Curating Lab: Curatorial-Intensive & Internship Programme 2012
Deadline: 15 July 2012
Phase 1: Curatorial-Intensive
Date: 31 July – 6 August 2012
As an introduction to curatorial practice, the Curatorial-Intensive will consist of lectures, tutorials, and field trips to art spaces. Participants are to recognise fluidity of curatorial perspectives, informed by the dynamics between curators, artists, objects, institutions and their contexts. The workshop will emphasise discussions and dialogue, where tutorials will be complemented by journal writing and presentations.
Lead Facilitators
Patrick D. Flores is Professor of Art Studies at the Department of Art Studies at the University of the Philippines, which he chaired from 1997 to 2003 and Curator of the Vargas Museum in Manila. He is Adjunct Curator at the National Art Gallery, Singapore. He was one of the curators of Under Construction: New Dimensions in Asian Art in 2000 and the Gwangju Biennale (Position Papers) in 2008.
Heman Chong is an artist, curator and writer. His art practice involves an investigation into the philosophies, reasons and methods of individuals and communities imagining the future. Charged with a conceptual drive, this research is then adapted into objects, images, installations, situations or texts. He participated in the 2nd Singapore Biennale (2008), Busan Biennale (2004) and represented Singapore at the 50th Venice Biennale (2003). He previously co-facilitated Curating Labs 2009 and co-curated the accompanying Curating Labs: 100 Objects (Remixed) exhibition.
Workshop Invited Speakers
Cosmin Costinas is the Executive Director of Para/Site Art Space (Hong Kong) and its first Outset Curator of Contemporary Art. He was formerly a Curator at BAK, basis voor actuele kunst (Utrecht) and an advisory board member of Patterns/Erste Foundation (Vienna). He co-curated the 1st Ural Industrial Biennial and was the editor of documenta 12 Magazines from 2005-2007. He has taught and lectured at various universities and art academies in Europe and China.
Pauline J. Yao is an independent curator and scholar based in Beijing and Hong Kong. Previously, Yao co-founded the Arrow Factory in Beijing, and was a co-curator of the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Bi-City Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism in 2009
Phase 2: Internship
Date: 13 August – 2 November 2012
With the completion of the workshop, programme participants will embark on a 3-month Internship programme where they will be afforded the opportunity to work closely with practitioners across different spectrums of the arts & heritage industry, developing practical work skills to build upon the theoretical foundations from the workshop. Participants will get to join in on-going work and develop a new project under the auspices of the institution, and according to its mandate.
Participating Institutions
NUS Museum’s mission is to actively facilitate the intellectual and cultural life of the NUS community. Focusing primarily but not exclusively on Southeast Asian art and culture, the Museum contributes to and facilitates the production, reception, and preservation of knowledge through collections development and curatorial practice, developing partnerships within NUS, the cultural and heritage industry, and the global knowledge community.
Singapore Art Museum (SAM) advocates and presents contemporary art practices of Singapore and the Southeast Asian region. Opened in January 1996 as a museum under the National Heritage Board of Singapore, SAM has amassed one of the world’s largest public collections of modern and contemporary Southeast Asian artworks, with a growing component in international contemporary art. Since 2009, SAM has focused its programming and collections development initiatives around contemporary Southeast Asian art, and art practices. Through strategic alliances with arts and cultural institutions and community organisations, SAM facilitates visual arts education, exchange, research and development within the region and internationally. SAM also organised the Singapore Biennale 2011.
Future Perfect works with an international roster of contemporary artists. With extensive knowledge and experience in the Asian region and beyond, Future Perfect provides international promotion and representation for contemporary artists, as well as research and advice for collectors, institutions and curators. The gallery boasts extensive international networks in Europe, Australia and Southeast Asia. It is committed to advancing the practice of the most dynamic and innovative contemporary artists, working across a wide range of traditional and non-traditional media.
