS Museum's mission is to actively facilitate the intellectual and cultural life of the NUS 
         community. Focusing primarily but not exclusively on Southeast Asian art and culture, the   
         Museum contributes to and facilitates the production, reception, and preservation of 
         knowledge through collections development and curatorial practice, developing  
         partnerships within NUS, the cultural and heritage industry, and the global knowledge 
         community.

         Singapore Art Museum (SAM) advocates and presents contemporary art practices of 
         Singapore and the Southeast Asian region. Opened in January 1996 as a museum 
         under the National Heritage Board of Singapore, SAM has amassed one of the world's 
         largest public collections of modern and contemporary Southeast Asian artworks, with a 
         growing component in international contemporary art. Since 2009, SAM has focused its 
         programming and collections development initiatives around contemporary Southeast 
         Asian art, and art practices. Through strategic alliances with arts and cultural institutions 
         and community organisations, SAM facilitates visual arts education, exchange, research 
         and development within the region and internationally. SAM also organised the 
         Singapore Biennale 2011.

          Future Perfect works with an international roster of contemporary artists. With extensive 
          knowledge and experience in the Asian region and beyond, Future Perfect provides 
          international promotion and representation for contemporary artists, as well as research 
          and advice for collectors, institutions and curators. The gallery boasts extensive 
          international networks in Europe, Australia and Southeast Asia. It is committed to 
          advancing the practice of the most dynamic and innovative contemporary artists, working 
          across a wide range of traditional and non-traditional media.

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