David Ocón has interviewed Yves de Peretti, from the Ateliers Varan (France), one of the organisers of  ‘Catch-Tell-Transform: 4^th Documentary Filmmakers’ Workshop’. Organised in Manila, The Philippines from April to October 2013, this unique initiative gathers young promising filmmakers from Southeast Asia to enhance their skills and build new audiences for their work.

The project is supported through ASEF’s Creative Encounters: Cultural Partnerships between Asia and Europe programme.
Yves de Peretti is a renowned film director who works for Ateliers Varan, an internationally recognised film school based in France that specialises in documentary filmmaking and whose teaching methods lie in learning through practical experience. Last year, Yves co-facilitated a documentary filmmaker’s workshop for Filipino emerging directors. In 2013, as part of the team of experts, he builds on that initiative and co-leads a group of twelve Southeast Asian filmmakers in Manila, on the path through the different stages of their film projects, towards the completion of their documentary films.

Q: Yves, as part of Ateliers Varan, you have facilitated many types of workshop. What is so special about this one that made you participate as a facilitator again?

I think it is important to have a continuation on these kinds of projects, so the idea came a bit from the frustration that after spending so much effort, time and energy analysing the different phases of the process of doing a film, in the previous workshops the participants did not have the chance to go until the end and make their films with us. So this is why we opened the participation to people who had already taken part in the first three editions, with the important addition that this year the workshop offers some seed money for the participants to accomplish their films.

I come from Ateliers Varan, an important school in teaching documentary, and for us it is very important to create a pool of new people who have the spirit to do documentaries. We want to transmit them the idea of how documentary filmmaking can be, as an art, at the same level as fiction. Some of these films could later travel to some international festivals. Before it was mainly European, North American and in general Western filmmakers making documentaries in the whole word, but that trend has changed rapidly and we think it is going to change more in the future. In this workshop, for instance, you have emerging filmmakers from Cambodia, Indonesia, Bhutan, Singapore and the Philippines.

Q: Some of these new filmmakers are addressing sensitive issues, in some cases, topics never before examined by documentaries in their countries. Why do you think this is the case and how is it different from the topics the participants chose last year?

Well, documentary is an expression of the sensibility of a moment. In the case of the Philippines, for instance, this year we have three projects that will be talking about issues that took place during the Marcos rule. That probably means that the society is more ready to talk about these issues, enough time has passed and the new generations want to know how it was back then and talk about it. The region, Southeast Asia, is more ready than before to openly talk about some issues that were previously taboo.

Q: What is the main challenge for you as facilitator of this workshop?

To be able to give enough energy and courage to the participants, to push them, so that they can go through the different phases until the end of their projects, which in the end it is the successful production of their own documentary films.

Q: What main challenges do you see for the participants in the workshop?

From what I understand, there is not a strong tradition of documentary in the region, it is a concept still quite new. Until not so long, when documentaries were being made in the region, they were mainly for television, done somehow in a journalistic way. That explains why last year, for instance, many of the participants had initially a strong influence from sort of “video clip music” or television style films, which did not make sense in the context of documentary filmmaking. Documentary films are for reflection, to think, not all the answers should be given to the audiences, like in TV. Documentary filmmaking is a sort of cinema art expression, where the filmmaker finds a way to express its own vision and shows its own style, a unique one. Now, with easy and cheaper access to computers, cameras and home systems, the new generations have it all more accessible and if they are interested, they can produce new types of films with these new tools. They can communicate their own personal vision on topics, not the one the television tells them to.

Then, the challenges are also very different for each participant. They are not all at the same level. Some are quite advanced and know better what they want to do and achieve. Others are more beginners and they are on the way yet to find their own way of expression. The challenge for these ones is to understand what they want and not just to copy from others but to find their own style. With globalisation, styles of doing films get closer; filmmakers use the similar tools, ways of thinking and networks. This workshop is an interesting opportunity for them to do their personal projects, to speak about the reality of a concrete moment in their countries from a personal point of view, to find their style.

Q: Why do you think workshops like this that  comprise of  a multilateral group of organisers, supporters, experts and participants, are important for the field of documentary filmmaking?

I think this is one of the most exciting aspects of this workshop, that it is a collaboration between German, French and Filipino organisations, and has this year for the first time the support of an international organisation such as the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF). That brings the discussions to a higher level than if all is unilateral. Multilateralism goes well with the essence and culture of documentary filmmaking: a very open minded one, ready to talk, to discuss and to mix.

These kinds of workshops, where young and emerging filmmakers or producers get to meet and collaborate, are necessary in order to develop multilateral connections. It is important for people from these countries to see what projects others, in their region and in other regions, are doing. The culture of documentary filmmaking can progress with more of these kinds of multilateral exchanges.

See also the interview with Ilang Ilang Quijano, one of the participants of Tell/Catch/Transform:

http://film.culture360.org/magazine/constructive-criticism-will-make-you-reflect-harder-on-your-project-interview-with-ilang-ilang-quijano/

Catch/Tell/Transform is a workshop organised by the Goethe Institut Philippines, the Embassy of France and the Alliance Française in Manila, in collaboration with the University of the Philippines Film Institute. It has the support of the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF). 

David Ocón has served as Head of the Cultural Department at Instituto Cervantes’ centres in Ireland and China. Previously he was a Project Manager at the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF), and a Communications Officer for the European Network of Cultural Administration Training Centres (ENCATC).

He has taught International Cultural Cooperation courses since 2008 at University of Barcelona, and has published academic articles in several international specialised journals and co-edited a number of publications and art catalogues. At present he is an arts manager, consultant and researcher based in Southeast Asia.

Manila Vice is a group exhibition of 23 artists from the Philippines which is currently showing at the Musée International des Arts Modestes (MIAM) in Sète, France. It is curated by Manuel Ocampo, an internationally recognised Filipino artist, in partnership with MIAM founder and fellow artist Hervé Di Rosa, and Pascal Saumade, the museum’s resident curator. Through thought-provoking, satirical, and at times shocking contemporary art pieces, the exhibit aims to present Manila to France as a living and breathing cultural hub with a unique identity. The show has already made a significant impact in Sète, with a front-page feature in Midi Libre and an off-shoot art project taking place between the participating artists and a local art and music festival. Given all this, Manila Vice is a good example of a fruitful artistic collaboration between the Franco-Philippine art communities. It is also proof of France’s growing interest in the Philippines, whose art and culture remain relatively undiscovered by the French audience.

Philippine art is making headway this year in France. For their main exhibition this spring, the Musée International des Arts Modestes (MIAM) in Sète have decided to focus on Manila. Manila Vice, curated by Manuel Ocampo, is a collective show of 23 contemporary artists from the Philippines. The show aims to feature works that suggest the unique personality of Filipino culture – humorous, sarcastic, and sometimes perverted.

Manila is a place with 20 million inhabitants. It has been a port and trade centre since the 1500s, and has seen the reign of Spain, Great Britain, the United States, and Japan through the years. Today, it is a hodgepodge of classic European architecture, American urban planning, and shanties brought about by poverty. From its Southeast Asian roots, cosmopolitan vibe, and Catholic underpinnings, Manila is a place of contrast and texture. Given these qualities, it is no wonder that Ocampo has chosen it as the theme for his latest project.

