Thursday, November 1. 2007
Pick 'N Mix - November 2007
It's the first of the month again! Hard to believe it's November already. Time for the November edition of Pick 'N Mix, my monthly annotated list of bite-sized items that have captured my attention recently.
A lighthearted note to end this month's Pick 'N Mix on, I'm sure you'll agree!
- "CURATE OR DIE" is the title of a series of discussions at KW Institute for Contemporary Art in Berlin.
"The focus of classical museum work seems to have changed in the past fifteen years. The balance of exhibiting, collecting, researching, and conserving activities has shifted towards a marked concentration on exhibiting. Both the public eye and possible sponsors tend to privilege the spectacular potential inherent in exhibitions. In collaboration with the Berlin-based Bureau des Arts Plastiques, KW Institute for Contemporary Art is planning a series of panel debates addressing these and related questions. Curate or Die seems to be the only possible future perspective."
The two remaining talks in the series are taking place November 29 and December 10 at K-W. - A recent article by the Washington Post asks the question: Is There a Future for Old-Fashioned Museums? It focuses primarily on the story of the "Newseum", a new museum being erected in downtown Washington, while a copy is simultaneously being "built" in the online platform of Second Life. It has not yet been decided if this virtual copy of the museum will go fully public, but if it does, it will allow a global audience to have some experience of the museum. The article explores the notions of emotional attachment and collective experience that we have when visiting physical museums, which pose a series of questions as to the similarities and differences to the way we share experiences online. As well, the article looks at the ways success is measured for museums and how this is changing.
Maxwell L. Anderson, CEO of the Indianapolis Museum of Art says: "The root of the problem is that there is no longer an agreed-upon method of measuring achievement. Half a century ago, art museums were largely measured by a yardstick comparable to that applied to libraries of the time: the size and importance of their collections." But today, he argued, art museums increasingly "are to their detriment places that privilege entertainment over learning."
This year, in the journal Curator, he argued, "The message has been conspicuously entrepreneurial: we can be compared with theme parks, so we matter."
He calls for measures of success that focus on the visitor's experience of the "resonance and wonder" of artworks -- "an intangible sense of elation -- a feeling that a weight was lifted."
Anderson's words remind us that while some of these buildings may be architectural or technological marvels, what really impacts audiences is personal and collective perceptions of the contents of museums - in other words, the fruits of labour by artists and curators.
- An old webcast came to light via bellebyrd's blog: "Global Curating in the 21st Century" was a panel discussion held in 2003 at the Walker Art Center, as part of "How Latitudes Become Forms: Art in a Global Age".
"Five visual arts curators discuss art in a global context. Participants are: Kathy Halbreich, Director, Walker Art Center; Vishakha Desai, Senior Vice President/Director, Galleries and Cultural Programs, The Asia Society; Hou Hanru, Paris-based, independent curator-critic; Paulo Herkenhoff, independent curator and critic (Sao Paulo); and Latitudes exhibition curator Philippe Vergne."
You can access the stream of the panel discussion by clicking here. - File under slightly unusual curatorial careers: being a curator of a hotel's art collection. Jennifer Phelps is the curator at the Chambers, a luxury hotel in downtown Minneapolis, USA.
"My first job was to catalog everything and use the floor plans to place it in the rooms," Phelps said. "That was fun, like a puzzle, because there are 60 rooms, and each got two or three pieces, depending on whether it was a suite or a single. "
One recent addition is a bronze sculpture by British artist Gavin Turk. It sits in a hallway near the hotel's banquet rooms and looks like a pile of black plastic garbage bags stuffed to overflowing with trash. It's Phelps' job to tamp down the ire of outraged hotel guests who stumble upon it en route to a soiree.
"They call up, furious, because they're having a party and what are we doing with garbage bags dumped in the hallway?" she said. "When I tell them it's art, they burst out laughing."
A lighthearted note to end this month's Pick 'N Mix on, I'm sure you'll agree!
(PAGE_BROWSE_ENTRIES)
Recent Comments
Mon, 29.10.2007 11:01
Hi Alissa, I realise that thi s internship is from last fall , however the position is some thing which sparked my interes t. I am a third year Queen's U niversity art history student, from Toronto [...]
Mon, 22.10.2007 09:02
I dropped off a package regard ing a show I curated, "Through the Night Softly" I will come by a drop off a s.a.s.e. befo re I leave aginn for Vienna th is Thursday the 25TH.
Sun, 21.10.2007 05:56
Actually I find that in most c ases in the art world, not mu ch is "open and transparent" a nd it becomes more arcane the higher up you go. I like the post by Niels Van Tomme, who m akes some poin [...]
Sun, 14.10.2007 20:59
Absolutely! As her sister and co-artist to several of the p rojects she has done. She is one on her own and from nothin g makes new and wonderful crea tives experiences to evolve.
Sun, 14.10.2007 20:58
I can vouch the dedication of Gaynor. She has given many op portunities, including myself to work along side to help my research in my practice. This is a woman and artist wit h so much visi [...]
Mon, 01.10.2007 07:48
To continue to stretch things a bit...Maybe you would be int erested in the book _Everyday eBay: culture, collecting, and desire_. It's an anthology an d many of the essays touch on issues germane [...]
Sat, 01.09.2007 03:02
GRUPPO SINESTETICO (Albertin , Sassu , Scordo) artists Itali an POSSIBLE PARTECIPATION I N SCAPE BIENNIAL ? thanks f or your reponse sassu X Grup po Sinestetico www.grupposine stetico.it
Sat, 21.04.2007 18:28
sheesh, i've broken more than one of those tips!
Sat, 21.04.2007 06:55
That's very true! Do it yourse lf, don't wait for someone els e to do it for you.... exactly what prompted Yael to start t he Upgrade!.
Tue, 17.04.2007 12:23
In part this is the very motiv e of Upgrade, isn't it?
Sat, 07.04.2007 06:40
That collection of youtube lin ks is pretty mixed up. I don't know if youv'e had time but y ou can get Dan Graham 17 yrs h itting his little sister in fr ont of the tv. There are alot of Dan Grahams [...]
Mon, 19.02.2007 12:04
I love Ideas, and have become a heavy listener to Ideas podc asts over the last few months. When I was in Toronto a co uple of weeks ago (InterAccess show) I got interviewed by No ra Young who i [...]
Wed, 07.02.2007 17:47
Howdy! Thanks Tons!
Wed, 03.01.2007 15:15
hi Anu, I can't agree more. W hile it is always a pleasure t o witness how up-and-comers ov ercome roadblocks in innovativ e ways, and enjoy the fruits o f their efforts, we must also ask ourselves [...]
Wed, 03.01.2007 14:29
Though I am always pleased to see independent curators get s ome press, I wonder if the ver y real problem of compensation is addressed. There are alway s opportunities to make great shows if you c [...]