christography

It is so surprising to hear of a company that claims to do fine art prints in a factory. Yeah, right. Factory.

In looking for my new location in the last 4 years, one of the thing that got to me was the fact that all factories are not great for print production. There are things like fumes from car-repairs shops, food, glue, even from the dyes found in such places.Yeah, claims to make fine art prints. Right.

Did they even think about the climate controls? Or the insect controls? Sunlight control? Any of those? I guess not, and I would shudder to think about their handling controls! *shivers*

Gosh. One of my really good friend laughed at the claims since it was so obvious that it was all to make the company sound larger than it really is. It is, after all, just a distributor of machines, papers and inks. Not to mention that she was witness to prints being mis-handled when they came out of the printer. Gosh.

I didn’t spend almost 20 years of my life to become who I am without conscious, thoughtful hard work and long, expensive experiments to ensure that the printing medias work the best that they can.These new comers are only in for the short-ride. I’m too tired to continue educating people on learning how to distinguish between quality and bad work. I only laugh these days, life’s too short.

Good luck to the artists that go to them, since problems with the prints don’t even come up till several years later. Much like a badly developed black and white photographs; chemical spots don’t always come up that quickly.

THE ART INCUBATOR 2010: CALL FOR APPLICATIONS

The Art Incubator residency program is targeted at young Singaporean artists. A project-based, professional development opportunity, the residency will provide artists with a living stipend of $1,000 per month and material and production fees of up to $3,000. The resident will also be assigned a mentor, a studio space and given a platform to exhibit their completed work in a group show at the end of the residency period.

Last year, The Art Incubator hosted three artists, Claire Lim, Hafiz Osman and Tay Wei Leng, at Grey Projects, Osage Gallery and Objectifs: Centre for Photography and Filmmaking respectively.  This year, the program has expanded to include an overseas residency at Gertrude Contemporary Art Spaces in Melbourne.

For more information, see www.theartincubator.org.

Applications close on 28 February 2010. Please direct all queries to The Art Incubator.

PROGRAMME 2010/2011:
Curating in the expanded field

Application deadline: January 15, 2010

http://www.deappel.nl/cp

Initiated in 1994 the Curatorial Programme of Arts Centre de Appel wishes to offer young curators a condensed package of experiences and skills that can be used as tools and instruments during the further development of their professional career. De Appel is an internationally oriented arts centre located in Amsterdam that functions as a site for research and presentation of contemporary visual arts through a series of exhibitions, performances publications and discursive events.

In September 2006, a remodelled version of the eight-month long Curatorial Programme was launched with a renewed curriculum and an extended tutorial team. It encompasses a dense array of theoretical seminars, thematic workshops, field trips in Europe and Asia, practice-related assignments and encounters with artists and art professionals. Throughout the programme attention is paid to the history of exhibition-making, diverse curatorial practices, institution building and project management. The unique and special thematic focus is on the polarity between ‘free-lance ‘ and ‘institutional’ curating and on the examination of ‘context-responsive’ curating. The programme explores through which formats and methodologies curators deal with the presentation of art in the ‘expanded field’ outside of the white cube and how they respond to the cultural moments.

From 2006 until 2009 the focus of the Curatorial Programme culminated in a ’site-specific’ curatorial assignment: the participants of the programme were invited to investigate a specific ‘area’ (in 2006/2007 this was the Amsterdam suburb de Bijlmer, in 2007/2008 the satellite city Leidsche Rijn near Utrecht and in 2008/2009 the urban area Amsterdam Noord) and realise a project that relates to this site in a direct or indirect way. Through inviting the participants to work ‘off-site’ de Appel challenged the curators to reflect upon the current status and problematics of art in (sub)urban public space and to reflect upon the different ways in which art functions in processes of urban renewal/generator and gentrification. In the programme 2009/2010 (current year) the focus of the final project is on the so-called ‘cultural moments’, i.e. situations and contexts in Amsterdam ranging from the restructuring of specific areas in Amsterdam and the urban processes that accompany it to the contemporary political situation in the Netherlands. The participants will familiarize themselves with these contexts, and can choose to incorporate it in their final project. Throughout the process the relationship with the ‘mother institution’ is maintained while at the same time being interrogated.

The following parts of the programme are considered to be of vital importance:
- The opportunity to research theoretical issues and developments in regular sessions with a tutorial team consisting e.g. of visual artist Liesbeth Bik (NL), de Appel director Ann Demeester (BE/NL), curator and writer Charles Esche (UK/NL), curator Annie Fletcher (IR/NL), writer and curator Elena Filipovic (US/BE), curator Dieter Roelstraete (BE), independent researcher/curator Lisette Smits (NL), philosopher/curator Henk Slager (NL) and art critic Jan Verwoert (BE).
- The opportunity to meet a large number of artists, curators, critics and other professionals from the Netherlands and abroad in a very condensed period of time, and having the chance to exchange ideas with them, either during thematic seminars or during informal encounters. Guest teachers over the past years have been e.g. Carlos Basualdo (US) , Gerardo Mosquera (CU/US), Paul O’Neill (GB), Jacques Rancière (FR), Simon Sheik (SE), Pier Luigi Tazzi (IT), Teresa Gleadowe (UK) and Nina Möntmann.
- the opportunity to get acquainted with de Appel from ‘the inside’, and get a better
- The possibility to make a long trip outside of Western Europe and a minimum of 7 excursions within Europe.

