ISCP Talk
December 13, 2011

Salon: Petros Chrisostomou and Minja Gu

Petros Chrisostomou will discuss the development of his work, from its origins rooted in maximalist free standing sculpture to his transition to a photographic practice in order to exemplify the importance of physicality, in relation to his understanding of his social position in a globalised world. Chrisostomou photographs small scale, ordinary, ephemeral objects in architectural models that he constructs, and then dramatically arranges, often employing lighting and staging conventions of the theatre. With the alteration of scale and reversal of the relation between object and space, his photographs challenge the viewers’ visual certainties.

Minja Gu will present a previous project based on performative actions and a new project, ‘Metropolitan Grand Hall of Music’, involving musicians. Gu’s works appear frail, intimate and almost indistinguishable from everyday life. She is predominately interested in what society uses and then discards, and with grace, wit and poetry, she reclaims the many supposedly valueless remnants of daily consumerism, such as leftover coffee cups and plastic bags. In addition to her physical artistic production, she also participates in interventions that are at the same time dependent on and mocking of societal norms.

Participating Residents

Offsite Project
December 8–December 31, 2011

Minja Gu: Atlantic-Pacific co

The International Studio & Curatorial Program (ISCP) is pleased to announce Atlantic-Pacific co by ISCP artist-in-residence Minja Gu. Atlantic-Pacific co engages the public in the creation of a 17th century trading company, bringing attention to the ways regionally specific products introduce us to different cultures.

Taking ocean exploration in the age of discovery as a starting point, artist Minja Gu compares Atlantic Avenue and Pacific Street in Brooklyn to their respective oceans in her latest work, Atlantic-Pacific co. Founded in 2011 in New York City, Atlantic-Pacific co, is an international trading company specializing in rare products. Items were gathered from expeditions on Atlantic (Ave) and Pacific (St) by a group of voyagers (native New Yorkers), with the intent of learning about area specific customs and products. Atlantic-Pacific co presents items from the voyagers’ collection and displays the logbook telling the story of their explorations at Moore St. Market in Brooklyn.

Minja Gu lives and works in Seoul, Korea. She has participated in residencies at Ssamzie Space, Seoul; Hangar, Barcelona; and Gyeonggi Creation Center, Ansan. Solo exhibitions include Identical Times at Space Croft in 2009 and group exhibitions include 08 Taipei Biennial, Taipei Museum of Fine Art; Now What, Space Hamilton, Seoul; and Anyang Public Art Project 2010.

Click here to read sociologist Barbara Adam’s essay on the ISCP and Moore Street Market’s collaboration. 

Generous support for this project has been provided by NYC Council Member Diana Reyna’s office, District 34 and the Brooklyn Economic Development Corporation.

Moore St. Market
110 Moore St, Brooklyn, NY

ISCP Talk
December 8, 2011

Economies of Residencies | Panel Discussion

RESIDENCIES TALK SERIES WITH ARTEEAST

ECONOMIES OF RESIDENCIES
Thursday, December 8, 6:30pm

Economies of Residencies will address the funding infrastructure for residencies and the arts in the Middle East and around the world. How can the expectations of artists be balanced with those of funders? As more and more residencies are established in non-Western countries and as artists from those countries increasingly participate in residencies, how can funding priorities adjust to this new vanguard? How can we critique the funding structures of residencies and their relationship to how national identities are constructed? What is the economic impact on the communities where residencies take place? Speakers include Claudia Cannizzaro, Director, Art Omi International Artists Residency, New York; Eriola Pira, Program Director, Young Visual Artists Awards at the Foundation for a Civil Society, New York; and Stefanos Tsivopoulos, artist, New York/Amsterdam.

PAST PANELS IN THE SERIES:

ALTERNATIVE RESIDENCIES
Tuesday, October 18, 6:30pm

Alternative Residencies: This first panel in our Residencies Series with ArteEast will look at new organizational models for residencies. We ask how residencies are being transformed alongside artistic development to meet the needs of artists and curators in an increasingly itinerant field. Residencies as catalysts for research, production, commissioning and social engagement/intervention within a critical framework will be addressed. How are programs for disciplines newer to residencies including film and curating being developed as well as informal strategies and residencies for art institutions?

Speakers include Mirene Arsanios, co-founder of 98weeks and ISCP resident, Lebanon; Omar Berrada, Dar Al-Mamun, Morocco; Ceren Erdem, independent curator, New York/Istanbul; Nora Razian and Lawrence Abu Hamdan, Batroun Projects, Beirut. Moderated by Kari Conte, Director of Programs and Exhibitions, ISCP.

RESIDENCY AS REFUGE?
Tuesday, November 1, 7pm

Residency as Refuge? will interrogate the ways in which residencies can serve as a haven for artists working in fraught socio-political climates, or whose work subjects them to adverse risk or censorship in their home countries. The role of residencies as key facilitators of mobility and cultural exchange for artists working in such situations will also be discussed. Speakers include Wafaa Bilal, artist, New York; Sandra Skurvida, independent curator, New York; Sohrab Kashani, Founder and Director of Sazmanab Project & Residency, Tehran; and Todd Lester, Founder, Freedimensional, New York. Moderated by Barrak Alzaid, Artistic Director, ArteEast.

About ArteEast

ArteEast presents the works of contemporary artists from the Middle East, North Africa and their diasporas to a wide audience in order to foster a more complex understanding of the regions’ arts and cultures and to encourage artistic excellence. Through public events, exhibitions, film screenings, a dynamic virtual gallery and a resource-rich website, ArteEast supports artists and filmmakers by providing the platforms necessary for them to showcase groundbreaking and significant work. We also give the public the opportunity to learn more about and develop an appreciation for the talent of these established and emerging artists.