Material for thought

Few quotes from the book “Issues in curating contemporary art and performance” by Judith Rugg and Michèle Sedgwick:

• As cultural agents, curators and artists participate in the production of cultural value. Exhibitions are, therefore, contemporary forms of rhetoric, complex expressions of persuasion, whose strategies aim to produce a prescribed set of values and social relations for their audiences. [Paul O'Neill]
• Exhibition: maximizing the shock while avoiding the risk of boredom, which would strip of its entertainment value. [Paul O'Neill]
• What is apparent is that artists, their work and practices exist and are claimed under the banner of a larger economy of culture. [Alun Rowlands]

The biennial is running until end of April 2009. The theme of this year is “Integration and Resistance in the Global Age”. Havana is a highly cultural city, I had the chance to be there when the biennial started and I can report on some of the exhibitions I saw.

What stroke me is the biennial’s attempt to be the voice of another globalized world,  from China to Brazil.  The curatorial approach subtly highlighted both the reality of the Global Age, as well as the similarities between Cuba and other parts of the world. Sadly, the website of the biennial was down when I tried to consult the program, so I cannot document properly everything that I saw.

The Serpentine gallery is currently hosting an exhibition about Indian contemporary art, Indian Highway. Here is the theme:

Painting of M. F. Husain outside the Serpentine.

“Some of the artworks in the exhibition have been selected for their connection to the theme of Indian Highway, reflecting the importance of the road in migration and movement and as the link between rural and urban communities. Other works make reference to technology and the ‘information superhighway’, which has been central to India’s economic boom. A common thread throughout is the way in which these artists demonstrate an active political and social engagement, examining complex issues in contemporary India that include environmentalism, religious sectarianism, globalisation, gender, sexuality and class.”

I attended a one week long course entitled ‘Introduction to curating contemporary art‘, held at the Chelsea College of Art and Design.  It was a dense introduction to the history of curating, to what are the dilemmas of curators and to how practically organize an exhibition. Half of the time was spent on theoretical texts, the other half on visits to London galleries and exhibitions followed, by discussions and meetings with curators. The course was given by Pil Kollectiv who was very good at encouraging debate while providing very knowledgeable guidance. A lot also came from the participants of the class, most of them being art professionals. Here are some exhibitions and galleries we visited. They give a glimpse of what’s going on in the curatorial microcosm of London.

Balloon flower - Jeff Koons

The Jeff Koons exhibition in the Chateau de Versailles illustrates how important the process of curation is in the reception of art. Curation is a relatively recent discipline, at least in our shared consciousness. It can be defined as the process of selecting and organizing artwork in order to further knowledge.  A curator is thus an agent taking part in the cultural assimilation of art. He is a kind of “culturepreneur” who organizes  art collections, exhibitions or festivals; explaining his approach through articles, books and conventions. His work influences what will be culturally remembered, how it will be perceived and classified.