APPLICATIONS REQUIREMENTS
1. A letter of motivation in which your personal drive is stated and what you expect from the programme.
2. A proposal for a project (5-15 pages), including: concept and location of the project (main focus), the participating artists (including some image material), a budget, a publicity plan (not obliged)
3. A CV, including an extensive description of one’s relevant working experience
4. Two written references of (former) tutors, professors or employers, in English.

On the basis of the submitted documents a pre-selection is made. Approximately ten candidates will be short-listed; they are invited to come to Amsterdam in the second week of March for an interview by an international selection committee.

Application deadline: January 15th 2010

Send completed applications (in two-fold) to:

de Appel
Attn. Danila Cahen/Hendrik Folkerts
P.O. Box 10764
1001 ET Amsterdam
the Netherlands

For further information please visit our website
http://www.deappel.nl/cp

contact:
Danila Cahen (coordinator): dcahen@deappel.nl
Hendrik Folkerts (assistant-coordinator):hfolkerts@deappel.nl
t +31 (0)20 6255651
f +31 (0)20 6225215

..was my birthday. My 41st birthday; celebrating my 41 years of existence, and stepping right into my 42nd year the very next day. It’s strange how people always tell us “You are xx years old already?” when actually I’m xx+1  already. Having realized how painful the birthings are for the mothers, I never really thought much about celebrating my own birthday. Well, that and the fact that in my younger years, friends would not remember my birthdays as it is usually the first day of school. And the rare ones that I had became way too emotional for me (because they cared).

This year’s was different, I wanted to celebrate, as I’d survived a year that was truly challenging and tiring for me; I had a health scare (which came up to nothing), several major wrong decisions being imposed on me (being side-laid by idiots), big disappointments from the people of my industry that forced me to give up one of my biggest and favorate-est social project (circa), dealing with little people who does not understand quality fine art printing and yet still tries to steal my business by imitating me (some cheap printing outfit), a power failure (which cost me quite a huge amount of money, not to mention my back from carrying cooling devices from home to lab over 2 days), having big dreams dashed (due to the fact that I could not afford the renovations that the future landlord would demand for). E.T.C. E.T.C. E.T.C.

It was also the year that some dreams are realized (my first solo museum show at Baba House), big dreams could finally be realized (I am still crossing my fingers here), I figured that farming would be so good for me (in Yamanashi, Japan), that maybe my audience was situated in the wrong country (Japanese really dig my works), that there was only so much that I could care about (world, you have to start looking out for yourself), that friends could come from the most unexpected places (coffee shop helpers, library peeps, you guys are the best-est!), that some friends would always misunderstand you and that you have to understand that they will one day understand and let that go for now. That my make-believe families can be warmer than my real family (my Japanese family, my kids - girls and boys, you know who you are). That my real family, would sometimes give me gems in life that makes me a better person. This is the year that I’ve also decided to take a partial hiatus from teaching because I am tired, but more poignantly, because I should start forcusing on myself, that I am really important.

It was also a year of serendipity; Interesting projects that works out because objects, notes, friends comes together in a way that I could not have planned. That friends would know friends of friends who knew other friends that connected with me. That a plant that I’d been looking for, for months, suddenly appear at my front gate as a gift from a dear friend who didn’t even know I was looking for that plant! That a bowl shaped well, bowl, was bought in Taiwan for me, at about the same time as I was looking at another similar shaped bowl at a museum in Singapore. That characters would come to life in my exhibition at Baba House. That even Serendipity can be serendipity.

It took my whole birthDAY to bring it all together and made sense of all that I’ve gone through. In that single day, I spent it with people that I cared about. We drank and ate food that would not have been possible if not for the love of friends. I almost cried for a friend, I laughed at another, I contemplated with yet another. We shared insights to a friend new to the arts. We wished for the almost arrival of a precious new life, feeling a whole lot of energy, and ended the night with a friend talking about art, creation, human flaws and weaknesscess, strengths and hope for the future. That sometimes, planning has to give way to serendipity. Not everything was to the heart, of course. I learnt about managing projects, planning ahead, character types, importance of a good team. My birthday extended till past 2am this morning. I was buzzing by the time I had to end my last conversation for my birthday, and yet, my phone kept buzzing with birthday wishes. I am so blessed.

For the new year, I want to be even more human; feeling the pains and the joys. I want to be more forgiving of those that had transpass against me and be grateful for the friends that I already have. Most of all, I want to be more grounded, more present in the way that I’ll live my life.

Thank you life, thank you friends, thank you families.

As part of a artist-to-artist project. Was asked to do pieces based on another artist. Decided to approach it on more ephemeral basic construct of stories through conversations.

