Present Encounters : Papers from the conference of the Second Asia-Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, Brisbane, 1996

conference was held at the Tate Gallery, London in 1 994. The papers from that conference are a key reference . 2 Major conferences have accompanied the pioneering Fukuoka Art Museum's Asian Art Shows, which began i n 1 979 and were the first exhibitions to focus on contempora ry Asian art issues. The Japan Foundation Asia Center has held significant exhibitions and symposia, incl uding most recently 'The Potential of Asian Thought' in 1 994 and 'Asian Contemporary Art Reconsidered' in 1 997. The exh ibition and conference 'Contemporary Art of the Non Aligned Countries, 1 995' held In Jakarta and exhibitions and symposia at the Singapore Art Museum have generated new areas of debate. An important conference a lso was held duri ng the exh ibition 'Traditions/Tensions' at the Asia Society Galleries, New York, in 1 996. This exh ibition was cu rated by Thai scholar Dr Apinan Poshyananda and organ ised by the Director of the Asia Society Galleries, Dr Vishakha Desa i . Another highly i nteresting colloqu i um, although not one limited to Asia-Pacific art, was that organised by Arts I nternational and the Rockefel ler Foundation at Bellagio, Italy, i n 1 997 on the subject of major recurring exhibitions, including Biennales and Triennials. The papers for this col loquium are currently being published by the organisers. The above is only a brief i ntroduction to some of the major conferences and symposia relevant to the field of contemporary Asia-Pacific art. The conferences held in association with the First and Second Asia-Pacific Triennial exhibitions, together with the catalogues of the two exh ibitions held thus far, have proved of vital importance in providing a context for the art presented in the exh ibitions. The papers which follow are thus essential read ing for those working in the field , since they provide an overview of what are considered to be the issues of critical sign ificance to 'Present Encounters' i n 1 996 . As Austra lian born critic Robert Hughes notes: 'Art is rarely . . . untouched by the deep currents moving in the society around it. ' 4 Yet art can never be seen as merely the reflection of its times. 'Present Encounters' reveals the importance of continuing scholarship, dialogue and mu ltiple perspectives in understanding the art of our region . Caroline Turner Deputy Director, Queensland Art Gal lery November, 1 997 . 1 . John Clark (ed . ), Modernity in Asian Art, Wild Peony, Sydney, 1 993. (Conference papers for the Conference 'Modernism and Post-Modernism in Asian Art', Canberra, March 1 991 ). 2. Jean Fisher (ed . ), Global Visions: Towards a New Internationalism in the Visual Arts, Kal a Press, The Institute o f I nternational Visual Arts, London, 1 994. (Conference papers t o the I nstitute of I nternational Visual Arts Symposium 'A New Nationalism', held at the Tate Gallery, London, April 1 994) . 3. The papers are availa ble from The Japan Foundation Asia Center, Tokyo. 4. Robert Hughes, 'The Cult of I dentity', The Australian, 24 May 1 997, p.3. Respected Australian I nd igenous artist Li n Onus, who spoke at this conference and whose work was included i n the Second Asia-Pacifi c Triennia l , died on 24 October, 1 996 . The Gallery joins with the Australian art community i n mourning his passing. 1 0