Project Overview

Asia's Art Map, I happened to be in Washington DC exactly one year after
9-1 I. I realized, once again, that more than any impassioned
speeches by politicians, it was the cries of grief from individuals
whose personal ties with their family and friends had been
severed that has resu lted in this event which threatened the· entire wo r ld being etched permanently into our memories .
Although we have been hearing about globalization for a longtime, t he phenomenon of globalization isn 't the result ofpromo tion on the part of governments or politicians. it is theresult of the rapid developmen t in communications technologythat has reduced the sense of distance for all of us throughout
the world. However, globalization does not mean that the worldis becom ing a uniform place . Rathe r , the real significance ofglobalization is first manifested when there is an unde rstanding ·and respect not only for the equality of individuals, but also forthe differences in the historical and cultural backgrounds thatshape each individual.
The world of art is no exception. Many exhibitions based on
the theme of multi-culturalism are being held in Europe and theUnited States , symbolizing a society that is becoming increasingly
mul t i-cultural and which is confront ing issues rela t ed tomigration . Art is becoming increasingly de-centra lized, as has
clearly shown in the Venice Biennale of recent years as well as at"Documenta XI", the international exhibition that had such animpact this summer. Concomitant to this trend, there has beena steady growth in interest in Asian nations by Europe and the .
United States, although much of this interest has yet to transcend
exoticism. During 'the three years since the Tokyo Oper a CityArt Gallery opened , we have attempted
to introduce
international trends in contemporary art by organizing specialexhibitions from a wide variety of viewpoints . The issue of how
to translate and present the phenomenon of globalization to thevisitors in the locality called Tokyo is one issue that the Gallery

Beyond aProgressive Asia-Under

Kataoka Marni

has had to address . Specially in Japan where there is no landborders with other coun t ries , and encounters with othercultures have been relatively restricted , we have to keepaddressing this issue over the long term if Japan is to develop theability to look at different cultures in a mor e realistic context .
The "Under Construction " project, initiated by the JapanFoundation Asia Cente r and its "collective exhibition " to be heldin Tokyo, presents one direction that can be taken to address
the issue. Over the last ten years , the Japan Foundation Asia
Cente r has earned a name as one of the institutions most active
in introducing Asian culture to Japan. Suppose we call the resultsof research carried out by Japanese curator s and art critics inother Asian countries which were linked together into a single
exhibition "Stage I," after this, the Tokyo Ope ra City Art Gallery
participated in the project by devising a plan for curati ng theexh ibit ion, o r "Stage 2". Significantly , this involved young 1
curators and art critics from locations around Asia visiting eachothers' countries to re-evaluate "contemporary Asian art " fromtheir own viewpoints. We were also reassured by the fact that ,beyond every email - an essent ial tool in the pr ocess ofgathering the diverse points of view found in the different Asian
countries into a single co )lect ive exhib ition - - the r e wereindividuals , on partners , sharing the same time frame andbelonging to the same· times. Rather than being an examination 1of -"Asia" from the outside, this internal Asian network , createdby members sha r ing a common unders t and ing of th e times ,generated a great deal of expectation .
This exhibition is subtitled "New Dimensions of Asian Art ."As the curators chosen for this exhibition were all born in the 1
I 960's and I 970 's , most of the artist s that were select ed 1
happened to belong the same generation. Many of the artists had 'directly experienced the internationa l art scen e either bystudying, working as ar tists -in-residence or exhib iting in theWest . And, as mentioned abov e, the shift in interest by theinternational art scene tow ards non-We stern natio ns, including

Construct ion Co llective Exhibition I Kataoka Marni
02 0A

Kataoka Marni

Project Over•.·.~w

discussing how the seven local exhibitions could be bestEveryone
combined into a single, collective exhibition.
recognized the difficulty of producing, in the different loc<1tionof
Tokyo, a single narrative from the local exhibitions , each ofwhich reflected the local contemporary arc environment . There
was also a sense of unease about dismantling the structure of thelocal exhibition , each of which was based on a theme conceived
by its curator and which had its own context, At the same time,
everyone understood that the aim of the collective exhibition
was not simply to line up the seven local exhibitions in one place,but that the "Under Construction" exhibition should present theindividual elements of the local exhibitions as a whole. By theAsia, is creating a change in the artists' working environment. In
recent years , large-scale international exhibitions ·have been heldin Asian venues such as Kwangju in Korea, Taipei, Shanghai andYokohama, as well as in India and .Bangladesh, signaling increasing
opportunities for accessing the global art scene . In addition,
f.. rapid economic and social changes have created a situation
where the hybrid and multi-leveled environment found in the gap
that lies between traditional and modern society and between
urbanization and rural life has become the norm. This has
resulted in more natural demand for the particular everyday';environments that form the identity of each individual.
An interesting aspect of this exhibition is the fact that manyof these "new generation" curators visited other Asian countries
for the first time during their initial research for the project. The

