Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, 1993 : Exhibition report

NATIONAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE AND SELECTION PROCESS In preparation for The First Asia-Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art’, an Australian National Advisory Committee was formed to maintain an intellectual and logistical overview of the exhibition. The Committee was responsible for developing the curatorial philosophy and selection process. The Committee consisted of Doug Hall, Director, Queensland Art Gallery; Caroline Turner, Deputy Director and Manager, International Programs, Queensland Art Gallery; Alison Carroll, Visual Arts Manager, Asialink, Melbourne; Neil Manton, former Director, South-East Asia and the Pacific Program, Cultural Relations Branch, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Canberra; and David Williams, Director, Canberra School of Art, Australian National University, Canberra. The Gallery would like to extend special thanks to the three external members of the Committee for their outstanding contributions: Alison Carroll, who has undertaken a major curatorial role in developing visual arts exchanges between Australia and Asia; Neil Manton, who has been an inspiration and guide to many Australians; and David Williams, who has contributed extensively in the areas of craft, visual art and academic exchanges. The Triennial could not have been undertaken without their assistance, drawing on their considerable expertise in the region. There were many other Australians who have also generously shared their knowledge, contacts and ideas with the Queensland Art Gallery and they are acknowledged in the catalogue. For two and a half years prior to the Triennial opening, members of the National Advisory Committee and exhibition curators travelled throughout all the participating countries in the region meeting with artists and surveying current art trends with the help of advisors and organising institutions within those countries. Their work was greatly facilitated in each country by local experts, art schools, museums and galleries. The close association developed between the advisers and a range of artists, writers, curators, academics, cultural institutions and arts bodies in each of the countries has been fundamental to the Triennial process. The selections for this exhibition, however, have not been made by Australian curators going into the region and selecting only the work that has interested them. From the outset, it was central to the Triennial’s philosophy that the selections would also reflect what the experts in those countries believed were important issues within the art of each country. This has been a project of genuine collaboration based on mutual respect. The Gallery is extremely grateful to the experts in each country who generously shared their knowledge and ideas. Similarly the interpretation of the art has involved experts within each country. The selection process for the 1993 Triennial was an integrated process of collaboration and consultation with artists and art experts. The result was a genuine voyage of discovery for the National Advisory Committee and the staff of the Queensland Art Gallery, as well as a large number of Australians who have assisted with that "voyage" over three years.