Thursday, January 31, 2013

The world's first online biennale


The world's first online biennale, an exclusively internet-sited art exhibition, will be launched in April under the directorship of Jan Hoet. He is working with a team of international curators including: Daniel Birnbaum, director of Moderna Museet, Stockholm; Fulya Erdmci, curator Istanbul Biennale; Yuko Hasegawa, chief curator of the Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo and curator of the Sharjah Biennial; Adriano Pedrosa, independent curator, Sao Paulo; and Nancy Spector, Guggenheim Museum NY. Read more...
Image: Jan Hoet

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Art Los Angeles Contemporary hits its stride


ARTINFO reports that Art Los Angeles Contemporary has finally hit its stride. "With a strong mix of international exhibitors alongside local galleries, the fair served to showcase L.A.'s growing presence as an international hub." Read more...
Image: John Pylypchuk's installation at Art Los Angeles Contemporary, 2013

Tuesday, January 29, 2013

The little black book of Weiwei-isms



Published by Princeton University Press, Ai Weiwei's little black book Weiwei-isms contains a collection of statements made by the artist in newspaper articles, twitter posts and media interviews, organised into six themes: freedom of expression; art and activism; government, power and making moral choices; digital world; history, historical moment and the future; and personal reflections. By referencing the format of the "Little Red Book", Ai Weiwei plays with this iconic piece of Chinese literature, encouraging action, thought and individuality. Read more...
Images: Ai Weiwei and his book Weiwei-isms edited by Larry Warsh, published by Princeton University Press

Monday, January 28, 2013

Coming up


We open our 2013 programme with an exhibition by Martin Basher, which runs from 4 February to 2 March. You can read our press release here.

Sunday, January 27, 2013

Auckland Art Gallery patrons centre stage in a suite of collection-based exhibitions




The Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tamaki is highlighting the role of patronage in collection-based exhibitions drawing on works gifted by its patrons group and the Chartwell Collection, which is on long term loan to the gallery. The shows include works by a number of Starkwhite artists: Grant Stevens features in Whiz Bang Pop; Phil Dadson, Gavin Hipkins and John Reynolds are in Partner Dance: Gifts from the Patrons of the Auckland Art Gallery, both curated by Natasha Conland; and the evolving downstairs show Toi Aoteroa includes a new section, also curated by Conland, with works by Martin Basher, David Hatcher, Gavin Hipkins and Jae Hoon Lee.
Image: David Hatcher, The Simplest Surrealist Act (Andre Breton), 2002, silkscreen on plexiglass, 2000 x 1430 mm, Chartwell Collection, Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tamaki; Gavin Hipkins, Dunedin (Landscape), from The Homely series, 1997-2000, C-type colour photograph,  600 x 400 mm collection of Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tamaki; Phil Dadson, Echo-Logo, 2003, DVD, 7 mins, collection of Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tamaki.

Saturday, January 26, 2013

Art Stage Singapore on the way to becoming a southeast asian art hub


Lorenzo Rudolf's move to corner the southeast asian segment of the art market seems to be paying off with reports of deep-pocket collectors from the region turning up for Art Stage Singapore. But one of his new moves has drawn flak. Rudolf's decision to set up an Indonesian pavilion and to represent many of the artists has upset galleries representing Indonesian artists. They believe the fair is competing with them for sales, but Rudolf remains convinced the pavilion is necessary because of the lack of a proper Indonesian art infrastructure, including a well-established network of commercial galleries.

Rudolf is also staying on song about Art Stage Singapore having its own identity and not going head-to-head with Art Basel in Hong Kong. "Southeast asia will be the next big trend," he said. "It is important that both are close to each other but not copy each other; that both have their own identities. This will mean that if Hong Kong is successful, we profit; and it we are successful, Hong Kong profits."
Image: Memory of Nature, a performance by Arahmaiani at the Indonesia Pavilion, Art Stage Singapore

Friday, January 25, 2013

Belgian pavilion at Venice to be curated by Nobel Prize-winning novelist


Nobel Prize-winning author J.M. Coetzee will curate the presentation by Berlinde De Bruyckere at the Belgian pavilion at this year's Venice Biennale. The artist recently worked with Coetzee on a book with text by the author and photos by the artist and when asked for more on his appointment said: "I thought why shouldn't I ask him to be the curator and he agreed." Read more...
Image: JM Coetzee