Manila Vice includes artists who are able to show their personality in their art. “I like art that is like Manila, which is unsafe, sleazy, sexy, dirty, subversive, politically incorrect,” says Ocampo. He wanted to present the city as a living and breathing cultural hub with an unusual, if sometimes confused, identity. The result is an exhibit – made up of paintings, photographs, sculptures, videos, and art installations – that either shocks, tickles, or invites viewers to get to know Manila through artistic expressions and exploits. Dina Gadia, for one, has come up with a disturbing yet amusing stylised image that seemingly combines remnants of vintage comics, cheesy B-movies, and Americanised popular art in the Philippines. Painter, musician, vinyl collector – among others – Romeo Lee, himself having a sort of “identity crisis”, presents a flurry of surrealistic paintings on the museum’s widest wall while not forgetting to perform punk songs on the opening night. Installation artist Kawayan de Guia, on the other hand, mocks the idea of war by transforming aerial bombs into flamboyant disco balls.

Manuel Ocampo is a Philippine-born painter who lived and studied in California for years before deciding to move back to Manila to settle down. His art combines punk and religious iconography and are political or satirical. He has exhibited the world over, in the Venice Biennale and Berlin Biennale among others, and his works often allude to his Filipino heritage. In 2010, he curated his first big exhibit, Bastards of Misrepresentation, which opened in the Freies Museum in Berlin. The show similarly examined contemporary Philippine society and featured mainly Filipino artists.

When asked how Manila Vice developed, Ocampo recounts, “It came about when the artist, Hervé Di Rosa, with the help of Pascal Saumade, invited me to curate a show. The museum is focusing on unfamiliar art scenes outside of the typical art centres. Last year, the museum directed their attention to the art scene in Winnipeg, Canada.” As Di Rosa describes,

MIAM is a place that “provokes encounters that will never happen elsewhere, welcomes artists that are unknown in the area, forgets the conventions of the art market and institutions, and attempts to go against rules that often limit contemporary art.”

 

With Manila Vice, MIAM has proven to be a good platform for presenting “undiscovered” art, particularly contemporary Philippine art which is otherwise still unknown or often overlooked in Europe.

Hervé Di Rosa, French artist and co-founder of MIAM, wanted to introduce to France mind-blowing art pieces from a city he describes as wild and “stronger than our most unimaginable dreams and nightmares”. He went to Manila in 2011 on an artist residency, was impressed by the Filipino artists he met – notably punk icon Romeo Lee – and has since wanted to work with them. During his stay, he incidentally had a one-man show, Hervé di Rosa – MANILA, in Ocampo’s gallery.

Thanks to Di Rosa’s endorsement, Manila Vice was supported by the Embassy of France in the Philippines who then helped with promotion and public relations. Meanwhile, Pascal Saumade, resident MIAM curator, worked alongside Ocampo and oversaw the logistics.

When asked if he sees the exhibit as a collaboration between France and the Philippines, Ocampo explains, “I would say that it is a collaboration between artists. The French Embassy would not have supported us if Hervé had not pushed for the project.” But Ocampo also expressed dismay, complaining that no Filipino institution supported his cause, save for the Vice-Consul of the Philippine Embassy, André Estanislao, who came to the inauguration from Paris.

On the day of the opening, billboards screaming “Manila Vice by Manuel Ocampo” adorned the streets of Sète, quite an unexpected image for a city with no immediately recognisable links to a country in Southeast Asia. On the other hand, it wasn’t hard to see how the show succeeded in catching the attention of the community. The opening night gave way to a full house, while Midi Libre, Sète’s local newspaper, came out with a front-page feature the day after announcing how Philippine art “heated up” the MIAM. In the meantime, participating artists Romeo Lee, Carlo Ricafort, and Jayson Oliveira were invited to be part of K-Live, a local festival promoting urban art. The result was the creation of a mural found in one of Sète’s landmark spaces in the Place de la Revolution. This collaboration further proves the community’s appreciation of Philippine art.

But it seems that Sète is not the only region in France paying attention to the Philippines. Another exhibit, this time supported by the Quai Branly Museum in Paris, has also opened this spring. Archipelago of Exchange (“Archipel des échanges”) is a show revolving around Philippine artefacts dating back to pre-colonial time and is dubbed as the first major exhibition in France dedicated to the Philippines.  The Embassy of France describes it as “an excellent venue in strengthening Franco-Philippine relations in culture and the arts.”Archipelago of Exchange and Manila Vice, while different in theme, share one objective in common – to present Philippine art and culture to France by exhibiting works that are rarely seen or heard of in Europe.

These milestones should serve to encourage further artistic collaborations between the Philippines and other countries in Europe.  In fact, plans are already in motion to bring Manila Vice to Santander, Spain. These initiatives are also a good platform for exchange, discovery, and association between seemingly distant cultures. Lastly, they serve as a reminder for artists to continue cultivating and making use of their networks, and for institutions to be more cognisant of these valuable partnerships.

Manila Vice is on display in MIAM until September 2013.

For more information about the exhibit and participating artists, please see http://culture360.org/event/Sète-france-manila-vice-exhibition/.

References:

http://www.miam.org/telechargements/dossier%20de%20presse%20Manila.pdf

http://www.ambafrance-ph.org/Herve-di-Rosa-Manuel-Ocampo.

http://www.sete.fr/index.php/Accueil?idpage=61&idmetacontenu=2531

http://www.ambafrance-ph.org/Herve-di-Rosa-Manuel-Ocampo

http://www.manilaartblogger.com/2011/12/17/herve-di-rosa-in-manila/  

http://asemus.museum/event/paris-largest-exhibition-indigenous-filipino-art/

Lai del Rosario is a freelance writer and photographer. She started her professional writing career in 2006 as a copywriter in an advertising agency and has since been writing articles on culture, lifestyle, art exhibitions, and taking photographs of her adventures and travels.

She is currently based between France and Switzerland.

This June, the Indonesian Pavilion, under the banner of “Sakti”- in Sanskrit meaning cosmic energy – is all set to be a force to reckon with at the 55th Venice Biennale. Five artists have been selected: Albert Yonathan Setyawan, Eko Nugroho, Entang Wiharso, Sri Astari (Rasjid), and Titarubi. Curators Carla Bianpoen and Rifky Effendy, project initiator and producer Restu Imansari, and Commissioner Adji Damais have had the unenviable task of shaping this ambitious project.

Bharti Lalwani speaks to Carla Bianpoen and Rifky Effendy to find out more.

(Key: Carla Bianpoen: CB, Rifky Effendy: RE, Bharti: B)

B: How did you come to initiate the Curatorial Board for the Indonesian Pavilion for 55th Venice Biennale?

 CB & RE: It was Restu Imansari Kusumaningrum who initiated the project while forming the board was a joint exercise. When she visited the 54th Venice Biennale to attend the opening of the Ukrainian Pavilion, she was impressed by what she saw there and felt sad that Indonesia was not represented with a national pavilion. Back from Venice she tried to convince the government of the significance of an Indonesian representation in this most important international platform.
B: Was it easy convincing them?

CB & RE: Convincing was one thing, working it all out was another. Changing departments and personnel in the bureaucracy posed some of the hurdles in the long process of dealings.

Actually, this will not be the first time for Indonesia. In 1954, Affandi, Indonesia’s modern master, was invited to participate as an artist. In 2003 Heri Dono became the first and so far the only contemporary Indonesian artist to be invited as an individual to participate in the official international exhibition of the Biennale,  while the first Indonesian pavilion also in 2003, was curated by Amir Sidharta. This was followed by another attempt in 2005 by curator Dwi Marianto.

Heri Dono was invited by the artistic director Francesco Bonami. Bonami had conceived 10 exhibitions by different curators and Heri was invited to participate in the exhibition Zone Of Urgency, curated by Hou Hanru and his work was shown in the Arsenale. Today things are organized differently and the international exhibition is now in a special building “La Biennale”.

