Third Asia-Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, 1999 : Beyond the future : Report.

CONFERENCE PLANN I NG PROCESS OVERVI EW A major international conference was held in association with the opening events from 1 0 to 1 2 September 1 999 attracted over 700 delegates - the largest contemporary art conference held in Australia. The Conference was jointly organ ised by the Queensland Art Gallery; the Centre for the Study of Australia-Asia Relations (Griffith Un iversity); and the Centre for Cross-Cultural Research (Australian National University). An extensive process of consultation was undertaken . 6 Conference Convenors represented the three organ ising bodies . Another 4 1 Comm ittee Members were consulted nationally through a process of Conference Planning Meetings that were held from No v ember 1 998 to July 1 999. The Conference Planning Meetings were held in Brisbane (Queensland Art Gallery); in Sydney (Powerhouse Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences); and in Canberra (Australian National Univers ity). CONFERENCE ORGAN ISERS QUEENSLAND ART GALLERY Since its establishment in 1 895 the Queensland Art Gallery has consolidated its position as one of the foremost art institutions in Australia, initiating and presenting significant national and international exhibitions. By maintaining a strong comm itment to Australian visual art of this century and to international projects and exchanges, the Gallery is ideally placed to have conceived the Asia-Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art. The Gallery's continu ing engagement with the region is demonstrated through its significant col lection of contemporary Asian art (including the Kenneth & Yasuko Myer Collection of Contemporary Asian Art), a research collection of over 4000 items and a database of more than 2000 Asian and Pacific artists . Publishing, conferences and education are important components of the Queensland Art Gallery's programs. The Third Triennial (9 September 1 999-26 January 2000) reflects the Gallery's ongoing commitment to the presentation and d iscussion of the contemporary visual art of Asia and the Pacific and builds on the already strong relations it has developed between artists, scholars and arts professionals in the region . THE CENTRE FOR THE STUDY OF AUSTRALIA-ASIA RELATIONS (CSAAR) The Centre for the Study of Australia-Asia Relations (CSAAR) is an allied centre of the School of Asian and I nternational Stud ies at Griffith Un iversity. It was establ ished in 1 978 to promote research and study into Austral ia's contemporary relations with Asia. The Centre's research focuses on: Asian Immigration into Australia, Security in the Asia-Pacific Region , Asian Perceptions of Australia and Australia's Economic Relations with Asia. The Centre seeks to expand understanding of Austral ia's relations with the countries of its reg ion through workshops, seminars , public lectures and symposia. It also offers consultancy services to government, commercial and commun ity organ isations. THE CENTRE FOR CROSS-CULTURAL RESEARCH (CCR) The Centre for Cross-Cultural Research was established at the Australian National Un iversity in January 1 997, with a grant from the Australian Research Council's Special Research Centre program . It is the first Special Research Centre to be established in the human ities, and is conducting an ambitious and wide-ranging program in cultural h istory, art h istory, visual studies , and anthropology, ranging over art, travel, colon ialism , settler-indigenous relations, m igration, museums, consumption and other topics of cross-cultural studies. Research foregrounds the Asia-Pacific region since the eighteenth century, and illum inates colonial histories and contemporary developments through wider global comparisons. The Centre's activities are closely l i nked with the conference and fel lowship programs of the ANU's Humanities Research Centre. 55