Thursday, January 24, 2013

Asia/Pacific-rim art fairs to watch out for in 2013




2013 promises to be a big year for art fairs in the Asia/Pacific-Rim region. Art Los Angeles Contemporary and Art Stage Singapore both opened last night and run from 24 - 27 January. Next up is the India Art Fair  (1 - 3 February), followed by Art Basel in Hong Kong Art (23 - 26 May), Auckland Art Fair (7 -11 August), Korea International Art Fair (12 - 16  September), Shanghai Contemporary (13 - 15 September), Sydney Contemporary (20 - 22 September) and Art Platform - Los Angeles (27 - 29 September).

So where will the power plays come from in 2013?

After buying a majority interest in ARTHK, the Art Basel Group will roll out its debut edition of Art Basel in Hong Kong, putting an end to speculation over the past five years about which fair would become the Art Basel of the Asia/Pacific region. With more than half of the exhibitors coming from the region, the new owners have also eased fears that the revamped fair would lose its Asian identity under Art Basel management. Art Basel in Hong Kong is set to continue where ARTHK left off as the region's pre-eminent fair.

Directed by Lorenzo Rudolf, Art Stage Singapore is capitalising on Singapore's position as a hub between East and West, blending art from the region with international superstars. Rudolf is also making some new moves that will give Art Stage Singapore a point of difference from others in the region. He says international art fairs should not just be spaces for selling art, they also have a role to play in developing an eco-system between artists, galleries and collectors, and where galleries are failing, an art fair should step in. The current edition of his fair includes dedicated space for Indonesian galleries and an exhibition of about 30 Indonesian artists, but in an unusual move for an art fair, Art Stage Singapore is representing about two thirds of them. "We only want to show the best, but many Indonesian artists don't work with galleries," he said. "The infrastructure is not there." It's a bold new move, but raises questions about how participating galleries will feel about Art Stage Singapore competing with them for sales.

SH Contemporary hit the art fair scene as a contender for the 'Art Basel' of the region but subsequently downsized its ambitions to focus on providing a platform for art from China and the Asia/Pacific region. Under the directorship of Colin Chinnery (2009-2010) the fair took on a role beyond selling art, adding curated thematic exhibitions and museum-quality conferences, grounded in a belief that the pragmatic coexistence and interaction between the intellectual and commercial worlds could produce unexpectedly productive and interesting outcomes. While it has a lower international profile than others in the region, SH Contemporary is well positioned to capitalise on Shanghai's ambition to become a new global cultural hub and is a fair to watch out for in the future.

And this year sees a new kid on the block with debut edition of Sydney Contemporary, a new fair launched by Tim Etchells, one of the founders of ART HK. With director Magnus Renfrew, Etchells put ART HK on the international art fair map, finessing it into the region's best fair so his new venture is definitely one to watch out for.
Image: Zhang Huan's Berlin Buddha at Haunch of Venison (2010), which has been reinstalled at Art Stage Singapore, and Jon Pylypchuk's It's not you, it's me, I always will love you dear, which features at Art Los Angeles Contemporary

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Olafur Eliasson's Little Sun at the World Economic Forum


Olafur Eliasson's is heading to the World Economic forum in Davios where he will discuss Little Sun, an inexpensive solar-powered lamp that he and his engineer partner Frederik Ottesen have designed to be widely distributed in the developing world to people with no access to an electrical grid. The lamp gives 10 times more light than using a kerosene lamp, and at a 10th of the cost.

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

frieze postcard from Tehran


Daria Kirsanova reports on the emerging contemporary art scene in Iran, including a growing gallery system. Read more...

