Back to 1997, alternative spaces, About Studio/About Café and Project 304 were prominent in the Bangkok art scene. By giving young artists and art students opportunities to show their work in public spaces, these so-called alternative spaces, at first glance, appeared as an attempt to rupture with the.established institutions. Upon closer inspection, however, revealed a notion that alternative space was, in fact, a conduit employed to provide recognition for the minority and to exclude the existing order of the established. In other words, they operated with great similarity to the existing authority albeit different benefactors.
Alternative spaces were established as an important instrument in creating rupture to the established order that is the authority. However, these spaces gradually took upon themselves the very authoritative role they originally negated.
1. The main authority of art institution from outside
Relevant example can be seen in “City on the Move” project that invited international curators and art directors including Hans Urich Obrist, Hou Hanru,and also other project created by Nicolas Baurriaud, and Nathalie Bouton to organize public art projects and events in Bangkok in collaboration with the above mentioned alternative spaces.
2. The authority of art institution within
Alternative spaces while provided spaces for young and emerging artists also manipulated their otherness and differences by including the previously excluded to the whole, thus, adding to the existing order instead of creating new order.
Our proposal for an art organization/institution, therefore, is to create new order through the rupture, within the idea of fidelity to the truth, to the existing order i.e. the existing idea of art institution. New order is the universal criteria determined through fidelity to singular truth-event not the transcendental or the undeniable truth. Singular and Universal to time not specific to space and it can’t compare to difference time because it has its own truth.
In this sense, time is Universal since it is there for everybody to take upon in any given event; and truth is Singular for each person has their own version of truth even when they share the same experience. So time and event is the important reason to think about how to invent art organization not a space. It is this spirit of imagination, this incalculable excess of the new that we cannot fully determine but wish to have fidelity upon.
Our project is called “AS YET UNNAMED.”
For more information, please visit
www.asyet.org
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Thursday, July 3, 2008
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.
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.
organ
when we start we don't have any formula, we're more focus on what we want to do rather than the structure. after several years, it's still like that, content or the need first and the structure will follow in 'try and error' mode. we practicing the structure, the way we work together rather than just filling the structure. may be because we don't really believe there would be a best structure. but in the same time we might aware that losing the structure in more pretentious way is just too easy and can be boring.
because rules made to be broken anyway, so there should be a rule.
organization should be an act of survival, otherwise it will lose the tension, creativity and sense of humor. it can be a fun hierarchical structure or smartly chaotic.
got this from wikipedia:
"Total Football" is the label for an influential theory of tactical soccer pioneered by the Dutch.
In Total Football, a player who moves out of his position is replaced by another from his team, thus retaining the team's intended organizational structure. In this fluid system, no player is fixed in his nominal role; anyone can be successively an attacker, a midfielder and a defender.
Total Football's tactical success depends largely on the adaptability of each footballer within the team, in particular their ability to quickly change positions depending on the situation. The theory requires players to be comfortable in multiple positions, hence it puts high technical and physical demands on them.
thanks to meneer rinus michels .....
because rules made to be broken anyway, so there should be a rule.
organization should be an act of survival, otherwise it will lose the tension, creativity and sense of humor. it can be a fun hierarchical structure or smartly chaotic.
got this from wikipedia:
"Total Football" is the label for an influential theory of tactical soccer pioneered by the Dutch.
In Total Football, a player who moves out of his position is replaced by another from his team, thus retaining the team's intended organizational structure. In this fluid system, no player is fixed in his nominal role; anyone can be successively an attacker, a midfielder and a defender.
Total Football's tactical success depends largely on the adaptability of each footballer within the team, in particular their ability to quickly change positions depending on the situation. The theory requires players to be comfortable in multiple positions, hence it puts high technical and physical demands on them.
thanks to meneer rinus michels .....
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
lee kit - sealed
Sealed (moment at home) 2008
Hand-painted tape, readymade, video.
Dimension variable
Hand-painted tape, readymade, video.
Dimension variable
1. I want to make use of some domestic scene as a metaphor to organization, or institution. Every piece of furniture has at least, a function and its structure. Every corner or places at home have its function and structure, or rules to use according to the people living in. Just like any organizations in the world, have a function, structures and rules.
2. Policemen will sealed a crime scene with tape and freeze the locale. The locale's original function and rules are temporarily stopped. I want to make some tape which is similar to those policemen used to seal a place, but with something like 'This is more than I wanted.' hand-painted / printed on it instead of 'Police'. The 'locale', or the structure is sealed with an individual's comment instead of a name that represented another institution. The locales and the furniture are sealed like goods.
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Updated title and synopsis
On July 6 & 7, there will be a conference related to the GZT in Hong Kong. Tobias and me will do a brief introduction of our project. We have updated the title as Organizing Mutation. Below is the synopsis. Comments are welcome.
