TABLE OF CONTENTS 4 Foreword 7 Executive Summary 13 Introduction Asia Engagement and the Victorian Cultural Sector: Redressing the Data Deficit Research Components 01. Victoria-Asia Cultural Engagement Survey 2013 45 02. Cultural Sector Consultations 49 03. Data Review of Individual Artists and Cultural Producers 55 04. ABS Data Analysis: Victoria’s Trade in Cultural Goods and Services with Asia 65 Conclusion Key Findings Key Recommendations 77 78 79 88 92 93 112 114 Appendices Appendix 1. Glossary Appendix 2. Victoria-Asia Cultural Engagement Survey Questionnaire Appendix 3. Victoria-Asia Engagement Activity Appendix 4. Industry Roundtable Participants Appendix 5. ABS Data Analysis: Victoria’s Trade In Cultural Good And Services With Asia Appendix 6. Project Partner Profiles Acknowledgements 12
The review of data relating to individual artists and cultural producers revealed over 130 projects that were supported by either Asialink, the Australia Council, Arts Victoria or the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. These projects ranged from attending arts markets to exhibiting at highly respected and heavily attended biennales and triennials. Many organisations generously shared details of Asia engagement plans for the next five years. Forty-six future projects were cited. Key Recommendations The recommendations respond to key priorities that were consistently identified by the survey respondents and sector consultation participants. To improve Victoria-Asia engagement the following seven strategies are recommended: Develop long-term, sustainable relationships rather than one-off projects. Support opportunities for two-way exchange in projects. Build individual and organisational Asia-capability and knowledge. Coordinate opportunities for peer-to-peer networking. Provide access to quality information and advice, including documentation about opportunities, logistics and experiences. Promote the ‘value’ of cultural engagement with Asia through advocacy and leadership at the political, bureaucratic and key agency levels to other areas of government, business and the community. Invest in research on Asia-Australia cultural engagement and capability to ensure Australia is at the forefront of best practice in this field. In response to the research findings, Asialink recommends the following key strategies and initiatives (see table opposite).
Priority countries for organisations' future engagement with Asia between Afghanistan Armenia Azerbaijan Bahrain Bangladesh Bhutan Brunei Cambodia China Georgia Hong Kong India Indonesia Iran Iraq Israel Japan Jordan Kazakhstan Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Laos Lebanon Macau Malaysia Maldives Mongolia Myanmar Nepal North Korea Oman Pakistan Papua New Guinea Philippines Qatar Russia Saudi Arabia Singapore South Korea Sri Lanka Syria Taiwan Tajikistan Thailand Timor-Leste Turkey Turkmenistan United Arab Emirates Uzbekistan Vietnam Yemen 30 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%
DATA REVIEW OF INDIVIDUAL ARTISTS AND CULTURAL PRODUCERS Information on individual artists and cultural producers was collected from Arts Victoria, the Australia Council for the Arts, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) and the Asialink Arts Residency Program. The review of data relating to individual artists and cultural producers includes an analysis of: the Asia engagement activity of individual practitioners between 2008 and 2012; outputs of activities supported by Arts Victoria and the Asialink Arts Residency Program; and results of the Asialink Arts Residency Alumni Research Project, conducted by Asialink Arts in Data Limitations Data in this section has been collated from multiple sources, and as such does not attempt to present complete figures regarding activity in Asia. Rather, it provides an overview of the activity undertaken by Victorian individuals in Asia in the last five The information was collected from the funding bodies that provide grants for Victoria-Asia related activities. In addition to these organisations, there are multiple avenues for individual practitioners to undertake inbound and outbound activities in Asia. These include self-funded research trips, crowd funding, international residencies and private philanthropy. Sourcing information relating to projects was deemed beyond the scope of this research. Summary of Key Findings The rich variety and scope of activity undertaken by individual artists and cultural producers in Victoria reinforces the diversity of activity identified in the Victoria-Asia Engagement Survey: Between 2008 and 2012 over 130 Victorian individual practitioners undertook projects in Asia. Activity took place in 20 countries, including inbound projects into Australia. In the years 2008 to 2012, Japan was the most popular destination for activity, followed by India, Indonesia and South Korea. The activity undertaken in Asia included professional development, research, networking and the production of new work. Ninety per cent of respondents to the 2012 Asialink Arts Residency Alumni Research Report had produced projects that had arisen from residencies. These included exhibitions, publications, collaborations, performances, recordings, workshops and exchange programs. All survey respondents had maintained a connection with their host countries. Seventy-five per cent had maintained contact with their host organisations. Ninety-five per cent had maintained contact with individuals they met during their residencies. Individual artists and cultural producers identified additional resources as important for Asia-Australia cultural engagement, residency programs and reciprocal residencies. New models of international residencies and opportunities for involvements in key cultural events were identified as key factors in improving Asia engagement.