end of the seminar, the mood had shifted to one of expectation
and anticipation of the image of the new generation of Asian arc
that would be created by remixing and reconstructing the whole.
One concrete issue that had to be considered was the factthat the venue for the collective exhibition would be divided into
two separate venues - the Japan Foundation Forum and theTokyo Opera City Art Gallery. Sin~e the context of thefact that we, for whom art history has always been Westerncentric, shifted our gaze to the interactive vector of the Asiannations, which in the past had always played a secondary role,and discovered a commonality and a sense of familiarity absent in
the West, in actually very different cultures, was an enormousbonus. The Asian art map for each curator was a personal map
that began when partners were found in different Asian locations,and from these locations, the map began to be drawn, evolvingfrom dots through to lines and surfaces, gradually taking on
detailed form. And, based on these Asian art maps, seven local
exhibitions were held along with the context of each art

exhibition would be split into two due to the physical separationof the venue, we had to work on maintaining continuity ofconcept while at the same time applying keywords to eachvenue, using these as a basis for the exhibition to evolve. As
some of the keywords have more than one meaning, while eachwork expresses several concepts, the relationship between thework and the keyword do not necessarily have a direct
relationship with each work - the links between work andenvironment and art infrastructure.

keyword are more abstract and flexible.
The keywords for "Asia" suggested by the curators
symbolize the diversity and multiplicity that is Asia. At the sametime , they are words that are found in the international art

Keywords that tie Asia together
After the local exhibitions, held until the end of March
2002 , the curators of each local exhibition came to Tokyo tomeet with the organizers of the collective exhibition and advisors
for the project at the Third Working Seminar held in Tokyo in· I April. The three days of solid meetings began with reports onthe local exhibitions, after which many hours were spentscene.
1© Daily Life / Habitation / Subculture / Place / Working withCommunity

Pro1ectO\ler:iew"" Hybnd / Process of Exchanging / Transforming / Economy I
Mobility I Here & There I Sea"' Memory I Enigma I Fantasy / Dream"Daily life" was also a theme of the local exhibitions held in
Seoul and Beijing. However, in the way that "daily life", or theeveryday and familiar, becomes something that isn't from an
outsider's point of view, this keyword also provides a departure
point for considering issues of identity, including our position inthis diverse environment and the nature of the environment that
determines
who we are. The same can be applied to"habitation" and "place" . Meanwhile, "subculture" and youth
culture are keys for understanding the multiple layers ofcontemporary Asian society, while we can discover our own
environment _through "working with community".
As a result of rapid urbanization , cities are vibrant, chaoticplaces. However , gaps with the rural areas , or , gaps inmemories, traditions and experiences are also being generated.
"Transforming" and "hybrid" are symbols of this reality, while
words such as "economy" and "process of exchanging" express
the values and economic sensibilities that have been transformed
over a short time span. Meanwhile, words such as "here andthere" and "sea" stem from the "mobility" and sense of nonbelonging that accompanies change.
And, "memory", the purpose of which is to confirm ouridentity, "enigma", "fantasy" and "dream ", all of which stem from
our imagination that unfolds to embrace an unreal or surreal
world including religious beliefs, as well as from our longings andhopes for the future, are all arguably vehicles to maintain peaceof mind, to fill in the gaps in a society where diverse elements
coexist.
As far as the placement of these keywords was concerned,
we took into consideration the spatial features of the venues the artificially lit theatrical space of the Japan Foundation Forumversus the naturally lit white cube of the Tokyo Opei-a City Art-- -- - ---~- ------02 2!

Ka1aoL:.aMamt

Gallery . As a ~esult, works containing elements such as"memory", "enigma", "fantasy" and "dream " were placed in theForum, where they could be exhibited in a theatricalenvironment. The first works placed on display at the Tokyo
Opera City Art Gallery were those evoking "mobility", to signify
a connection between the two venues. These were followed byworks based on the themes of "daily life", "ha!bitation" and ,"subculture", and finally, works containing elements symbolizing"place", "transforming" , "economy", "process of exchanging" ,"here and there" , "hybrid" and "sea" .
As a result, through the use of keywords in the collective
exhibition, no theme of any local exhibition has been completelylost. Instead, a flexible connection with the origins of the local
exhibitions has been maintained. Furthermore , a large number of
new works within the context of either the collective exhibition
or "Tokyo" have been included in this exhibition. These newworks are primarily works-in-progress from the " Fantasia"
exhibition that evolved in an artist-in-residence format fromSeoul to Beijing and from the Ashiya and Manila exhibitions inwhich the same artists participated.