Monday, January 21, 2013

Art museums to watch out for in Shanghai


Over the past few years private art institutions, like the Minsheng Art Museum and the Rockbund Art Museum, have been leading the way in Shanghai, building their institutional profiles at home and abroad on the back of first-rate, curatorially-driven programming. However with the arrival of new state institutions in 2012 the landscape is shifting, providing even greater scope for contemporary art in the city. According the ARTINFO the contenders for 2013 are: Power Station of Art, Rockbund Museum, Minsheng Art Museum, China Art Palace and OCT Contemporary Art Terminal. Read more...
Image: Shanghai's Power Station of Art

Saturday, January 19, 2013

Seung Yul Oh awarded a Nanji residency


Seung Yul oh has taken up a three-month Nanji Studio residency. Administered by the Seoul Museum of Art, the residency was set up to act as an incubator for young Korean artists. While in Seoul, he will also present his first solo show at ONE AND J gallery.
Image: Seung Yul Oh, The ability to blow themselves up (Still #1), 2012

Friday, January 18, 2013

Grant Stevens' Rogue Wave Project


Grant Stevens' Supermassive is the latest Rogue Wave Project at L/A Louver. The exhibiton runs to 23 February.
Image: LA/Louver, Venice CA

Fulya Erdemci outlines her vision for the 2013 Instanbul Biennial


The curator of the 2013 Istanbul Biennial, Fulya Erdemci, has outlined her vision for the event, which will be staged across the city. Entitled Mom am I barbarian? the biennial will explore the notion of the public domain as a political forum, touching on notions of democracy, civilisation, barbarity and social engagement.

With Andrea Phillips, a reader in fine art at Goldsmiths College Gallery, Erdemci is also running a public programme called Public Alchemy in the lead up to the biennial. The first session, Making the City Public, runs from 8-10 February, to be followed by others including Public Address (22-23 March), Becoming Public Subjects (14-15 September) and Future Publics/New Collectives (1-2 November).
Image: Istanbul Biennial curator Fulya Erdemci

Thursday, January 17, 2013

Rem Koolhaas to curate the 2014 Venice Architecture Biennale


Starchitect Rem Koolhaas will curate the 2014 Venice Architecture Biennnale. Koolhaas heads the Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA), known for iconic structures such as the CCTV building in Beijing. He received the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the Biennale in 2010 and was awarded the Pritzker Prize in 2000.

In a statement issued by the Biennale, Koolhaas said he would like "to take a fresh look at the fundamental elements of architecture -- used by any architect, anywhere, any time -- to see if we can discover anything new about architecture."
Image: Koolhaas receiving the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the 2010 Venice Architecture Biennale 

Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Art Basel in Hong Kong retains an Asian identity


The Art Basel Group has announced the exhibitor list for the debut edition of Art Basel in Hong Kong, which will take place at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre from 23 - 26 May. More than half of the exhibitors hail from the region, putting to rest fears that the revamped fair would lose its Asia/Pacific focus under Art Basel management. Exhibitors from Australia and New Zealand are included in the lineup: Jensen Gallery (Sydney) Murray White Room (Melbourne), Roslyn Oxley9 (Sydney) and Starkwhite (Auckland) in the Galleries section; Dianne Tanzer Gallery + Projects (Melbourne), Neon Parc (Melbourne), Ryan Renshaw Gallery (Brisbane) and Sullivan + Strumpf (Sydney) in the Insights section; and Utopian Slumps (Melbourne) in the Discoveries section. View exhibitor list.
Image: Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, venue for the inaugural edition of Art Basel in Hong Kong

Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Art as a sleeping aid


Long-haul Air New Zealand passengers could soon be soothed to sleep by a new artwork on the airline's inflight entertainment programme. Clinton Watkins, who specialises in investigating the effects that combinations of sound and vision can have on the viewer/listener, has produced a video featuring a continuous slow shot along a New Zealand east coast road and a gentle soundtrack that incorporates delta waves. These inaudible low frequency sound waves are present during sleep and the intention of the work is to lull passengers into a sleepy state. View video excerpt.
Image: Clinton Watkins' Delta, video still

Monday, January 14, 2013

Coming up at Starkwhite


We open our 2013 programme with an exhibition by Martin Basher, which runs from 4 February to 2 March.
Image: Martin Basher at Saatchi & Saatchi NY

Tuesday, January 1, 2013

Happy New Year


Starkwhite is closed over the Christmas/New Year period, reopening Tuesday 15 January. In the meantime, we wish our readers a Happy New Year.