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

I NTRODUCTION The Third Asia-Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art (APT3) attracted a record audience of 1 55 OOO to the Queensland Art Gallery. The APT project was in itiated by the Gallery in 1 993, as the first exh ibition of its kind to focus on the dynamic contemporary art of Asia and the Pacific. The project comprises an on-going program of exhibitions , research , publ ications and dialogue. APT3: 9 September 1 999 - 26 January 2000 1 44 art works by more than 77 artists from 20 countries and regions were included in APT3 . The art covered a range of media including performance, sculpture, painting, i nstallation, textile, video, new technology ana photography. Artists incl uded were from Japan , Ch ina, Hong Kong, South Korea, Taiwan, Indonesia, the Phil ippines, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam , I nd ia, New Zealand, P a pua New Gu inea, New Caledonia, Australia and for the first time, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, N iue and Wall is and Futuna Islands. Many of the works invited aud ience interaction while artistic collaborations across cultures and art forms featured strongly. New components of APT3 d rew critical acclaim . The APT Website and Virtual Triennial attracted new aud iences while Kids' APT captured the imagination of young visitors through various avenues including h ighly interactive art works specifically created for ch ildren by participating artists . Around 3 500 international and Australian visitors attended the official opening. The open ing week events attracted an audience of 1 6 OOO and encompassed an intensive program of performances, artists' talks, public programs and d iscussion . The Gallery also organ ised a comprehensive I nternational Visitors' Outreach Program which l i nked over fifty participating artists and curators with community g roups, arts organ isations and un iversities throughout Australia through a six month program of residencies and visits . I nternational Networks and Curatorial Collaboration The success of the three Triennials has been dependent on the generous contribution of hundreds of international artists, curators, writers and arts professionals. The APT is the most extensive collaborative art project in Australia and provides an informed platform for artistic experimentation . The principle of co-curatorship is central with in the APT as curatorial partnerships between international and Australian curators undertake focused research i n the region . Add itional ly, the APT3 curatorial process provided for the inclusion of 'globally mobile' artists and artists engaged in interd isciplinary practice and col laborations. Col lection Development The Gallery is fortunate in acqu iring th irty-seven art works from the APT3 exh ibition. Similar numbers of acquisitions were made from the First and Second APT exh ibitions . The Gallery also purchases artwork in the years between Triennials. The Gallery's collection of contemporary Asian art currently comprises over 300 works. Add itionally, the Gallery is now focussing attention on the collection of contemporary art from the Pacific. The contemporary Asian art collection has recently been enhanced by a generous donation from the Sidney Myer Foundation and the Myer fam ily, to further develop the Kenneth and Yasu ko Myer Collection of Contemporary Asian Art. This latest donation will continue an endowment for purchases in contemporary Asian art and ensure that the Queensland Art Gallery continues to build one of the most significant collections of contemporary Asian art in the world. 8