This year’s Indonesia National Pavilion in the 55th International Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia will for the first time be taking place in the Arsenale, one of the two main venues of this event. The Ministry for Tourism and Creative Economy have allocated funds for the rent of 500 square meters for the duration of 6 months in the Arsenale. This will also be the first time that the Indonesia National Pavilion theme is taken from Indonesian cultural heritage.

B: There seem to have been a number of hurdles along the way; in your opinion and years of critical observation of the local and international art scene, what have been the major challenges for Indonesia thus far in order to have a Pavilion?

CB & RE: Many people in Indonesia do not yet understand the significance of having a national pavilion in the Venice Biennale but the Ministry for Tourism and Creative Economy has allocated the money needed for the rent of 500 square meters in the Arsenale for the duration of the biennale from June to November 2013. Though the rent is just a small portion of the budget, funding is still a major problem.

B: You have picked a diverse list of artists who work with various mediums, from ceramics to sculpture to new media, and they also represent different generations, the oldest being Sri Astari (1959) and the youngest, Albert Yonathan (1983).  Will they all be making new works for the biennale?

CB & RE: Yes they have all made new works, each artist has articulated on representing SAKTI. Though of different generations, Astari and Albert have remarkably been on the same wave-length as is evident in their art practice, both refer to spirituality and the internal journey of seeking the cosmic divine.

As for the curatorial setting, the display of works within 500 square meters in the Arsenale has been designed with the assistance of Balinese architect Wimba Anenggata and interior desigger Djanti Soekirno, while the sound scape is composed by Rahayu Supanggah. The Pavilion is a production of PT Bumi Purnati (Jakarta)and Change Performing Arts (Milan).

B: How will each of their artwork tie in together in order to fulfill the curatorial narrative while providing a global context through local references?

CB & RE: An unprecedented influx of information through global exchange has no doubt made a mark on art production internationally. However, in Indonesia, the encounter between global forces and the existing culture has resulted in the sort of contemporary art which bears its own authentic and unique characteristics. Therefore, our main objective is to showcase a substantially alternative art practice amidst other international pavilions at Venice Biennale. You must come and see, feel, and experience the Indonesia National Pavilion in the 55th International Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia.

B: I would love to! I am really intrigued by the curatorial header “Sakti” which has its roots in Sanskrit. In ancient Indian philosophy, Shakti represents the dynamic feminine energy of the divine- and in folklore, features as the Goddess who is the counterpart to the masculine (and destructive) god- Shiva. Why this mystical theme, and what sort of a creative force will we be seeing from the five selected artists?

CB & RE: Sakti indeed derives from the Hindu belief in Shakti; Sakti in Indonesia denotes various meanings which have integrated with the local culture over hundreds of years. Associated with achieving something beyond human ability. Sakti, among multiple meanings, also connotes change, regenration and feminine creative energy as opposed to brute strength.

Within our Javanese cultural and philosophical realm, Sakti symbolizes the power of the South Sea Queen, who’s strength is believed to be behind the Sultan’s power, as well as within each person.  It became Sri Astari’s metaphor expressed in the installation Pendopo: Dancing the Wild Seas with seven Bedoyo dancers. The “Pendopo” is the fundamental element of Javanese architecture. In the palace it used to be the sacred space where the Sultan was anointed with the South Sea Queen’s invisible presence, power and blessing. In the commoners’ house, pendopo is where visitors are welcomed and ceremonial events are held, a sort of ante chamber. For Sri Astari, it is a metaphor for the soul. To find one’s identity, one has to look intrinsically to find the power that is believed to be present within. According to Astari, it is essential for everyone to ‘switch on’ that power if the human race is to survive beyond materialism.

Albert Yonathan’s Cosmic Labyrinth: The Silent Path made of 1,200 objects in the form of ceramic stupas, is also meant as a spiritual meditation in order to find enlightenment through transformative energy which he believes is the power of Sakti.

For Titarubi, knowledge and science are the pillars of Sakti, which she reveals with the installation The Shadow of Surrender featuring school benches made from burnt wood with thick open books placed on them- a metaphor for education and the length of time and perseverance needed to acquire it. The charcoal drawing, accompanying this installation, of burnt and ashen trees reference the school benches, as well as  the cycle of life, death and regeneration (burnt trees in the forest are fertilizers from which new trees will emerge). This cycle of continuity is also revealed within the cut frames for the drawing.

Meanwhile Entang Wiharso’s The Indonesian: No Time to Hide features a large gate covered with reliefs  referencing the Borobudur Temple, but depicting contemporary life. The sculptures around a meeting table have distorted faces of the country’s presidents- past and present- (all made with graphite and resin) which refer to perception versus reality- how negative notions of the country are countered by the inner strength of its citizens who stand tall- a feat of Sakti.

Eko Nugroho’s bamboo raft Menghasut Badai-badai (Instigating Storms) with his iconic figures depicted on it also refer to the ability of the country to survive amidst overwhelming political, social and religious challenges.

B: Venice attracts a huge and varied audience- from globe-trotting curators and collectors to art enthusiasts from all corners of the world- who more often than not end up on a marathon of sorts where everyone consumes the art in a rushed manner. What sort of an experience do you two hope to create through this glimpse of contemporary Indonesia?

CB & RE: We hope the pavillion as a whole will exert a visceral and visual experience. By re-reading the past and contemplating the present we hope for Indonesian contemporary art to take its due place on the world map while offering a different art practice. We have also written a curatorial essay together in order to provide context for the audience. The catalog comes in the form of  a book which also includes an essay by Bali based author Jean Couteau, along with profiles of the participating artists.

The hardship and struggle of our nation aside, we wanted to emphasize the feminine creative power that ultimately prevails as it does in the mythical power of Dewi Sri, the rice goddess, or the hidden, yet poignantly tangible power of the South Sea Queen. Amidst the ever increasing commodification of art, we wanted to offer an alternative art practice where tradition is interpreted within a contemporary context.

Bharti Lalwani has a BA in Fine Art and an MA in Contemporary Art; She writes for several publications across SE Asia and India.

The third interview for By People / In Cities: Phnom Penh invites Fred Frumberg, Founder and Executive Director of Amrita Performing Arts, a non-profit organisation working to preserve and revive Cambodian performing arts. He shares his thoughts about the future possibilities for Cambodian arts and his experience in integrating contemporary elements into Cambodian performing arts through international collaborations.

Q: If you had to pick one word to describe Phnom Penh, what would it be?

Evolution

Q: There is a growing relationship between cultural heritage and new creative practices in Cambodia, how does Amrita experience and live this new artistic climate?

Our mission at Amrita has been to help revive and preserve the wide spectrum of Cambodia’s traditional performing arts through a programme that emphasised national capacity building in all aspects of production management.

As a reflection of observed shifts in the country’s artistic climate, the mission has evolved to focus more on contemporary creativity in theatre and dance. Amrita Performing Arts produces fully staged productions of contemporary Cambodian dance and theatre in collaboration with internationally renowned directors and choreographers, featuring professional Cambodian performers through a process of intensive workshop and dialogue.

In its current phase of development, Amrita Performing Arts has become a major catalyst in helping these young artists find their voice and move their creative drives forward in a proactive, nurturing and culturally sensitive environment.

As the Cambodian artists reveal greater technical ability with a passionate artistic zeal, we continued to lower the ‘safety’ net by introducing into the process collaborators from further afield. Highly successful workshops have led to the creation of new and exciting repertory with such artists as Belgium based choreographer Arco Renz, Indonesian choreographer Eko Supriyanto, Khmer / French choreographer Emmanuèle Phuon and Toronto based choreographer Peter Chin to name a few. These works have played to an eager and curious Cambodian audience as well to extremely receptive audiences on international stages around the world.

