Collaborators Womanifesto and The Factory Contemporary Art Centre
Duration of project: One year. Stage One of the project: March 8th to May 10th 2021. Presented by Art Museum of Guang Zhou Academy of Fine Arts
Stage Two: November 2021 (Final date TBD)
Curatorial statement:
This curatorial proposition doesn’t look at Southeast Asia as a region, but instead looks at the core of its connections, and the relationships that formed and informed the art scene in certain local contexts. It focuses on the relationality and importance of proximity within the art itself, taking it as a part of life and not allowing it to turn into ‘the system’. It aims to look at the emergence of the voices that shape thinking and acting within situated contexts.
It is curatorial exploration that has been deeply embedded in my own individual research experience and friendships over the decades, which I have spent walking through the region, learning and listening. With no institutional infrastructure and support, friendships created a space for research, for conversation and for active listening.
This exploration intends to re-think and propose how we think and act in relation to the production of knowledge through exhibitions in times of pandemic and separation. It proposes to spend time and revisit important exhibitions through repetition. And here I define repetition not as a passive act, but as an active position that gives birth to the new.
The system of art has been created through the prism of competition and visibility, giving pressure to constantly produce something new. This curatorial strategy proposes to re-visit public moments that became relevant in local contexts. These propositions are shared as a process to unlearn our mode of working and being in the world, based on the extractivist logic that is practiced when doing exhibitions.
It is a curatorial attempt towards practicing care from a distance, and finding ways to embody those experiences in times of ideological and physical separation.
The core of the first part of the project restages and revisits, through repetition, important exhibitions/events that have happened throughout the region, producing important reflections on how the art community functions and what its core values are. Repetition will give us the possibility to re-think, look again and read again these moments – unpacking their relevance within the current time. Repetition also gives us the possibility to learn about the situated local context that the triennial aims to reach, engaging local actors who actively produce knowledge, and grow care-providing support for their communities.
Through repetition, I as a curator propose to practice care for deep listening and knowing the subject, in order to find ways of engaging with him/her on a deeper level, rather than them simply describing it. It allows access to knowledge that is not ours, and we learn to appreciate it and acknowledge its urgencies.
Repetition as a gesture towards deep listening will be presenting two projects, along with their methodologies of working with two communities. Firstly, Womanifesto: an international women’s biennale art event established in Thailand in 1995 by a group of female artists. Secondly, Spirit of Friendship: an ongoing research project and exhibition organized by Zoe Butt, Bill Nguyen and Le Thien Bao, which has been looking at the role of artists’ friendships in developing experimental practices in Vietnam since 1975.
in Baroda: Varsha Nair, Ananya Patel, Rashmimala, Urna Sinha, Anuradha Upadhyaya, Kunatharaju Mrudula and Amruta Patel.
in Sydney: Phaptawan Suwannakudt with Shuxia Chen, Helen Grace with Toby, Sue Pedley with Kyati and Charlotte, and Virginia Hilyard with her mother Shirley Hilyard.
in Basel: Lena Eriksson, Nicole Boillat, Chris Regn, Chris Hunter, Martina Henzi, Martina Gmür and Jim Osthaarchic.
in Berlin: Karla Sachse, Susanne Dobrovoda, Ann Noël, Gabriela Vasquez-Pacheco, and Lea Mattenklotz.
in London: Nilofar Akmut, Liliana Constantin, Stefano Boring, Anca Dimofte and Reiko Aoyagi
Womanifesto’s presentation explores past and present through, but it also focuses on the current re-activization during the pandemic. The presentation within Repetition in March will present two parts of Womanifesto’s archive, composed of publications/albums and video documentaries of past projects, as well as ongoing activities initiated in 2020/21 during lockdowns by members of Womanifesto and their local communities. Gatherings are happening in six different locations: Nitaya Ueareeworakul in Udon Thani, on her farm; Phaptawan Suwannakudt in Sydney; Varsha Nair in Baroda; Lena Eriksson in Basel; Karla Sachse in Berlin; Nilofar Akmut in London. Each artist acts as a host and gathers 2 to 5 artists in their place, in their studio, house or online – depending on social distancing measures. The gatherings during the pandemic pertain to the importance of proximity and physical presence, and they continue to expand the importance of relationality during times of separation. As each group is in a different stage of lockdown and gathering, their existence will be acknowledged through the exhibition, and some places will present works and stories created during these gatherings.
