“You have to understand what the curator does to understand in part what you are looking at in an exhibition. Why does this artist have three rooms and the other have one room; why this one is on the cover of the catalogue and the other is not? You have to try to understand all of these decisions that create the context of the art experience, both for looking at it, but also making it, as the ‘consumers’ are also the ‘producers’. - Seth Siegelaub
Truth: I never really understood this phrase until i got to read every bit of reading from my Curatorship class under Ms. Eileen Lagaspi-Ramirez. Ranging from Michel Foucault’s nightmare to Pierre Bourdieu’s Habitus. It wasn’t a lovely walk in the park reading this kinds of literature. It was the year when i read too much book and pirated a lot of independent music. I was checking my reading list and I’ve been crossing-out five books every week. I couldn’t help it. I needed things to satisfy my unquenchable thirst for knowing what the fuck is art and what the fuck is it’s purpose? I devoured them like a madman who recently escaped from Azkaban, re-reading every bit of things i didn’t understand, like how the hell do we make sense of the hazy romanticism of art in the contemporary world or how authenticity is important. I vividly remember reading Roland Barthes when i was driving and i almost fuckin hit another car when i encountered the word “Third order of signification and ideology.” This books had been a wonderful companions through good times and bad times, they kept me sane for one thing but for a lot of times they made me fuckin snobbish and arrogant, but it’s understable i guess, the more you read the more you get crazy and sad.
For the next three months i’ll be neglecting books, films, music, teaching, and to what end? Im not sure, but, one thing is - i’ll be with nine international curators from Australia, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Italy, Mexico, Spain, and Russia. Im definitely sure that this will be a kick-ass learning experience in the art of curatorship. A certain kind of happiness, bitterness, ecstasy, agony and a lot of oxymoron is currently floating in my head right now, i need to swim-away from the bad ones and surf my fuckin-ass to the happy ones. In the words of Thomas Mars “I’m far gone but your long distance call And your capital letters keep me asking for more” Oh wait that doesn’t make any sense at all! Anyway I’m gonna update this blog of things i’ll be doing in Berlin and my grueling quest of becoming a curator.
Until then, Do read my blog if you have time.
In one of Berlin’s most rapturous moments, I decided to go for a movie at the 62nd Berlin Film Festival. Since i can’t speak German, i opted for a more Filipino friendly film - yes something that speaks English. I went to the ticket booth at the “Postdamer Platz Arkaden” ready to purchase some movie pass but, to my surprise they don’t sell it there.
A M A Z I N G - a ticket booth that doesn’t sell any tickets. So after cueing in line for some ten minutes, the lovely girl from the booth told me i should purchase it at the “Berlinale Palast” which is a five freezing minutes away from where i was. So i did what the lady told me and got my ticket for three (3) euros, of course with the help of my ever trusted student i.d.
{ D I S C O U N T S I L V O U S P L A I T ! }
As i walked in to the cinematheque everything seemed so foreign, red carpets, velvety chairs, even the goddam walls looked so fashionable. I was like taking a walk in clouds were everything was so made up, watching a film here in Berlin was like going to church, it’s like seeing God in person, but of course you know I’m exaggerating. I just loved how the place was full of red carpets for the closing and awarding ceremonies that would take place later this evening.
Oh about the film i watched, it was a story about this kid named Oskar Schell, he was narrating a story purportedly inspired by discovering a key inside a blue vase that belonged to his father that apparently led to one of his greatest expedition around New York City - searching for where the key would fit. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close has a lot of flaws, it’s not a Truffaut, or Goddard, or a Brocka film for sure. But it’s a charmer, the girl beside me was crying her eyes out for some weird reason. It was probably because of the 9/11 references. I have always been a fan of coming of age films but this one doesn’t really give you that nerve-racking i fuckin love this movie kind of moment. It’s just probably me. Who needs candies and mints when one have supplies of beers and cigarettes right?
