Video Documentation

 

A Loose Canon: Who is Collecting and Why?

Day 2 Afternoon Discussion

Following their curatorial talks, lectures & performances, presenters in this session of FIELD MEETING shared their thoughts on the purpose and purposes of collections… “which often delves into the depths of human nature itself to ask: What are we collecting? Who is collecting? and Why?’ ”
 
Moderated by Laura Metzler and Uns Kattan, the conversation addressed a collaborative curatorial presentation by Natasha Degen & Sandra Skurvida, which proposed the development of a new course curriculum that scrutinizes collections from the perspective of various educational frameworks within the MENASA region and beyond. From an institutional lens, Pi Li, chief curator at M+ museum in Hong Kong, analyzed M+ ‘s acquisition of the Chinese artist Huang Yong Ping’s monumental sculpture “Reptile” to ask “What does it mean to build a museum collection in the 21st century”; and Wong Kit Yi / Ali Wong’s shared her thoughts on what she claimed was a “non-lecture-performance” for FIELD MEETING which switched between a PowerPoint and Karaoke “to spin tales about DNA as a quintessential collection making up the very essence of every human being, and her bold courting of collectors to purchase her unproduced works in the future. River Lin shared his process & ideas behind the development of a spell-binding performance, performed by renowned dancer and choreographer: Wen-chung Lin entitled: 20 Minutes for the 20th Century, but Asian. The piece in fact 40 minutes in duration, was a parody of an original work by Tino Sehgal outlining iconic choreographies from the 20th century. Lin questioned the historical transformation of inter-cultural embodiment to consider the history of modern dance in the context of Asia as containing its own form of distinct cultural memory.

 

To view video recording of the Pop-ups installations & walkthrough (warehouse 46) click here

For a full curatorial narrative click here

For detailed synopses and video documentation of each individual presenter click on titles below:
 
Presenters:
Sandra Skurvida & Natasha Degen | New York | Collection of Knowledge: Course of Study
Pi Li | Hong Kong | An Open Collection
Wong Kit Yi & Ali Wong | Hong Kong & New York | Karaoke Lecture Non-Performance: Magic Wands, Batons and DNA Splicers
River Lin & Wen-chung Lin | Paris & Taipei | 20 Minutes for the 20th Century, but Asian
 

Respondents / Moderators:
Laura Metzler | Curator at Maraya Art Centre
Uns Kattan | Programmes Manager at Art Jameel