While the outcome of the current gathering will be presented in March, the full version will be presented within the final triennial exhibition in November 2021.
Spirit of Friendship
Artists in the project: Gang of Five | Group of 10 | Salon Natasha | Hanoi Triad | Nhà Sàn | a little little blah blah | Wonderful District | Zenei Gang of Five | The Propeller Group | HanoiLink | Sàn Art | OM | New Space Arts Foundation | Hanoi Doclab | Hanoi-Saigon Sculpture Group | Phụ Lục | Chaap Collective | Art Labor | Then Group | XEM | Sao La | Chaosdowntown
The Spirit of Friendship was presented for the first time in 2017 by Factory Art Centre in Vietnam.
The project proposes to think about the exhibition as an introduction, as an educational display. It gives recognition to how ‘friendship’ continues to further the testing and encouraging of ideas among artists, beyond what was officially understood, taught, or predominantly exhibited in Vietnam at that time, believing their art worthy of more than catering to ideological/formal and touristic (commercial) demand.
“This exhibition’s chronology will chart from 1975 until the present-day, where evidence – such as quoted testimonial, documentary photographs and videos, exhibition catalogs and artwork from a few of the artist groups themselves – will illustrate the rise of experimental artistic activity across the country.
From the utilization of domestic living rooms, to the re-appropriation of traditional architecture; from public activation of artist studio space to the bar-cum-studio; from the hostel as art host to the occupation of diplomatic zone as site of artistic production – what we observe in this landscape is an entrepreneurial flair for strategic survival as artists strive to be heard in a context greatly underestimating their role in society. Curatorial focus inside this exhibition will share how artists study the lives of artists before them, as a means of learning, and paying homage to their legacy; while also highlighting the practices of particular artist groups – Salon Natasha, Nha San, Group of 10 and San Art – for their facilitation of differing means and modes of making, thinking, talking and disseminating artistic ideas, thus influencing their community’s capacity to participate and understand the experience of art as a conduit with which to grapple differing perceptions of contemporary life.” From curatorial statement by Zoe Butt, Bill Nguyen and Le Thien Bao
The above-mentioned artists live and struggle for creating public spheres and communicating their values publicly through creating public shelters in domestic places, or temporarily taking over the public places that are found in parallel in many local contexts, such as in China during the 80s and 90s before the dissemination of ideas had been filtered through the standardization of art.
The Spirit of Friendship unpacks the discussion about what kind public sphere we can nurture during the pandemic, and what the role of artists’ voices is. The Spirit of Friendship will leak into an in-depth presentation of artist, curator and educator Tran Luong in the final stage of the exhibition in November 2021.
Each project’s physical presentation has been carefully developed with collaborators. Physical presentations highlight the proximity, tactility and importance of being able to engage with actual objects in a more direct way, challenging museological displays and protective measures usually imposed, but also creating the possibility to think about how we can continue to be intimate in the new world unfolding in front of us.
Each project will be followed by public program structures around these public moments.
[i]The concept of deep listening has been inspired by Aboriginal people’s practice of deep listening, an almost spiritual skill, based on respect. Listening here suggests inner deep listening and quiet still awareness.