Visual Vibrations
The Problem of Curating “Living Cultures”
From the time the Cultural Center of the Philippines (C.C.P.) was created in 1969 there has been a museum on the same location of the Museo ng Kalinangang Pilipino exhibit, it was composed of the Arturo De Santos collection of earth-ware and jewelries and the Potenciano Badillo collection which was composed basically of Maranao and Maguindanao Art. It stayed there from 1969 up to 1986. In the advent of the new management of the C.C.P. in Former President Corazon Aquino’s time in 1986, the new management of the C.C.P. headed by Teresa Roxas and Nicanor Tiongson mentioned the creation of a new museum that would contemplate on the new policies of the center. When Marian Pastor Roces was asked and allowed by Nicanor Tiongson to install a “New Museum” in late August 1986, ultimately Ms. Roces grabbed the opportunity armed with progressive ideas of addressing the country’s environment rather than dealing with the the culturati of Manila brought about the conception of the MKP project. The whole notion of the MKP stems from the sentiments of the new management of the C.C.P. in 1986. The new policies of the C.C.P. anchored on essentially changing the discourse of the center from what they perceived to be an elitist organization to an organization that would talk and represent the general public.
According to Ms. Roces her involvement in the Museo ng Kalinangang Pilipino project originates from some “fluke of fate.” She was in the center as a young cultural worker in 1974, it was her first job and she didn’t stayed at the center too long because she didn’t like Former First Lady Imelda Marcos, she stayed only up to 1977. Her departure from the center didn’t necessarily mean the cutting of ties with the people shed used to work with. When Ray Albano was about to kick the bucket in 1985, Nonon Padilla gathered them and sort of devised a reunion around the period of BRACE with Fernando Modesto, Judy Sibayan and all the artist who were doing installations. Mr. Padilla then shared that Ms. Lucrecia Kasilag offered Ray Albano’s position to him. Ms. Roces among others made a promise to help Mr. Padilla in the center if he accepts the job offer. About one month after he took the job Mr. Padilla went to New York to direct a play and asked Ms. Roces to be the Officer In Charge in 1985. Mr. Padilla apparently didn’t go back to the CCP and Ms. Roces was the one who was in charge when the EDSA people power took place on February 22 1986. Ms. Roces being Pro-Cory called Mr. Padilla and said “Nonon, not even for you, im not going to do this, im rallying everyday of my life against this people and i go to the C.C.P… it’s too much.” Mr. Padilla, then replied “Andyan ka pa?” ( You’re still there?) Apparently Mr. Padilla doesn’t have any plans of returning to the center. Ms. Roces then called Ms. Kasilag that she is resigning but to her demise Ms. Kasilag said that if she resigned all of them will also resign and there would be no left in the center and this is how Ms. Roces got stuck with the C.C.P. before the new administration.
When the CCP was in it’s transition state Ms. Roces acted as the link between the new administration and the old management for she was one of the people among others who were Pro-Cory. When Mr. Tiongson and Ms. Roxas took over in August of 1986 the middle management of CCP was the one who were in charged of the center and they removed all of the Imeldific figures expect Ms. Kasilag. This is the launching pad in the crafting of the five new policies of CCP. Between February 1986 to August 1986 the consultations and dialogues with the artist coalition and cultural workers led by Benjamin Cervantes, Lino Brocka and Mr. Tiongson took place. The angry artist coalition asked for a Department of Culture but at that time the newly proclaimed president Corazon Aquino said that they cannot afford a Department of Culture but instead offered a Presidential Ministry of Culture which is in fact what they did.
The middle management of the CCP as well as the artist coalition headed by Mr. Tiongson crafted their own policies for the center independently and as it turned out the polices crafted by the middle management and the coalition of Mr. Tiongson aligned and led to the five new policies which were Democratization, Filipinization, Decentralization, Artistic Qualities and International Relations. This was the first time the center had it’s policy prior to it’s establishment in 1969. Ms. Roxas assumed the position of President and Mr. Tiongson was appointed as the Artistic Director in 1986. Thus the conception of the “New Museum” that would address a particular response to a very intense political period.
It’s Sobriety Stabs Deep