Amrita Performing Arts is now well established in Cambodia as a pioneer in Cambodian contemporary dance, responding to the creative drives and desires of our performers who in turn are responding to a vastly different Cambodia.  Our hope through these collaborations has been to translate the experience of current social conditions into the dance parameters of time, space and physical energy; exploring the themes of emergence from isolation towards integration within the complexities of the contemporary world and in the context of a transformed country. Our work continues to examine the relationship between tradition and the contemporary, set against the backdrop of the past and the current social milieu.

Q: What would help improve the situation for artists and arts organizations in Phnom Penh?

More support from the government for non-tangible culture as well as a stronger sense of responsibility on the part of well off Cambodians who are in a situation to help develop the arts community.  Nearly the entire burden now falls international NGO’s and that needs to shift.

Q: Do the arts and culture have the capacity to bring social change in Phnom Penh? And are they accessible enough for local people?

We have produced numerous plays on social issues including HIV awareness, domestic violence which included extensive outreach programmes.  We also produced two play about the Khmer Rouge; 3 Years, 8 Months, 20 Days and Breaking the Silence. The latter played throughout the Cambodian provinces with audience discussions that were so successful, the play was invited to tour to five cities in Rwanda last month to help teach local artists to use theatre for purposes of national reconciliation.

Q: How do you envision the future for young artists in Phnom Penh?

Very hopeful otherwise what would be the point of our efforts. As we’ve observed the voracious appetite of the artists, we recently changed our mission statement to read:  Amrita Performing Arts is committed to creating contemporary Cambodian dance and theatre for a new generation of artists passionately dedicated to ushering their country’s ancient performing arts heritage into the future.

Fred Frumberg moved to Cambodia in June ’97 as a consultant with UNESCO, to assist in the revival and preservation of Cambodian traditional and contemporary performing arts. In July 2003 Fred founded AMRITA Performing Arts, a non-profit organization based in Phnom Penh to continue these efforts and introduce an element of contemporary creativity.  Prior to Cambodia, Fred spent fifteen years working in opera houses and theaters throughout the USA and Europe, assisting stage directors such as Peter Sellers, Francesca Zambello and Deborah Warner.  He was Head of Production at the Paris Opera from 1994-1997, a staff stage director for the Netherlands Opera in the late 1980’s and production manager for two World Festivals of Sacred Music in Los Angeles in 1999 and 2002.

By people / In cities is a series of articles and interviews that aims to enhance the understanding of art and culture in Southeast and East Asia through individual stories and perspectives including artists, cultural practitioners, and policy makers from the following 6 cities: Bangkok, Jogjakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Phnom Penh, Hong Kong and Singapore.

The second series introduces Phnom Penh, Cambodia, through its cultural heritage and the recent transformations that have been taking place at the intersection of traditional and contemporary practices. 

Veeranganakumari Solanki in conversation with the FOCUS co-founders Nicola Antaki, Elise Foster Vander Elst, and Matthieu Foss for culture360.org. Focus is the first photography festival in Mumbai and it took place between 13-27 March 2013. 

Veeranganakumari Solanki: To begin, could you briefly outline the background and build-up towards the FOCUS festival. How was FOCUS conceived and why did you feel the need to initiate a photography festival in Mumbai?

FOCUS Team: FOCUS was born from a desire to bring art out into public spaces, and bring audiences into exhibition spaces. As a team we are very interested in encouraging people who are not necessarily “gallery goers” to engage with contemporary art and photography. That’s why you’ll find FOCUS exhibitions on view in a variety of diverse locations across the city.

[Elise] Nicola and I started discussing FOCUS in early 2012, and invited Matthieu Foss to join us on this exciting journey several months later. We then spent the next year building a wonderful team, and inviting the city’s most dynamic arts organisations, restaurants, boutiques and more to take part.

VS:  All of you have spent a long time in India and been involved with various projects related to the arts. However, did you feel that not originating from India posed a challenge when you initiated this festival, and why did you choose Mumbai? Could you share your encounters with us?

FT: As you say we have all lived here for many years, so we all feel very much at home in Mumbai, and know how to initiate and execute cultural projects of this scale in the city. Over the years we have all worked with many of our FOCUS partners in different capacities, so we had their trust and support from the start. Without that Focus would not have been possible. There were of course challenges, like with any project, however they were more to do with the fact that this was a new concept, rather than to do with our nationalities.

VS: Is there a certain model or another festival structure, which you followed or studied while creating FOCUS?

FT: We looked at many different models when creating FOCUS, and were certainly inspired by festivals such as the Mois de la Photo in Paris (organised by the local government, the city invites spaces across the city to submit proposals for photography exhibitions), public art projects which exhibit works in outdoor spaces, and our friends who run the Delhi Photo Festival. Essentially, we had to create a new model that was appropriate for the cultural landscape, audience, and infrastructure of Mumbai. That was one of the challenges, which was also very interesting when conceptualising the project.

VS: There have been several events that you organised around the city, from exhibitions, portfolio reviews, talks, competitions and a treasure hunt. It has been a great way to involve “the city” (which was also your theme for FOCUS this year). Was this something that people and partnering spaces responded to with immediacy, or did it require a lot more effort? Could you talk about this with a few examples of individual experiences?

FT: Some elements of the programme happened very naturally and easily, others required a lot of research and persuasion! We were very grateful to our partners at Photo Corner and Pro Helvetia – Swiss Arts Council, who immediately offered to provide free books for the Open Library, which has been extremely successful. All the participating venues and international arts councils were also very excited about Focus, and were quick to agree and put together their own photography exhibitions. Since we planned the event a long time in advance, our partners all had the time to really think about what they wanted to show, and get involved in a meaningful way.

Some aspects were a little tricky, we spent a long time looking for the perfect Focus Hub, where we could centralise activities, host portfolio reviews and talks. We had a few false starts; however two months before the festival opened we learnt that a new restaurant, Cheval had opened just opposite two of our main exhibitions. They very kindly agreed to host us for the duration of the festival, and we found the perfect nucleus for Focus.

VS: In terms of funding; it is a huge effort to bring together something of this scale. All of you did invest your faith in the crowd-funding option, and also approached prospective sponsors alongside. Is this something you will continue doing for future editions too? Do you feel that this initiative made it a festival of the people?

FT: Crowd funding is a very new way to raise money for cultural projects – there is a certain beauty in exchanging gifts for donations, and building a project for the city, with the support from the city. We were humbled and overwhelmed by the generosity of individuals who believed in the project, whose contributions provided the seed funding which allowed us to get the festival started. However, to produce projects of this scale and to a high standard, serious investment is required, and this should not only come from individuals. Crowd funding and in-kind support is definitely valuable, but should not be a substitute for more formal philanthropic, corporate, or government support. We were extremely grateful to our primary sponsor, Bloomberg LP, and to Absolut who also supported the project. Thanks to them we were able to increase the festival’s scale, reach and scope on and offline. Both companies have had amazing faith in us, and understand why such a festival is important and necessary in our city.

VS: What were your expectations for FOCUS, and were they achieved? How and what would you change for future editions of FOCUS?