Gatherings at Guangzhou Triennial, March – May 2021 at Art Museum, Guangzhou Academy of Art. Curated by Biljana Ciric
The first Trans-Southeast Asia Triennial
Repetition as a gesture towards deep listening[i]
Conceived by: Biljana Ciric
Collaborators Womanifesto and The Factory Contemporary Art Centre
Duration of project: One year. Stage One of the project: March 8th to May 10th 2021. Presented by Art Museum of Guang Zhou Academy of Fine Arts
Stage Two: November 2021 (Final date TBD)
Curatorial statement:
This curatorial proposition doesn’t look at Southeast Asia as a region, but instead looks at the core of its connections, and the relationships that formed and informed the art scene in certain local contexts. It focuses on the relationality and importance of proximity within the art itself, taking it as a part of life and not allowing it to turn into ‘the system’. It aims to look at the emergence of the voices that shape thinking and acting within situated contexts.
It is curatorial exploration that has been deeply embedded in my own individual research experience and friendships over the decades, which I have spent walking through the region, learning and listening. With no institutional infrastructure and support, friendships created a space for research, for conversation and for active listening.
This exploration intends to re-think and propose how we think and act in relation to the production of knowledge through exhibitions in times of pandemic and separation. It proposes to spend time and revisit important exhibitions through repetition. And here I define repetition not as a passive act, but as an active position that gives birth to the new.
The system of art has been created through the prism of competition and visibility, giving pressure to constantly produce something new. This curatorial strategy proposes to re-visit public moments that became relevant in local contexts. These propositions are shared as a process to unlearn our mode of working and being in the world, based on the extractivist logic that is practiced when doing exhibitions.
It is a curatorial attempt towards practicing care from a distance, and finding ways to embody those experiences in times of ideological and physical separation.
The core of the first part of the project restages and revisits, through repetition, important exhibitions/events that have happened throughout the region, producing important reflections on how the art community functions and what its core values are. Repetition will give us the possibility to re-think, look again and read again these moments – unpacking their relevance within the current time. Repetition also gives us the possibility to learn about the situated local context that the triennial aims to reach, engaging local actors who actively produce knowledge, and grow care-providing support for their communities.
Through repetition, I as a curator propose to practice care for deep listening and knowing the subject, in order to find ways of engaging with him/her on a deeper level, rather than them simply describing it. It allows access to knowledge that is not ours, and we learn to appreciate it and acknowledge its urgencies.
Repetition as a gesture towards deep listening will be presenting two projects, along with their methodologies of working with two communities. Firstly, Womanifesto: an international women’s biennale art event established in Thailand in 1995 by a group of female artists. Secondly, Spirit of Friendship: an ongoing research project and exhibition organized by Zoe Butt, Bill Nguyen and Le Thien Bao, which has been looking at the role of artists’ friendships in developing experimental practices in Vietnam since 1975.
Womanifesto 2020: Gatherings
Joining Gatherings:
in Udonthani: Nitaya Ueareeworakul (Tuk) Jidamas Sriraksa (Nuch) Tikamporn Faioopara (Krin) Krisanah Wannakham (Nah) Khaunrudi Sameapak (Ja-eh) Meena Ueareeworakul (Meena) and Ouy.
in Baroda: Varsha Nair, Ananya Patel, Rashmimala, Urna Sinha, Anuradha Upadhyaya, Kunatharaju Mrudula and Amruta Patel.
in Sydney: Phaptawan Suwannakudt with Shuxia Chen, Helen Grace with Toby, Sue Pedley with Kyati and Charlotte, and Virginia Hilyard with her mother Shirley Hilyard.
in Basel: Lena Eriksson, Nicole Boillat, Chris Regn, Chris Hunter, Martina Henzi, Martina Gmür and Jim Osthaarchic.
in Berlin: Karla Sachse, Susanne Dobrovoda, Ann Noël, Gabriela Vasquez-Pacheco, and Lea Mattenklotz.