“Contemporary Asian art is more intertwined with activism as the social context. It’s not so rarefied, or white cube. We need to start thinking about how Eurocentric our ideas are about what contemporary art is. There are extremely different contexts and different ways of working. How do we present this in Australia?” Roundtable participant, 2013 Asialink Arts Residency Alumni Research Project The Asialink Arts Residency Alumni Research Project was conducted in late 2012. A survey was sent out to 426 past Asialink residents and a total of 58 responses were received (a 13.6 per cent rate of return). Findings from the survey revealed a high level of post-residency cultural activity and a strong number of residents who had maintained contacts with people they met during their residencies. Ninety per cent of respondents had produced projects that had arisen from their residencies. This included exhibitions, publications, collaborations, performances, recordings, workshops and exchange programs. All survey respondents had maintained a connection with their host countries. Seventy-five per cent had maintained contact with their host organisation. Ninety-five per cent had maintained contact with individuals they met during their residencies. Results from the 2012 Asialink Arts Residency Alumni Research Project support key findings and suggestions in the Victoria-Asia Cultural Engagement Survey and the industry roundtable discussions; in particular, the need for a reliable way to exchange knowledge and information within the local arts sector and capitalise on the continuing contact between arts residents and host organisations. Recommendations Provided by Individual Artists and Cultural Producers The survey conducted as part of the Asialink Arts Residency Alumni Research Project provided the opportunity for respondents to identify their priorities for improving Asia engagement in the next five years. While the survey was framed around improvements Asialink Arts could provide, the responses could be applied in a broader context. Advocacy for resources for Asia-Australia cultural engagement was rated the highest priority, followed by residency programs, reciprocal residencies, developing new models for international residencies, and opportunities to participate in key cultural events in Asia.
All images: City Within the City, co-curated by Gertrude Contemporary and Artsonje Center, 2012. Photography courtesy of Gertrude Contemporary Gertrude Contemporary’s The Independence Project is an ongoing series of cross-cultural exhibitions, residencies and forums. Inaugurated in 2007, the exchanges foreground connections between Australia’s arts communities and those in the Asian region. The Independence Project has so far involved collaborations with artists and organisations in Malaysia, Singapore, Korea and China. Each iteration comprises a curatorium with participants from each country, workshops and engagement with writers, poets, authors and theorists. The Independence Project began with a collaboration between Gertrude Contemporary and GALERI PETRONAS (Kuala Lumpur). Commemorating the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Malaysia and Australia, the project examined the notion of independence from a variety of perspectives. And the Difference Is… acknowledged the 10th anniversary of a Memorandum of Understanding between Arts Victoria and the National Arts Council, Singapore. City Within the City was co-curated by Artsonje Center (Korea), and focused on subjective encounters with the urban environment. The most recent project, No-Name Station, was a collaborative endeavour between Gertrude Contemporary, Iberia Center for Contemporary Art (China), and Warmun Arts Centre (Western Australia). Gertrude Contemporary’s approach is to create cumulative, generative approach to working in the region. Outcomes from the series include: Independence Project, Malaysia/Australia, 2007-2008: Residencies, publications and workshops. An exhibition presented in both countries, featuring video installation, painting and sculpture by seven Australian and nine Malaysian artists. And the Difference Is… Singapore/Australia, 2008-2009: An exhibition in each country, a publication, curatorial symposia, performances, forums, two residencies and a series of artists’ talks. City Within the City, Korea/Australia, 2011-2012: A residency and an exhibition in each country featuring the work of 17 Australian and international artists. No-Name Station, China/Australia, 2010- 2012: Contributions by 13 visual artists, one writer, and a curatorium from Australia and China; two exhibitions, a group residency, a major publication and public programs.
