A Network must for ‘Unity in Diversity’

The words "Asia", "the Orient" and "the East" are loaded terms conceived by the West. Through prefabricated constructs of imagination, Asia became one of the West’s deepest and most recurring images.

In relation to the Asia-Pacific region in the post-hegemonic world and the New World Order, Asia has been dissected, making some zones to be more privileged than others. The Pacific Rim discourse gives basic, geographical divisions of Northeast Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia, and the Pacific Island nations.

In this context, Asia is often perceived as Japan, China and the "Four Tigers"—Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore and also the up-and-coming "Little Dragons" — Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand.

The rise of these "Tigers" and "Dragons" during the past decade of economic miracles has shifted the balance of power in world politics and trade as evidenced in the summit meetings of the APEC and ASEAN.

The New World Order, free trade and electronic media net works claiming to bring the world together as one happy global village have caused new tensions and frictions.

When it comes to contemporary art, the hierarchies of politics, economics, trade and religion frequently dictate the curatorial considerations that arise in Asia. Regional identities vary accordingly.

For example, the ASEAN painting and photograph exhibitions, which rotated among ASEAN countries, aimed to create harmony and friendship among the members. The motto of "unity in diversity" or " friendship and brotherhood" has been used as thematic subjects for artists to follow. The policy of non-intervention and consensus by ASEAN controls criteria and selection in art and culture.

However, Asian art curators face certain demands as some art museums and institutions in Asia envision art to be a vehicle to serve national fervor and political agendas. At one level, art curators have to comply with certain criteria such as national identity, indigenousness, religious and political beliefs. Curators in some museums in Asia often have to work under these strict obligations so much so that their positions are restricted to behind the-scene organizers.

Curators who work in museums closely attached to the government sometimes have to play the role of quasi-government officers. Several museums restrict subjects that might be sensitive or inflammatory to religious sects, national security or ethnicity. Like it or not, these curators sometimes have to deal with censorship in order to avoid a public outcry or harsh reactions from those in power.

In contrast, there are independent curators who are closely attached to art institutions. They are free to exercise their curatorial rationale and art network without the supervision of any authority. The advantage to this freedom is not always without consequences. Sometimes, the recognition forces them to curate shows with certain conditions attached.

The art community has been realized that the infrastructure of art organizers and curators in the Asian art circuit has become increasingly complex and hierarchical. Thus, for creating cross-cultural dialogues in Asia among Asian curators exchange of databases, artists’ directories, information among curators who focus on specific regions, such as East Asia, Southeast Asia, Asia-Pacific, or developed art centers that have regular international exhibitions such as Tokyo, Fukuoka, Kwangju, Taipei, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore, Brisbane, and San Francisco.

Art networks ranging from museums, art institutions, galleries and other art related centers should be regularly visited by curators in order to participate in get-together of the artists and to understand the art infrastructure of those particulars places. The dialogue should involve the questioning of Asian identities.

The art circuits should be expansive and not restrictive within mutual cross-cultural networks. Interest should be given to less accessible art circuits such as Nepal, India, Pakistan, Vietnam etc.

Curators must have first-hand contact with the artists. They must not rely too much on second-hand knowledge from database and catalogues. Direct dialogue with artists prevents "armchair’ curatorship, where curators make their job easy by adapting the ideas of other shows or use similar works because they happen to be packaged, insured and circulated.

For future cooperation and interaction among various Asian countries, from a consideration or regional characteristics and cultural identities the organizers of biennales and triennales and curators, critics from Asia should form a working committee to plan strategies so that themes,
subjects, artists and artworks do not repeat themselves or be over-circulated.

They should be conscious that working under the challenging framework of "Asia" or "Asia-Pacific" can be burden on themselves and their staff. By attempting to represent an overview of "what is being produced in Asia or Asia-Pacific" the exhibitions may run the danger too generalized and politically correct.

Cultural authorities should be aware of the flaws in attempting to stress, "difference," "exoticism," "Asian-ness," and "Asian identity." Often, over-emphasis is placed on cultural identities and indigenous elements, and criteria for selection are based on national characteristics.

The Asian network should be opened and expansive rather than narrow and exclusive. Such a network in Asia should overlap and exchange information and databases with those in the United States, Europe, Africa, Australia, and Central and South America.

International co-operation among art councils, foundations, museums, and publishers should promote publication and research in modern and contemporary Asian art. Despite an increasing number of books and papers in this area, there is still an enormous lack of texts and discourse. It is essential that curators must be knowledgeable in art history as well as the art of curatorship.

A regional forum should be established to promote and to financially support contemporary Asian art to be displayed at non-Asian art exhibitions and venues. Such a network will help Asian artists from nations that lack funding to compete with advanced and well-financed countries. This will help enrich contemporary Asian art as a region instead of the repetitions of country representatives.

The role of cultural arbiters, art managers, and curators must be considered from the simultaneous perspectives of inside and outside Asia. A perspective that takes account of the interpretation of contemporary Asian art seen regionally in Asia, and another where it is represented or projected outside Asia.

Moreover, a note of caution should be taken when discussion of exhibition strategies and other curatorial questions are separated from art practices and the voice of the artist. There is always the danger that the curator’s "flavor and taste," or institutional preferences, will dictate art production in order to "fit" them into a curatorial rationale or museum policy. Based on the working papers presented at the seminar earlier, the paper adresssed of essential to consider engaging practices and the nature of the relationship among curators, artists, and the public.

A new network of Asian curators cannot possibly function in isolation, as these related factors are essential. Only with an open mind and selflessness can circuit the work properly. A new cure for Asian curators has only just begun.

Other Story

• Clean up the World Day marked