Institutional Mentors
Shabbir Hussain Mustafa is a Curator with NUS Museum. His approach to understanding the arts has centred heavily on engaging with different archives of thinking and writing, all in an attempt at opening up the archives to multivariate struggles of perception and reading. His latest exhibition projects include Tautology of Memory | Rupal Shah (2012), Writing Power | Zulkifli Yusoff (2011), Camping & Tramping through the Colonial Archives: The Museum in Modern Malaya (2011) and The Sufi and the Bearded Man: Re-membering a Keramat in Contemporary Singapore (2011).
Tan Siuli is Assistant Director of Programmes and Curator at the Singapore Art Museum, and oversees its Indonesia collection and Education portfolio. She holds a Masters in Art History from University College London, UK, a BA in Literature and Art History from the University of Nottingham, UK, and a Postgraduate Diploma in Education from the National Institute of Education, Singapore. Her past exhibitions include Chimera (The Collectors Show: Asian Contemporary Art from Private Collections), Classic Contemporary: Contemporary Southeast Asian Art from the Singapore Art Museum Collection, The President’s Young Talents 2009, and FX Harsono: Testimonies.
Dr David Teh’s research centres on contemporary art in Southeast Asia. From 2005-09, he was an independent critic and curator based in Bangkok. His recent projects have included The More Things Change… (5th Bangkok Experimental Film Festival, 2008); Unreal Asia (55. Kurzfilmtage Oberhausen, Germany, 2009); Itineraries: 3 Young Contemporaries (VWFA, Kuala Lumpur, 2011); and Video Vortex #7 (Yogyakarta, 2011).
Who Is Eligible To Apply
Applications for this programme are open to all Singapore citizens/PRs
1. Final Year Tertiary Students – a major or minor in art/art-history/arts management or heritage-related subjects such as history, sociology, architecture, Southeast Asian studies.
2. New Graduates – a major or minor in art/art-history/arts management or heritage-related subjects such as history, sociology, architecture, Southeast Asian studies. Application must be made within one year from graduation date.
3. Arts & Heritage Professionals – Individuals working in the arts/heritage industry with less than three years cumulative experience (in the last 5 years).
How Are Participants Selected?
Applications will be reviewed by an assessment panel consisting of NUS Museum staff and the curator-mentors from the internship. The assessment will be based on the submitted applications, written submission of statement of intent and assessment piece. Selection of participants is at the absolute discretion of the assessment panel and its decision shall be final. Successful candidates will be informed via email of the results.
Programme Phases
Phase 1: A 2-week curatorial-intensive at NUS Museum from 30 July to 6 August.
Phase 2: A 3-month internship, where the participants will work in curatorial collectives to conceive and execute an exhibition (“Internship”) and a regional field trip to Bandung, Indonesia (the “Regional Field Trip”). The eventual designation of an institution to which you will be attached for the internship will be based on your performance during the curatorial workshop, with your preferences taken into consideration.
The institutions which are available are:
NUS Museum
Singapore Art Museum
Future Perfect
Phase 3: Execution of curatorial project conceived during the -Internship
Programme Costs
A travel allowance of $200 per month will be provided during Phase 2: Internship.
All travel and accommodation costs which are directly related to the programmes organized by NUS Museum during the Regional Field Trip will be covered by NUS Museum.
Application Form Submission Details
All applications must be submitted to NUS Museum by 15 July 2012 by post or in person to the following address. All applications sent by post must be postmarked before or on the deadline. Incomplete applications will not be considered.
Attn: Michelle Kuek
NUS Museum, NUS Centre For the Arts
University Cultural Centre
50 Kent Ridge Crescent
Singapore 119279
For all enquiries, please direct them to:
Michelle Kuek (Ms)
Assistant Manager (Outreach)
NUS Museum
T: 6516 8428
E: michellekuek@nus.edu.sg
Jolene Lee (Ms)
Project Coordinator
NUS Museum
T: 6516 8797
E: jo.leewh@nus.edu.sg
