individual/organization

Who are the individuals and who are the organizations? It’s not rare they are just the same party in our art world. S/he is an artist or curator and COULD BE also an art space. This oneself just so often has a symbiotic relationship with an organization. So an art space in Asia can think, act and create like a person. An art practitioner at the same time can be regarded as an organization simply as granted, representing a thought, a movement or a trend for others.

After all, individualism in Asia could hardly be anything highly regarded in the tradition, or maybe even in our modern society. When making any telephone inquiry, the receptionist would most likely ask from which company you are. It seems that individuals are simply not expected to take responsibility as organizations. If they are recognized as such, they will definitely be highly respected.

Perhaps the art world might be slightly different as the history of art is per se a history of individuals in spite of its complementary part of institutions like art groups, movements, trends and museums. Small organizations are allowed to be not so organized like loose groups of individual artists, at the same time attaining importance in contemporary art development as an institution especially where the establishment is either too old or simply not existing.

It’s a privilege for art practitioners to wear different hats within this context who are as individuals never too small and as organizations never too big.