“Branding the border” (short presentations / roundtable discussion)
The discussion will revolve around the notion of the border (here in the sense of a geographical / national border) in relation to contemporary art practices. How are these borders conceptualized, promoted and used? Where does the “artist brand” fit in? The cases of the Prada foundation with its patronage for the arts and of the artist Stephanie Syjuco will be presented, followed by a discussion on the potential critical power founded in the existence of the branded object.
Elena Papadaki
“Branding the border: Yang Fudong’s “First Spring” and the Prada foundation”
“First Spring” is a short film by the Chinese artist Yang Fudong. However, this is not a work that was made to be exhibited in a gallery; it was a commission by Prada for its Spring/Summer 2010 collection. In a similar fashion (and to mention only a few examples), the Prada foundation has sponsored the creation of Carsten Höller’s “Double Club” in 2008 (a Western/Congolese bar/restaurant/disco in London) and advertised itself with the picture of a black man selling fake Prada bags in 2004. What are the implications behind the use of “non-western” cultures as a selling instrument for the west? Are the works in question reduced to a mere decorative tool for the capitalist markets, or do they actually have critical power founded in their existence?
Elena Papadaki studied Art and Film History (BA) and Cultural Studies (MA). Having worked at the Hellenic Ministry of Culture and the International Council of Museums (ICOM), she currently conducts research on curating screen-based artworks at the Centre for Cultural Studies (Goldsmiths College, University of London), where she is also a visiting tutor.
Rico Reyes
Mimesis and the embodiment of brands: A Look at COPYSTAND by Stephanie Syjuco
Moving away from the Platonic construction of mimesis – a superficial imitation of nature, Stephanie Syjuco has rooted her project on the act of embodied imitation. As a Filipino cultural phenomenon, embodied imitation is seen in the centuries of development in Folkloric dance and ritual. This tradition is reinvigorated through collaboration with communities of contemporary visual artists. COPYSTAND, first installed/performed at the 2009 Frieze Art Fair in London, stages an atelier of contemporary artists copying works of established artists testing the precarity of the status of the artist brand, and challenging the viewers to recognise or misrecognise their beloved works of art.
Rico J. Reyes, artist/curator/academic, received his BA in Studio Art at UC Berkeley, and his MFA in New Genres from UCLA. Working in video, installation, and performance, Rico creates work that focuses on the intersection of race, sexuality, and post-colonialism. As curator, Reyes curated Post Gay/Ante Asian, a visual arts exhibit by, for, and about Gay Asian Pacific Islanders, launched online in May 2000. More recently, he was curator for Overmapped: Filipino American Visual Arts, presented in April 2007 at SOMArts Gallery; and From Hedonopolis, To Melancolony, presented September 2007 at University of San Francisco Thacher Gallery. Reyes is currently a PhD candidate at the University of London, Goldsmiths College. He lives and works in London, UK; Tempe, AZ; and San Francisco, CA