FT: As an organiser of an event, there is always this terrible fear that people won’t come. However, we needn’t have worried, attendance figures have been high, with all events packed to the brim, thousands of visitors enjoying the exhibitions, hundreds coming to the workshops and talks… More than the numbers, what has been incredible is the range of people who have been enjoying the activities. People from all ages, and all walks of life have been visiting the festival, and that has been amazing to see. It is fascinating to see that in its multiple facets, the photography community is constantly craving for opportunities to gather, exchange and endlessly debate and discuss. Focus has successfully provided that platform and opened it to a larger and diverse audience.

In terms of what we would change for future editions, it would be great to branch out even more into the streets and public areas of the city. We would love to see more exhibitions in the streets, parks and other outdoor spaces.

VS: Could you briefly talk about the overall response that FOCUS received, and how you envision the development, continuity, sustainability and future of the FOCUS photography festival?

FT: The response has been truly wonderful, the atmosphere has been amazing, so positive, with infectious enthusiasm from partners, visitors and contributors.

There is a real need for platforms of this type, not only to help young photographers, but also to celebrate photography, and the visual arts. Most of the galleries are open all year around, not just during Focus, and it’s important that people know that.

To develop the festival we will keep talking to photographers, cultural activists and partners, who can help us grow with their support and advice. We plan to host Focus every two years, to take it in turns, so to speak, with the Delhi Photo Festival which also happens every two years.

The future of Focus is very reliant on several factors: demand, the team, and funding. There is certainly demand for such an event, which is something that we knew already. The team have been amazing, offering their time, expertise and energy. It’s really thanks to them that we were able to produce an event of such a high standard. Finally, the elephant in the room, funding. We plan to continue to develop our network of partnerships and continue work with supporters such as Bloomberg and Absolut who have an admirable vision for the future of cultural partnerships in India.

Artist Budi Wijaya (Indonesia/Singapore) works across different media including comics. He tells culture360.org about his experience with the Lingua Comica programme. An initiative set up by the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF) to promote cultural exchanges through comic book workshops, residencies, and online collaborations.

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As a Lingua Comica programme alumni based in Singapore, I was invited to participate in a talk session at the book launch. There, I shared thoughts on my collaborative and multicultural experience working with artists from Germany, Japan and Romania. Hwei Lim, a Kuala Lumpur based Lingua Comica alumni (a wonderful artist and person too, if I may add) and whom I first met in Kyoto in 2009, was also present and provided an insightful perspective of how the programme had impacted her work and the precious intercultural friendships she gained through it.

Lingua Comica profoundly impacted my artistic vision in the way that it had facilitated a multicultural collaborative platform where comic artists of different origins met, worked and formed lasting friendships. Starting with comics as our initial common ground, we got to know more about each other and toward the end, perhaps got to learn about ourselves a little better too. The wonderful multicultural experience at Lingua Comic inspired me to seek it out further, not only in my artistic work but also in everyday life.

Many people have been asking about what exactly made the Lingua Comica platform work so beautifully. I don’t have the answer. But there are many variables in a complex equation; for Lingua Comica there were comics as a medium, the number of participants, the selected groups of artists, the mode of collaboration, the physical space, the facilitators, etc. Somehow, somewhere in that mix, a bright spark was ignited and the result was magical. Ask any Lingua Comica alumni and I believe they will tell you so.

To choose comics as the medium for an international artistic collaboration is a bold move by any cultural organisation, let alone ASEF. The history of comics (which are derived from an ancient and unbroken history of sequential art since cave paintings) is not known for its sophistication. For an art form that lies between words and pictures, it is often frowned upon by both visual artists and bibliophiles. Yet this ‘lowly’ art made its way into my hands as a child growing up in Surakarta. The moderator of the talk, Sali Sasaki from ASEF, also mentioned about the low-key, and almost underground aspect of comics production and dissemination in Jakarta. This suggests to me an art form that is not only accessible but is highly desirable for many in the developing part of Asia.

The British writer Neil Gaiman (famous for his ‘Sandman’ comics series) quipped that comics is a medium that is misunderstood to be a genre. As the global culture evolves into a transnational one in the 21st century, the comics medium may surprise us with its flexibility in bridging cultures, beliefs and lives, from one panel to the next.

Budi Wijaya runs a design company in Singapore called Plastic Soldier Factory. He is also strongly involved in art and design exhibitions, extending his commercial practice to investigations on aesthetics, technology, culture, and philosophy. He describes his approach as: “I am not a comic artist and not interested to be one in the conventional sense of the word. This is despite my reading/collecting/drawing comics for the past 20 years. I am interested in pushing the boundaries of comic art form through visual design. Also, I would like to develop cultural ideas through storytelling. And in doing so, contribute to the ‘cultural database’ for the next generation about what it means to participate in a multi-cultural global community.”

Day 3: 29^th October 2012

Keynote speech by Professor Nikos Papastergiadis | Case-studies 4, 5, 6 | Speech by René Block | Interactive session | Biennale Representatives Meeting

Ute Meta Bauer began the third day of the Forum mentioning briefly the concerns of the wide margins of diversity within Asia, and the political and cultural focus with the urgency of a Biennale.

There was a common thread of the issue of cosmopolitanism that linked the three keynote speakers over the three days of discussion. Nikos Papastergiadis delivered his keynote speech on Aesthetic Cosmopolitanism (The Widest Possible Frame); through which he revived the terms: Perspective, Imagination, Creation and Cosmos. Addressing these terms in relation to cosmopolitanism and artistic practices, Papastergiadis focused on the idea of the biennale as “a kind of world making activity and part of our cosmopolitan imaginary”, that were an internalisation of and for art. He also addressed a crucial aspect of the behavioural aspect of Biennales branding cities as creative hubs.

The three case-studies presented on Day 3 were:

• Case study 4 | Emergent-Alternative | Emergency Biennale, Kochi-Muziris Biennale, Land Art Mongolia 360°, Tibilisi Triennial, Festival of Images, Bangladesh
• Case study 5 | South-Korea | Gwangju Biennale, Mediacity Seoul, Anyang Public Art Project
• Case study 6 | Asia and its margins | Sharjah Biennale, Istanbul Biennale, Ural Industrial Biennale of Contemporary Art, Meeting Points

Like the first three case studies on Day 2, these three case studies, were also a focus on Asian Biennales, but in very different contexts, which in turn created an awareness of the diversity within the Asian context and the many points of uncertainty within Shifting Gravity.

Case-study 4, was a unique model of Biennales that have faced challenges of governments, organisation, funding, audience and have been beyond the parameters of a Biennale categorisation. The Tibilisi Triennial concentrates on education through art; while the Emergency Biennale and the Festival of Images have gone beyond government systems to integrate public interaction and react to situations of crisis. Land Art Mongolia 360° is a personal investment of time and budget that involves a more humane spirit in relation to the isolation of the art in a landscape. The Kochi-Muziris Biennale was the only Biennale of its kind that was a presentation of a Biennale that is still to take place. The case-study of an emerging Biennale provided some interesting insights into what will develop into India’s first Biennale in December 2012. Artists’ funding and government references were again a common point of reference that by this point in the Forum established this as a need that needs to be addressed internationally.

The prolificacy of Biennales in South Korea cannot be negated. Case-study 5 concentrated on 3 important Biennales in a country that could today be referred to as a centre of this Shifting Gravity. With the Gwangju Biennale as Asia’s first international biennale and Media city Seoul and the Anyang Public Art Project established; this case-study was a reflection of concerns that have matured over a period of time and addressed issues from biennales as alternative art forms and spaces for exhibition to the shifting focus from the West to the East with a reference to co-existence of different disciplines and ideas.

The final case-study group on Asia and its margins, moderated by Hou Hanru addressed the concerns of Asian representation and the multiple diversities of Asian borders. Does a biennale have to be identified with a city with the constant shift of artists around the globe? The aspects of changing geographies and new perspectives of territories are something that is a concern addressed by Asia and its margins.