How do we think about (self) organization and what does it mean in today’s art world in Asia? Trying to analyze this question, we planned a three day workshop in Hong Kong, Shenzhen and Guangzhou, to bring together twelve art-workers from different Asian countries to discuss the idea of organization. In the course of this workshop we try to find a way to come up with a common presentation at the exhibition of the Guangzhou Triennial. In line with an experimental spirit, we realize however that a workshop or seminar can never be over-planned and should not anticipate a predictable outcome. Instead of conventional conference structure and agenda, we try to focus on its space and time, in form of a journey across cities in the Pearl River Delta, which constitutes the ground work of a mobile organization of intense communication. We have however assured that the participants all are concerned with the idea of (art) organizations in some way or the other in their daily professions, be it as artists, curators or critics. In general we presume that organizations are mostly self-motivated and result of a personal interest and history imbedded in bigger local and global circumstances.
How do we think about (self) organization and what does it mean in today’s art world in Asia? Trying to analyze this question, we planned a three day workshop in Hong Kong, Shenzhen and Guangzhou, to bring together twelve art-workers from different Asian countries to discuss the idea of organization. In the course of this workshop we try to find a way to come up with a common presentation at the exhibition of the Guangzhou Triennial. In line with an experimental spirit, we realize however that a workshop or seminar can never be over-planned and should not anticipate a predictable outcome. Instead of conventional conference structure and agenda, we try to focus on its space and time, in form of a journey across cities in the Pearl River Delta, which constitutes the ground work of a mobile organization of intense communication. We have however assured that the participants all are concerned with the idea of (art) organizations in some way or the other in their daily professions, be it as artists, curators or critics. In general we presume that organizations are mostly self-motivated and result of a personal interest and history imbedded in bigger local and global circumstances.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
An Artist
An artist
Being an artist can be a simple thing. If you are the sort of Vincent Van Gogh, it can be simple. No more Vincent nowadays. Maybe there are some but not me obviously. I get my works showing, then, there are many of the third parties involved. There are relationships between my works and the audience, me and the art space/ organization, etc. When I was a student, I thought that being an artist is the freest life I can have. Today I still believe in it. It is free but not free absolutely. In Hong Kong, artists are free from the market. But whatever I do, I just cannot get rid of the rules of art. I just cannot explain what the rule is as breaking the rule is already a rule to me.
Let’s forget about the metaphysical things. Recently I am preparing a show in an art gallery. I feel too tired already when preparing the draft idea, budget plan, installation draft, etc. I cannot meet the deadline of sending the images. I am so guilty about this experience, I feel like I am meeting the deadline of being an astist.
Being an artist can be a simple thing. If you are the sort of Vincent Van Gogh, it can be simple. No more Vincent nowadays. Maybe there are some but not me obviously. I get my works showing, then, there are many of the third parties involved. There are relationships between my works and the audience, me and the art space/ organization, etc. When I was a student, I thought that being an artist is the freest life I can have. Today I still believe in it. It is free but not free absolutely. In Hong Kong, artists are free from the market. But whatever I do, I just cannot get rid of the rules of art. I just cannot explain what the rule is as breaking the rule is already a rule to me.
Let’s forget about the metaphysical things. Recently I am preparing a show in an art gallery. I feel too tired already when preparing the draft idea, budget plan, installation draft, etc. I cannot meet the deadline of sending the images. I am so guilty about this experience, I feel like I am meeting the deadline of being an astist.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
a letter to artist participating 3rd Guangzhou Triennial from the Curators
Dear Artist,
A matter of some urgency concerns the Chinese visa application. Due to security measures during the period of the Olympics, which falls unfortunately on the Triennial's installation/manufacturing period, visas are closely scrutinised and take a much longer approval period. Please apply for your Chinese Visa as soon as possible, especially if you wish to apply for multiple entries.
As we are compiling all articles and materials for the Triennial's catalogue, we would appreciate if you could send in materials to your corresponding RC. Details as follows:
The catalogue format is 28cm by 25 cm, each artist has 4 pages on average. Each artist’s personal narration (of their Triennial projects) should be less than 500 words, with focus on the project. You should include photos (with/without sketches and plans) of this project. You should also send in an abbreviated bio of no more than 100 words, and a CV of exhibitions with a maximum of 10 entries (this includes solo shows and group exhibitions). We have already received some files for the catalogue, however, if changes need to be made, replacements should be sent before July 1st. We will leave the editing of information on artists to the corresponding RC, so please send all information to the RC for consolidation and editing.
Curators are now consolidating all the proposals, and are still in the process of planning the exhibition space. We cannot identify the space for your work at the moment, but hope to let you have more information by mid July. To help us in the process, please let us have as much information about your work/concept as possible.
If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact us.
Thanking you for your support, and looking forward to working with you,
With best regards,
Curators
Gao Shimning
Sarat Maharaj
Chang Tsong-zung
The Guangzhou Triennial 2008
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