Titled “Housework” (the odd-shaped clothes peg), and “Housework II and my mothers” (reconstructed kimono and bag). Both are process-based artworks which speaks of the simplicity/complexity of housework.

Houseworks are only apparently straight forward, but it brings with it social, historical, psychological, traditions, economic context which are often disregarded as such.

Across generations, housework can also become craft and some even art. At what point does a piece of material with threats becomes art? The kimono piece explores how my Japanese ‘mom’ differ from my biological mom in their own interpretation of art.

Very super special thanks to both my moms. And Yen wei’s mom, too!

It’s been crazy almost 3 months for me - work and worrying about this chest pain thingy, and waiting for the specialist appointment while going through all the medical tests.

So meanwhile, I’ve been experimenting with salads. First started with just buying a bunch of veggies and dressing. Well, I’d bought for the week, but later learn, the wasteful way, that I could really only buy for 3 days if I wanted the vegetables to be fresh and all nice and crunchy.

The vegetables. I had Broccoli, Rocket, Butterheads, Romaine, Purple Lettuce, Celery, even bought a Mixed bag of vegetables to learn from.My favorate had to be Romaine and the Purple Lettuce, especially from Ho farm! They are especially fragrant when fresh! Next was Brocolli - nice when fresh, too! Otherwise, it becomes a little ‘brittle’ and less crunchy when cooked.

Fruits. Pepper, Tomatoes.

Fungi. Shitake Mushrooms, Button mushrooms and the really big ones (can’t remember the name!).

Seaweed. Only the baked unsalted ones. The loose ones are hard to eat and makes eating it rather yucky.

Dressing. Ranch and Extra virgin Olive oil. Also had cheese, and preserved veggies.

And the results are actually quite nice! As you can see, I started adding some nut-based cracker, and soft-boiled eggs and I lost a total of 4kg in 2 weeks, and well, my pants started loosening up, and overall felt fresher, and my headache’s gone down quite a fair bit. It also made me more calm and restful too! I’m going to be keeping this up for a long time! And since then I’m helping to build a healthy veggie service that might happen in about a year. Excited.

I was asked to be on a panel to talk about objects that was the basis for the creation of art. As my current exhibition was heavily based on material popular culture, I thought it’d be great to discuss that.

The talk was really wonderful with wonderful people and audience. I look forward to more such events!

Thanks, Michael.

“So the critic to whom I am most grateful is the one who can make me look at something I have never looked at before, or looked at only with eyes clouded by prejudices, set me face to face with it and then leave me alone with it. From that point, I must rely upon my own sensibility, intelligence, and capacity for wisdom.”

The Frontiers of Criticism - in On Poetry and Poets

Can’t remember where I got this quote from anymore, sorry:

2 days ago, was just talking to a friend (photographer, of course) about the lack of courses training assistants.

Is there a market for professional assistants here in Singapore? Unlike America, there’s even an association for professional assistants! And there, students who’d go assist under a photographer are expected to do it for free, and photographers would set up interviews to see who they’d like to employ depending on which student has the best skill that will help in the work. That pushes students to out-learn one another and apply the best knowledge that they know.

I was told that in one of these photographer’s studio, the first question that is asked is “Do you know how this works?” pointing to a Minolta Color Meter. That, weeds out most and leaves them with only the better ones. You see, not many people have even SEEN a color meter much less work on one. So if you know what it is, and know how it works, you’ve probably been checking and learning beyond the classrooms. And this is just for the commercial photographers! Let’s not even go into what an Art Photographer would be looking out for beyond the technical!

Here, we get too many people who think that by doing an assisting job, they are here to learn instead of work. They do not add to the job, they usually add to the frustration to what already needs to be done. On top of that, we are suppose to pay them to learn. Most want to just end up as photographers because they pick up the most surface of skills and start on their own, charging the same prices, if not taking up just about any job at stupid rates; with no consideration for the future of their own making.

I remember when I assisted and I was only given instructions in an hour, and I had to know everything else, and think forward for the shoot, and work on what could happen next, beyond the shoot and even to the lab. And sometimes, even preparing before the shoot. I was never trained, but my passion and my common sense helped. How many of these are there these days? And how are people suppose to be photographers if they don’t have common sense, observational skills and the intuition to plan ahead? I shudder.

Last night, I had an Australian photographer, who’s based in America for the last 5 years, we picked on the same topic and it seems, things have also changed quite a lot there, too! Quite different from when I was working there way almost 2 decades ago! American (and Australian) students now would come to learn and not work. And more startling news that a lot of people are now copying works of famous photographers and claiming it as their own to get famous! Sheesh!

Through another photographer friend, I found out that because there’s no payment, the mentality of “No Pay, No Work” becomes these young students. In fact, some photographers are starting to charge for employing interns! In this age of fast-tracked-living, everyone is expected to learn things really fast, and mostly superficial knowledge is acquired, and not in-depth experiences. This will bring the future of photography quickly down the pipes.

Photography is said to be a lonely job. More than just the marital front, it is now in the work front as well. *sighs*