René Block, the last speaker of the Gwangju session of the World Biennial Forum discussed the history of the Biennial as a location finder and its role in the art scene. An important aspect that he stressed upon, which is also a growing concern in relation the Biennales is the concept of the exhibition as a manifestation of social and cultural exchange.

The interactive session was a wrap up to the wider aspects that were addressed during the forum, with Hou Hanru and Ute Meta Bauer discussing the terrain of legacies that has been created by Biennales across the world. There is a danger of standardisation, but the diversity within which Biennales exist will not allow this.

Biennale Representatives Meeting –

This meeting was attended by representatives from over fifty Biennales with the aim of the necessity of sharing the future. Chaired by Marike van Hal, Yongwoo Lee and Elke aus dem Moore, there were opportunities explored about collaborations and expectations from Biennale colleagues in context to the Biennale being looked at as an organisation. On common ground, the importance of audience interaction and response; educational knowledge, funding and issues of artists’ visas and facilitation were discussed. There was an initiative to create an international platform to support colleagues and to have an official alliance to talk about the future of content and structure. It was finally decided to create a Biennale Association with the reference of the chairpersons who would appoint representatives from regional biennales to create a core committee. This would lead to networking, archiving, sharing information, creating voice collectives, and forming alliances within the historical trajectory of biennales.

Day 4: 30^th October 2012

Leeum – Samsung Museum of Art – Anish Kapoor | Seoul Museum of Art – 7^th Mediacity Seoul Biennale 2012 | Keynote speech by Professor Chantal Mouffe | SeMA Day dinner

The final day of the Forum was a keynote speech by Chantal Mouffe at the Seoul Museum of Art as a part of SeMA day. This was preceded by an optional tour that included a visit to cultural venues in Seoul. At the Leeum Samsung Museum, Anish Kapoor’s first major solo exhibition in a museum in East Asia; which had his early pigment works to the Cave from his most recent Cor-Ten series. The exhibition occupied the museum in its entirety. This visit was followed by a visit to the Mediacity Seoul Biennale and the final keynote speech delivered by Chantal Mouffe.

Mouffe, also addressed the issues of “Beyond Cosmopolitanism”, while addressing the issues of art and politics and the social resent of political consequences. She spoke about a relevant issue that arose through the Forum of the cosmopolitan nature of artistic practice in Biennales.

In conclusion the Biennales were discussed as creative spaces of diversion of cultures to create encounters.

The first World Biennale Forum ended with a special dinner organised as a part of SeMA day on 30^th October on a note of it being the first of more to follow and to create an infrastructure and association of Biennials across the world.

Read World Biennial Forum No. 1 | Diary: day 1 and 2

One of the world’s greatest hot spring areas, the city of Beppu sits on an open bay on the southern Kyushu island of Japan. It’s a surprising place – as you approach you see plumes of steam rising from the onsen districts dotted around the city. Closer to the sources, you navigate through a fog of steaming pavements and alleyways, past heavily encrusted pressure contraptions that channel the boiling springs.

The health-giving properties of Beppu’s hot springs are well known to the Japanese and the city is also often viewed with nostalgia as it was a popular 1960s honeymoon and holiday destination.  But these days it is showing a different – and equally surprising – face to the world, taking the conviviality of the traditional bathing scene into an edgy contemporary arts project.

The Beppu Project started in 2005 and is committed to a belief in creativity as the resource for the future. It has helped develop the infrastructure and programme for arts and culture in the city, embedding an impressive range of arts events into the lives of its citizens.

Art is a catalyst to make us ‘aware’ of different perspectives, evoking our creativity by prompting us to see and think freely. It opens new possibilities to change familiar views into a rich world full of diversity. [Beppu Project]

The most visible international aspect of the Beppu Project is the triennial contemporary art festival Mixed Bathing World recently held in October/November 2012. Executive producer Jun’ya Yamaide has a strong vision for the event which brings internationally renowned artists into a face to face connection with local people. Creating a convivial atmosphere in which art, food, conversation, life and laughter mingle is the most important factor for Yamaide and revives the traditional culture of the hot springs.

Focused on eight projects in visual arts and dance, Mixed Bathing World connects to the city’s famous eight geothermal hotspots. It also has the advantage of imposing a manageable scale that fits the local context and audience needs. The artistic director has no desire to emulate the scale of huge art biennials and triennials in Japan and elsewhere. “We want to make beautiful ideas reality” is Jun’ya Yamaide’s credo and taking the Beppu audience on the journey of connecting with the art is closely integrated into this vision. The 2012 triennale featured works by Christian Marclay, Ann Veronica Janssens, Shilpa Gupta and Qiu Zhijie among others.

One of the Mixed Bathing World 2012 projects which reflected this spirit particularly well was the street performance project by choreographer Yoko Higashino, composer and sound artist Toshio Kajiwara and other associates which transformed an entire shopping arcade into a theatre space. The artists worked in Kusunokiginten-gai, once Beppu’s top shopping destination. As in other Japanese cities, 1950s arcades have gradually lost their central role and the Beppu arcade now has many closed down shops. The project used recycled waste materials (old car parts, washing machine components and other industrial debris) to create stage sets and furnish empty shops. A former school uniform shop hosted an oral history project that collected and broadcast old dance music from the 1950s and 60s, awakening memories for passers-by. Dance workshops involved professional and local amateur dancers from five to eighty years old and a final performance ‘Void the Fill’ took place in the arcade.

Higashino and Kajiwara, with experience of other public art projects in Japan, commented: “this project has been very satisfying and inspiring for us because it has given us time to really engage with the local community. We found an elderly man with a huge collection of tapes and records from the 1940s onwards.”  Beppu Project’s International Affairs Coordinator, Marianne Bevand, said that the project required delicate communication with local users of the arcade since interventions in public space in Japan must ensure proper respect. She knew they were truly accepted when local people started making cushions and fittings to soften the hard-edged post-industrial aesthetic created in a refurbished shop.

Another important component of the Beppu Project, the Kashima artist residency, has run since 2008 inviting many Japanese artists to work in the city. Now the residency has gone international and, following an open call (the 2^nd most shared residency call on culture360.org in 2012), over 800 applications were received.  The theme ‘A Course through Beppu City’  inspired many artists and the selectors finally chose two pairs of artists for the Kashima 2013 International Artistic Residency who are now in residence in Beppu, working in different styles and media to explore pathways through the city:

• Elodie Dornand and Seung-Hwan Oh (France/Korea) propose an ephemeral course using paper graffiti realised on the streets of Beppu city, including some half-real, half-fantasy portraits of inhabitants. The art work will open new ways across the city where the audience might discover a secret art work (small, intimate-scale graffiti in narrow alleys, inside onsen, on a street corner) or large-scale graffiti visible from far away (huge drawings stuck on a building wall, or a bridge).

• Christophe Rault and Silvain Gire (France), founders of ARTE radio, the online radio of the French-German TV channel Arte, propose a narrative course. Silvain will write a fictional scenario inspired by his experiences in Beppu. Christophe will record, mix and edit the sounds of voices and noises of daily urban life and nature…  The audience will then be invited on a radio journey, a way to experience short modern fictions, intimate stories, funny and poetic, through the city.

The annual Beppu Art Month connects the grassroots arts activity of the city with the international level, providing an umbrella for some 150 events in 2012, including exhibitions, pop-up design shops, community dance activities and arts education work. A shop sells Beppu-made art and design products and the renovated former strip-club which hosted the 2012 golden night project offers theatre space for future performances.