I·The creation of a venue for expression
Arguably, the most unusual aspect of the local exhibitions was
the actual creation of a venue for expression. The Fabriek
Gallery that was built for the " Dream Projee:t - Under
Construction" exhibition held in Bandung, Indonesia is the best
example . The lucid dream that it represents is extremely
persuasive in today 's context of a generally-perceived genuine
need for a venue that can provide a central pull for creation ,Moreover, the atmosphere inside the gallery with its limited life
span due to the fact that the land it was built on was on atemporary lease, was one of a heightened , but agreeable, tension
coupled with a sense of unity created by the joint collaboration.
In addition, modifications were carried out on Seoul venue SpaceA

__1_l<at,okaMaJPm,ec10ve,v,ew.~-_______________

works were assembled in the centers of the two rectangularimA and the East Modern Artcentre where the Beijingexhibition
galleries to create intimate spaces, and the larger works in thewas held. Particularly significant is the latter, in which thewings of each rectangle. Visitors viewing Lee Mikyung's work areorganizers received permission from the government to use
led up a gentle slope to the upper level, dividing the space below
1500 square meters of space for the purpose of exhibiting
the 6 meter high ceiling into two layers and providing observers
contemporary art, a landmark in the evolution of Chinesewith a multi-leveled viewpo int.
contemporary art. Meanwhile, that the Bangkok exhibition waslocated in three different venues in that city symbolizes thecontemporary art scene in Thailand, in which creative activities
Beyond the boundaries of curation
are carried out in small-scale, alternative venues.
The production of the collective exhibition was carried out
There were concerns that this .genuine and strong demandby organizers, the Japan Foundation Asia Center and the Tokyo
for creative expression and for a venue to present the work
Opera City Art Gallery in conjunction with Kamiya Yukie andwould be weakened if it was removed from the context of theYamamoto Atsuo, the Japanese curators of the local exhibitions,local exhibition venue and placed in "a venue for exhibition" inwith each responsible for different roles such as discussing theTokyo . In order for "the creation of the space itself" to beworks to be exhibited, inviting the artists, transportation of thereflected in the collective exhibition space, the Fabriek Gallery,works and production of the publicity material. These tasksbuilt in Indonesia, was recreated with slight modifications to its
original size, in the center of the Japan Foundation Forum, , were carried out with frequent communication with the curators
Theof the local exhibitions and the 43 artists/collectives.
resembling a play within a play.
communication network that was built during this time through
Other aspects were taken into consideration when putting
the Working Seminars, the research and the local exhib itions,
The continuity of thetogether the collective exhibition.
and which was reinforced by a sense of trusting each other as
exhibition space as it was being divided into two venues, thewell as the open-minded and flexible attitude displayed during
sense of presence of the many comparatively small-scale works
our discussions benefited the overall process. One of thefrom the local exhibitions when exhibited in a large-scale
themes of this exhibition, "Beyond the boundaries of curation" isexhibition venue and how to recreate the alternative feel of themore relevant to the art world and probably has no direct
local exhibitions. A suggestion was made during the Working
relevance as far as the visitors to this exhibition are concerned .
Seminar held in April to appoint an architect, and Atelier Bowwow (Tokyo), a collective whose members belong to the same , However, I would like to stress that the group of works on
exhibition is the result of a challenging collaboration by thosegeneration as the curators and artists of this project, was chosen.
living in neighboring countries and in the same age. It is my hope
Everyone embraced Atelier Bow-wow's breadth of vision thatthat the tangible network of rea l and visible people built as afocuses on the existing environment rather than the building as
result of this project will remain a network-in-progress,
an object or the newness of that building.
transcend ing the geographical framework known as "Asia" andWith the Fabriek Gallery in the center of the venue, its roof
continuing, to expand on a global scale.
part was intentionally redesigned to maintain the same sense ofscal"e and yet succeeded in creating a sense of openness.
Kataoka Marni, (Chief Curator/Tokyo Opera City Art Gallery. Japan)
Meanwhile, at the Tokyo Opera City Art Gallery, the smaller

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