Asian Biennales Forum ... OPENING REMARKS by PANELISTS

Lee Weng Choy — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 17:20:37 +0000

Asian Biennales Forum: Part II

Lee Weng Choy

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Art from Asia is on the rise — or so it must seem. From Sydney to Shanghai, Busan to Berlin, Asian artists are all over the place. The year 2008 was a banner year for biennales in this part of the world. September alone saw several biennales and triennials opening, including Gwangju, Busan, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Singapore, Taipei and Yokohoma. However, research and analysis of contemporary art from the region have not kept pace with the spectacle of exhibition. And it’s arguable that this underdeveloped state of discourse is an urgent concern. What we need, perhaps, is less chatter, and more reflection. Hopefully, in this forum here, we’ll be able to serve up some of the latter along with some of the former. The Asian Biennales Forum, Part II, is a follow-up from the forum which took place in November 2008.

After the launch, part 2: lessons from ISEA & what’s next

Lee Weng Choy — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 00:59:37 +0000

Lee Weng Choy

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Number of Images in Teaser:

For many contributors, it’s been the summer holidays, and we’ve taken a break since the build up to the launch. But now it’s a good time to get working again on n.e.w.s.

We got good feedback about the website platform during ISEA — both in small discussions with the contributors in Singapore (Ingrid, Mustafa, Rich, Renée and myself), as well as during the launch itself, and in small groups again, after the event. It’s important to acknowledge the achievement of putting the website together — of all the contributions and discussions: for many of us, the issue of cultural diversity was recurring topic; Inti, Rich and Yuliya talked about their specific regions or specific projects; Mia and Stephen, the outside and inside of the artworld; Ade, Inti and Stephen, about traffic; Branka and Mia, about web 2.0 and immaterial labour; Ingrid, Thomas, Mustafa and Stephen, about “world art” ... and so on.