An interesting aspect of the arts activities in Beppu – observed elsewhere in Japan but rarely part of European arts projects – is the strong link between arts and food. Food culture is well integrated into arts and culture projects here. In the Mixed Bathing World programme, interviews with the international artists sit alongside tantalising photo essays about Beppu’s food specialities, featuring the proprietors and customers of its many restaurants and cafés.  A key part of the autumn arts programme was the pop-up cafés, providing delicious pit-stops around the city for arts visitors.

Also under the direction of Jun’ya Yamaide, the Kunisaki Art Project started in 2012 in the nearby rural peninsula. A beautiful, isolated area with strong spiritual traditions, Kunisaki is known as a ‘power place’ with a traditional annual festival based on the appearance of a shamanistic-style oni – the Stranger. In 2012, two internationally renowned Japanese artists directed artistic projects: visual artist, Naoki Ishikawa undertook a photography commission and exhibition documenting the amazing landscape, inhabitants and traditions; while stage director, Norimizu Ameya, presented a story-telling performance, involving local teenagers, through a bus tour in the region. The bus tours were an extremely popular way to visit Kunisaki Art Project and were hugely oversubscribed every weekend.

In the region, an abandoned village building has been renovated as the ‘Strangers Club’, designed as a communication centre where artists from Japan and around the world can meet with local people in Kunisaki and exchange ideas. Used as a café and gallery during the art project, this is now a public space to be enhanced by the creation of a ‘Sleeping House’ and a ‘Thinking House’ in years to come. In February 2013, the traditional oni/Stranger festival is accompanied by a contemporary art project with Yoko Ono curating an exhibition of commissioned chairs.

So step outside the mainstream arts circuits to discover surprising art connections in Beppu and Kunisaki – and while you are there, check out the rest of Kyushu. It’s definitely worth the detour!

Images: Qiu Zhijie project for Mixed Bathing World, Christian Marclay project for Mixed Bathing World, courtesy Beppu Project, Mixed Bathing World and Kunisaki Art Project

culture360.org Writer Katerina Valdivia Bruch shares her artistic experiences in Indonesia and interviews the artists and founders of Cemeti Art House: Mella Jaarsma (MJ) and Nindityo Adipurnomo (NA).

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In December 2008, I came to Indonesia for the first time. Once there, I did not know much about what I would find in terms of artistic practice. During three months, I was living in the artist run space MES56, composed by a group of photographers, in the city of Yogyakarta. At that time, the arts scene in Jogja (another word to say Yogyakarta) was vibrant with artist run initiatives that were presenting exhibitions, artist talks, organising workshops, offering music gigs or concerts of electronic music and performances. The majority of the events were organised by artists and arts practitioners, due to the lack of public infrastructure for contemporary arts.

The first exhibition I visited was Java’s Machine: Phantasmagoria by Jompet Kuswidananto that deeply impressed me for its multidisciplinarity and its reflection on Java as a melting pot for different cultures. Historical facts were combined in an interactive sound and video installation, together with an on-site performance by the actor Bahrul Ulum from Teater Garasi and Risky Summerbee, leader of the band Risky Summerbee and the Honeythief, who performed during the opening. This show was presented at Cemeti Art House, an artist initiative established in 1988 by Mella Jaarsma and Nindityo Adipurnomo, that has just celebrated its 25 years of existence on 31 January 2013.

Cemeti promoted contemporary Indonesian art overseas doing collaborations with international institutions and residency programmes. This institution organised a variety of courses, workshops, talks and lectures on current local and global issues. What distinguishes Cemeti is its commitment towards a reflection on art and society. In 1995, they developed an archive about Indonesian contemporary art under the umbrella of Cemeti Art Foundation and were pioneers in establishing discussions not only about local concerns, but also beyond Indonesia’s boundaries. Cemeti is one of the few places to find art discourse in Indonesia, something that is a bit lacking nowadays due to market oriented forces.

INTERVIEW

1. Besides playing a pivotal role in the development of Indonesian contemporary art and opening a path to the internationalisation of it, which are the major achievements that you can recall from these 25 years?

 MJ/NA: One of our achievements is the organisation of exhibitions with quality works pushing the borders of Indonesian artists’ creativity – which means to professionalise artists, bringing them further in their careers by promoting and guiding them during their creative processes, helping/recommending them for further studies, residencies and exhibitions in other places and countries. Another accomplishment is to be able to create awareness about different forms and functions in the arts, to expand networks reaching wider audiences and communities and advocate the importance of the arts to the public and (government) institutions. We are also glad to have been capable to use art as a tool for educational developments in Indonesian society, amongst other projects.

2. When you started Cemeti Art House, there was a particular need to connect Indonesian art to a global art discourse. During that time, Indonesia was ruled by the New Order era under Suharto’s dictatorship. In fact, the artists you were working with had strong socio-political works. Later, during Indonesia’s Reformasi (after the downfall of Suharto in 1998) and the new democracy, you were enganging artists with other social topics, such as environmental issues during the exhibition series Bocor (Leak) or reflecting on Indonesian history in the exhibition Masa Lalu, Masa Lupa (The Past, the Forgotten Time). How do you relate today to art and society?

 MJ/NA: We still develop and stimulate projects that are related to education and discourse, from environmental to political issues. Currently, we are involved in Koalisi Seni Indonesia (Indonesian Art Coalition) bundling different art organisations for advocation with the aim to create an endowment funds for the arts.  We need to support creative stimulation to keep different artforms alive, and to influence critical discourse and perspectives. Responding to this shift, around twenty art organisations from various disciplines such as dance, theatre, film and art management have bundled their strengths and founded  Koalisi Seni Indonesia. The Coalition aims to establish a national peak body for the arts that can advocate for the importance of art in our lives and in society at large. This means, that we are not only dealing with the public or specific communities, but also approaching government bodies to develop fundings for the arts, which was lacking so far.

3. Since its very beginning, Cemeti has been interested in promoting art discourse and reflecting on art and society in Indonesia. In 1995, you founded the Cemeti Art Foundation establishing an archive about Indonesian contemporary art, that became independent in 2007 and is now the Indonesian Visual Art Archive (IVAA). Is there any art historian or curator from Indonesia, that started his or her career thanks to this archive?

MJ/NA: In 2007 only the name changed. In 1995, when we initiated the Cemeti Art Foundation we needed the Cemeti name in order to get the trust to receive fundings, but from the beginning we did not put Cemeti Art House under the umbrella of the foundation. Today, they are two separate organisations and we [Mella and Nindityo] are both still in the board together with six other members of IVAA. We changed the name because of the confusion and we did not need the trust anymore after twelve years.

It is hard to claim if curators developed from there, but for some of the curators this archive has contributed toward their development. Up until now, the strongest curators do not come from Jogja, but it has helped writers and curators like Nuning [Nuraini Juliastuti - former Director of KUNCI Cultural Studies Center] and Alia [Alia Swastika - independent curator].

4. Your experience in the field has opened the door to a number of artists that now have an international career. The term ‘Cemeti artist’ is a sign of quality nowadays. In which way are you still working with these artists?

MJ/NA: With quite many we still have close contact, also because we are colleagues and meet each other in international exhibitions and developed together. But the reality is that we work more intensively with younger artists. So, once the artists are established and absorbed by the commercial or international circuit, they don’t need Cemeti and we move on with a new generation. Although, depending on the project, we still invite those artists who already worked with us and ask them to collaborate in educational projects or workshops.

