Just had my first Tate Asia Pacific Acquisition Committee meeting in London! Truly fascinating to hear how curators think about building a collection, what they do to create an history 'trail' around an important work, and the desire to build sth of significance underscored by deep academic research. All that done with the unsaid goal (which I am sure is the same for all leading institutions) that 'we are building sth different from what others have done'.While there's all that rigor and aim for the highest standard/quality, at the same time, I also see the randomness of which artists get picked up even by important institutions like Tate. Its all of a bit of luck+chance - a studio visit here, a recommendation there, and you are part of an important collection!
If next year trip is really 'that location', it'd be unheard-of-cool! The 'priority artists' list that was presented today also showed what Tate is paying attention to, as another interest peek into the workings of a major collection machine.
No comments:
Post a Comment