Hello!
My name is Solomon Szekir-Papasavva and I'm currently writing a blog on the 9th Bienal do Mercosul in Porto Alegre, Brazil. The blog focuses on issues surrounding the interpretation and curation of contemporary art, and the extent to which the Bienal's general audience is being engaged.
I graduated from the Art Gallery and Museum Studies MA at Leeds University in 2010, having focused my research on exhibition design and curation. I started working soon after as an education session leader at the Thackray Museum (Leeds), where I also developed a new formal education session on the workhouse.
Since coming to Brazil last year I have learnt much about the museum sector and cultural interpretation and engagement in Porto Alegre. Here there is not the same tradition of large-scale, state-funded cultural projects and institutions as in the UK, but there is a lot of potential for growth. That is why I have been working free-lance: curating a collective exhibition of local artists, developing education sessions, and writing a blog on the 9th Bienal do Mercosul. I hope you find it interesting, and if you do, please share it with anyone else you think might like it!
Whilst you say Brazil doesn't have the same tradition of large-scale and state-funded projects, is it at the same stage as the UK in innovative experience design? When I went to Holland I found that the Stedelijk museum seemed waaay ahead in terms of being experimental with the overlap between Art & Tech!
ReplyDeleteAnd also, how easy is it to pick up curatorial projects as a freelancer? I have been doing project-based freelance work during university holidays, but am unsure whether to throw myself into that full-time post-BA!
It's really great to hear about your experience post-study.
Hi Rosa! Thanks for the response.
ReplyDeleteThere hasn’t been the same development of the innovative experience design you mentioned. I can only really speak for institutions in Porto Alegre, but I think a similar (or less favourable) situation can be found across the rest of Brazil, with the exception of Rio and a couple of other large cities. Relative to European practise, exhibition interpretation here is rarely multilayered and there’s a lack of supplementary interpretative material for different visitor types (young visitors, school groups, the visually impaired, etc). There’s also no tradition of collecting and analysing feedback to gauge public response and improve future programming and exhibition design.
The main reason for these shortcomings is that the public has never been at the centre of art planning. The government has had relatively little interest in engaging the general public with through artistic projects. Investment has largely come from the private sector: banks, oil companies, large corporations. As a result, these spaces appeal to a very narrow audience.
Several public art spaces are being redeveloped in Porto Alegre and I know there’s a lot of funding available for new cultural projects across Brazil in tandem with the world cup, but there’s also a lack of expertise. In Porto Alegre the federal university has only recently established a Museology degree, and an equivalent of the MA I did at Leeds doesn’t exist, so there’s too few trained and experienced Brazilian museum professionals. Rio is a slightly different story as investment in cultural projects, and investment in general, is extremely Rio-centric. Hopefully that will change with increased investment with the world cup and Olympics.
In terms of free-lancing, is difficult for the same reasons mentioned above. The best strategy here is to vary the service you provide. I’m working a curator, education programmer and teacher at the same time. All of these projects require and involve putting together applications and hoping for the best. Institutions don’t tend to hire free-lancers for projects like in the UK, so you have to find your own funding for your own projects! It’s precarious but, in the long run, it gives you more freedom.
I hope that helps!
This is so interesting, thank you!
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