in London: Nilofar Akmut, Liliana Constantin, Stefano Boring, Anca Dimofte and Reiko Aoyagi
Womanifesto’s presentation explores past and present through, but it also focuses on the current re-activization during the pandemic. The presentation within Repetition in March will present two parts of Womanifesto’s archive, composed of publications/albums and video documentaries of past projects, as well as ongoing activities initiated in 2020/21 during lockdowns by members of Womanifesto and their local communities. Gatherings are happening in six different locations: Nitaya Ueareeworakul in Udon Thani, on her farm; Phaptawan Suwannakudt in Sydney; Varsha Nair in Baroda; Lena Eriksson in Basel; Karla Sachse in Berlin; Nilofar Akmut in London. Each artist acts as a host and gathers 2 to 5 artists in their place, in their studio, house or online – depending on social distancing measures. The gatherings during the pandemic pertain to the importance of proximity and physical presence, and they continue to expand the importance of relationality during times of separation. As each group is in a different stage of lockdown and gathering, their existence will be acknowledged through the exhibition, and some places will present works and stories created during these gatherings.
While the outcome of the current gathering will be presented in March, the full version will be presented within the final triennial exhibition in November 2021.
Spirit of Friendship
Artists in the project: Gang of Five | Group of 10 | Salon Natasha | Hanoi Triad | Nhà Sàn | a little little blah blah | Wonderful District | Zenei Gang of Five | The Propeller Group | HanoiLink | Sàn Art | OM | New Space Arts Foundation | Hanoi Doclab | Hanoi-Saigon Sculpture Group | Phụ Lục | Chaap Collective | Art Labor | Then Group | XEM | Sao La | Chaosdowntown
The Spirit of Friendship was presented for the first time in 2017 by Factory Art Centre in Vietnam.
The project proposes to think about the exhibition as an introduction, as an educational display. It gives recognition to how ‘friendship’ continues to further the testing and encouraging of ideas among artists, beyond what was officially understood, taught, or predominantly exhibited in Vietnam at that time, believing their art worthy of more than catering to ideological/formal and touristic (commercial) demand.
“This exhibition’s chronology will chart from 1975 until the present-day, where evidence – such as quoted testimonial, documentary photographs and videos, exhibition catalogs and artwork from a few of the artist groups themselves – will illustrate the rise of experimental artistic activity across the country.
From the utilization of domestic living rooms, to the re-appropriation of traditional architecture; from public activation of artist studio space to the bar-cum-studio; from the hostel as art host to the occupation of diplomatic zone as site of artistic production – what we observe in this landscape is an entrepreneurial flair for strategic survival as artists strive to be heard in a context greatly underestimating their role in society. Curatorial focus inside this exhibition will share how artists study the lives of artists before them, as a means of learning, and paying homage to their legacy; while also highlighting the practices of particular artist groups – Salon Natasha, Nha San, Group of 10 and San Art – for their facilitation of differing means and modes of making, thinking, talking and disseminating artistic ideas, thus influencing their community’s capacity to participate and understand the experience of art as a conduit with which to grapple differing perceptions of contemporary life.” From curatorial statement by Zoe Butt, Bill Nguyen and Le Thien Bao
The above-mentioned artists live and struggle for creating public spheres and communicating their values publicly through creating public shelters in domestic places, or temporarily taking over the public places that are found in parallel in many local contexts, such as in China during the 80s and 90s before the dissemination of ideas had been filtered through the standardization of art.
The Spirit of Friendship unpacks the discussion about what kind public sphere we can nurture during the pandemic, and what the role of artists’ voices is. The Spirit of Friendship will leak into an in-depth presentation of artist, curator and educator Tran Luong in the final stage of the exhibition in November 2021.
Each project’s physical presentation has been carefully developed with collaborators. Physical presentations highlight the proximity, tactility and importance of being able to engage with actual objects in a more direct way, challenging museological displays and protective measures usually imposed, but also creating the possibility to think about how we can continue to be intimate in the new world unfolding in front of us.
Each project will be followed by public program structures around these public moments.
[i] The concept of deep listening has been inspired by Aboriginal people’s practice of deep listening, an almost spiritual skill, based on respect. Listening here suggests inner deep listening and quiet still awareness.