The changes in the generations have also changed the focus of how Cemeti Art House works. When we started in 1988 the focus was on promoting Indonesian artists nationally and internationally. In more recent years, we have shifted to provide artists with the opportunity to work independent of commercial forces through residencies and other programmes offering them space and time to develop their practice. The question whether young artists in post-dictatorial Asia are only engaged in safe, playful, non-critical consumer art has been raised. Although young artists tend to produce commercial ‘art objects’, the art scene seems as vibrant as ever, yet the function of art may have changed in ways which question Indonesian artists’ influence on the international art scene in the future.

5. With your residency programmes, you have established a bridge between Indonesia and the Netherlands, Australia and other Asian countries, and currently the rest of the world. One of the most interesting programmes connecting Asia and Europe was the Landing Soon artist in residency between Indonesian and Dutch artists. Today, Cemeti offers a place for different kinds of residencies: since 2010, the Hot Wave residency puts together 3 artists from 3 different countries, but you also have a residency for curators, arts managers and writers. What are your future projects related to these exchange programmes and what are the aims of these initiatives?

MJ/NA: Doing more research projects and exhibitions like the Dobrak and Pseudo Participative Project [both projects are part of the Turning Targets programme of events during this year], connecting visual arts and research, but still working with residencies, although we will probably look for a different module.

6. Which anecdotes would you like to share with us from these 25 years?

MJ/NA: Too many…

7. Cemeti Art House celebrates its 25 years with Turning Targets, a year long programme. A good way to reflect about the past and future of contemporary art in Indonesia. How do you see the arts scene now and how would you like to continue working in this field?

MJ/NA: The flow of creative energy keeps us going and makes us want to learn from the past and develop concerning the conditions in Indonesia. That it is very important: to be low profile and relate to the local circumstances, with a local public and a fast changing society and at the same time facilitate information to the international art world.

It is ironic that while today’s art is becoming less exciting and provocative, we are simultaneously witnessing increased attention from a wider audience. At the opening of ART/JOG12, an art fair with artists but no galleries held in Yogyakarta in July 2012, more than 1,000 people queued up during the opening night. Contemporary art is the latest trend in Indonesia; youngsters love to photograph themselves in front of artworks and then post the pictures on Facebook. Local interest from young collectors is also promising. However, considering the increased commercialisation of Indonesian visual art, there should also be a greater emphasis on critical discourse.

Thanks Mella and Nindit for the interview. Let’s celebrate with Cemeti for many more years!

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The author wants to publicly express her sincere gratitude to Mella Jaarsma, Nindityo Adipurnomo and the Cemeti Art House team for their unconditional support during her research periods in Indonesia.

* Information in [ ] are notes by the author

Katerina Valdivia Bruch is a Berlin-based independent curator and art critic. She has curated exhibitions for a number of institutions, including ZKM-Center for Art and Media Karlsruhe, Bielefelder Kunstverein (Bielefeld), CCCB (Barcelona), Instituto Cervantes (Berlin and Munich), Instituto Cultural de Leon (Mexico), Para/Site Art Space (Hong Kong), and the Institute of Contemporary Arts Singapore, LASALLE College of the Arts. In 2008, she was co-curator of the Prague Triennale at the National Gallery in Prague. Besides her work as a curator, she contributes with essays and articles for art publications and magazines. Since 2009, she has organised a number of talks and exhibitions on Indonesian contemporary art.

www.artatak.net

India’s first Biennale debuted on 12/12/12 in Fort Kochi after months of build up in the form of announcements, artists’ visits, talks, support and controversies. Similar to anything new – one may refer to it as teething problems – there were certain glitches which have been attributed to the sudden withdrawal of government support in terms of funding. However the founders, directors and curators (also artists in their own right) of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale – Bose Krishnamachari and Riyas Komu – ensured that India’s much needed first biennale did finally take off on the designated day.

Kochi has a very symbolic and cosmopolitan history of trade and travellers that was reflected through the interaction of various artists with spaces and people during the Biennale. The biennale, as described by the curators, provided an occasion to explore the critical imagery as a mechanism to process, reflect and rewrite history; thereby converging different histories, locals, individuals and collectives with a creative space for expression within a contemporary context.

The quaint town of Fort Kochi transformed into an art venue with the buzz of the word ‘biennale’ being used by everyone from the tuk-tuk drivers who guided one to the next site, to the vendors selling “biennale water” along the pier of Chinese fishing nets and Fort Kochi beach, which was also a biennale venue. The Biennale exhibited the works of 94 artists from 23 countries in spaces located across Fort Kochi – from old warehouses and yards, to the water-front and the old Durbar Hall.

Kerala, Kochi in particular, has been a centre of social activist movements that instigates a discourse on any issue that promotes public interest and involvement. At the ferry terminal on the way to the Durbar Hall, one saw anti-biennale posters replacing Biennale posters and a few weeks after the opening there were two works anonymously vandalised. However, the participating artists have been extremely supportive of the initiative of the first biennale and the artists in fact re-did the wall mural that had been vandalised.

Being an artist-led biennale, there was a different sense of aesthetic understanding that conveyed itself within new parameters of artistic freedom contained by the framework of a biennale. The nature of the venues too was instrumental in furthering this aspect, where each artist’s works responded to specific elements co-related to history and space.

Aspinwall House, a large sea-facing heritage property, was the main venue of the Biennale which showcased majority of the Biennale artists. This venue included works that were a result of artists’ time and research in Fort Kochi (Giuseppe Stampone’s tuk-tuk), to site-specific installations (Srinivas Prasad and Shreyas Karle’s interventions in the garden). For artists who had created individual projects and works, there were separate spaces/ rooms inside Aspinwall House dedicated to a single artist, ensuring space for the work and response from the viewers experiencing it. This was also the case in the other venues spread over Fort Kochi.

Cabral Yard, across the road from Aspinwall House was an excavation site unearthing Sudarshan Shetty’s monumental sculpture. This work was still in the process of being installed at the opening, but with the ephemeral quality of the yard, this could well have been looked at as a performance piece, meant to be. The raw and organic feel of the sites, ensured that the viewers actively engaged with venues and spaces. This process lent itself beyond just viewing art to a level of experiencing and engaging with it at a personal level. Anita Dube’s interactive installation at Pepper House (an old warehouse by the waterfront) involved climbing ladders around the room to view her work through floor windows into the attic from varied angles. Moidu’s Heritage, formerly the property of a coir trading company was a venue that explored the organic feel of a space being explored for the first time. The nature of the works in this space reflected a similar powerful sensitivity, all the way up to Ernesto Nesto’s installation with spices that enveloped the viewer visually with the comforting smells of Kerala.

For a viewer exploring the town for the first time the Kochi-Muziris Biennale promoted and prompted the visitors, artists and locals into new planes of interaction that were all offset on the basis of contemporary art, thereby successfully taking “art to the people”, while ensuring familiarity with the place. The Dutch Warehouse, Calvathy Canal Boat Dock, David Hall and the Parade Grounds, were amongst the other venues between the docks and the old Jewish town located within Fort Kochi.

The works created for the biennale ranged from painting, sculpture, installations, film and new media to the more ephemeral site-specific works, projects and performances. There have also been a number of talks and conferences by internationally renowned curators and people who have touched upon various projects that touched upon similar concerns addressed by the biennale and artists. Similar to other biennales in the world, there were also a number of collateral events on at galleries and artists’ initiated projects at other spaces. After the opening of the first edition of the Biennale itself, Kochi has been termed as the Biennale city. This can be looked at as a positive sign for future development and support of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale.

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Read interview with Bose Krishnamachari and Riyas Komu