APPENDIX 1 GLOSSARY Cultural sector Refers to the following creative industries and groupings in Victoria, Australia: Art Design Film, video and photography Festivals Literature and publishing Music Multi-art form Online and new media Performing arts Cultural engagement Refers to the ‘cultural sector’ interacting with Asia, which may lead to exchanges that have creative, diplomatic and/or commercial dimensions. Reciprocal engagement Refers to a two-way, mutually beneficial between cultural practitioners in Australia and those based in Asia. Asia Refers to the Asian region, as defined by this report containing the following countries: Afghanistan Armenia Azerbaijan Bahrain Bangladesh Bhutan Brunei Cambodia China Georgia Hong Kong India Indonesia Iran Iraq Israel Japan Jordan Kazakhstan Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Laos Lebanon Macau Malaysia Maldives Mongolia Myanmar Nepal Korea Oman Pakistan Papua New Guinea Philippines Qatar Russia Arabia Singapore South Korea Sri Lanka Syria Taiwan Tajikistan Thailand Timor-Leste Turkey Turkmenistan United Arab Emirates Uzbekistan Vietnam Yemen The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) The Australian Government’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade supports various cultural diplomacy initiatives that align with its overall public diplomacy and foreign and trade policy objectives. The Australia Council for the Arts (ACA) The Australian Government’s arts funding and advisory body. Arts Victoria (see Appendix 6) Asialink Arts (see Appendix 6) asialink.unimelb.edu.au/arts Victoria Refers to the south eastern state of Australia.
*12.Did your engagement with Asia include any of the following? 1!11)0rt c:Utu from Asia (e.g.artwortts.. photos.11VJsic. instruments) E):JIOrt cultural goods toAsia .... Onl:ileprojects .... ProfessionalDevelopment .... Import a.ltural services from Asia (e.g.<U:liovisual senrioes. fi m,rrdtimedia and TV rights) .... Research PartneMips Residencies E):JIOl't culturalservices toAsia Artibook birs or mJrkets Exhib»tions Other (pleose specify) .... Touring Trade delega1ions .... None of the above Section 8:You r organi sation's past engagemen t with Asi a proVide a few details about your organisation's past projects With Asia (e.g. project name,city & country,partner organisation). were the challenges,if any? OAualundierstanding lkKierstanding bureaucracy Funding avai abliity Other (pleose specify) Section 8:You r organi sation's past engagemen t with Asi a
The category does not include publishing or photographic services. These are included in 'Other business services,' which is also a very broad category. IN SELECTED PERSONAL, CULTURAL AND RECREATIONAL SERVICES, Victoria 2007 to 2011 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 Sm Sm Sm Sm Sm Credits Personal,cultural, and recreational services Audiovisual and related services 31 94 46 so 93 Other personal,cultural and recreational services 52 117 133 112 159 credits 83 210 179 162 252 Debits Audiovisual and related services Other personal,cultural and recreational services -47 -75 -53 -94 -43 -112 -23 -149 -52 -167 Total debits -122 -146 -155 -172 -219 - nil or rounded to zero (including null cells) Source: International Trade in Services by Country, by State and by Detailed Services Category, Calendar Year, 2011(cat. no. 5368.055.004}