***  Haus der Kulturen der Welt: Forum1 Archive  ***
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   [Date]: Mon, 08 Nov 1999 01:19:02 +0200
   [From]: beral madra <btmadra@turk.net>
     [To]: Cultural Exchange via Internet <forum1@hkw.kbx.de>
[Subject]: Re: [forum1] Re: discussion about sensation


Dear Friends,

I was away in Israel to see The Art Focus (3rd Biennale of Israel). When
I came back I found the mailbox full of discussions about The Sensation!

Just to remind you: "Piss Christ" of Andre Serrano is in Jerusalem, in
the most religious city of the world! Moreover, in one of the most
significant exhibitions of Artfocus, the reknown Israeli artist Moshe
Gershuni exhibited a series of "excellent" photographs showing him and
his friend in their homely intimacy, which made Mapplethorpe's
photographs look like a child's play! There were some protests from the
conservative circles, but nobody removed anything from the exhibitions
and threatened the museum directors! Attacking art works is a "good old
Faschist way " of displaying power and who can know about it better than
the artists of the authoritarian regimes!

I have seen Sensations in London and Berlin; it is a perfect example of
Art Market Manipulated Magnificent Show. And as to Offili's work,  we
have seen the "Utilizing Artists of Non-West To Attract Attention "
story many a times. Since the beginning of the 90's the "clever
emigrant" artists have understood that the time has come for them,
dechiphered the requirements of the contemporary art industry,  and
started to produce works which metaphorically reflected the desires and
opinions of the Western viewer on the Non-west!

Vice versa, since quite a time the Western curators are discovering the
remote art scenes in order to utilize them for the fullfillment of their
EGO's. When investigated and discussed properly, these "Western
Curator's Non-Western Shows" syndrome is as scandoulus as the Sensation
event! Two examples of this behaviour has been recently staged in
Istanbul and Jerusalem! It was really too much for me (and for many
others) to see Kaspar Kšnig's insipid and irreconcilable Sultan's Pool
exhibition in Jerusalem, after Paolo Colombo's pathological and flat
"Passion and Wave" exhibition in Istanbul. Compared to the Appertutto in
Venice Biennale both exhibitions looked like rather pale and stale group
shows! Why?
Is Istanbul and Jerusalem less important than Venice?
We know that Colombo is not an experienced curator, but what about
Kšnig?
Considering that Istanbul and Israel Biennale had 1.5 million $ budgets
and the participating artists in both exhibitons are well known, one can
only ask "Do these curators have a conscience or a sense of
responsibility?" and "How can the participating artists accept these
careless and insignificant exhibitions?"
The artists/curators/galleries/institutions in NY, London, Paris, Berlin
can deal with the scandals like Sensation, because they are part of the
international culture industry and are equipped with all the tools of
the combat! The question is, how are we going to deal with this New
Crusade?

Just one or two years ago we could not dream of discussing these issues
with/infront of an international audience. Still, at the panel
discussions accompanying the Biennale (or similar events) such
"delicate" topics are better being avoided. Due to the virtual space,
the artists/curators of the Non-Established Art-World can be informed
about the intricacies and manipulations of the power centers/persons and
be aware of the protest-opinions of other groups and individuals (which
is very comforting). Before Internet the art world was too exclusive;  I
hope that cyber space will render the art world too "unmalleable" for
the people who felt  themselves free to exploit it!..