The Eighth Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art

HU YUN Performer/Audience/Mirror 2011 Performance, ‘Taking the Stage OVER: Re-Performing History’ / Bund 18, Shanghai, 19 March 2011 / ©Hu Yun collective) at the Gallery in 2011 was an exception. Both the festival and the Gallery were challenged by censorship issues, but the negotiations that took place and moments of held breath were positive developments towards creating ‘more discourse and awareness about performance art within the art community’. 3 This is a fundamental objective of the Buka Kolektif and it was hoped to mark a growing openness by the National Art Gallery. I am not, however, aware of a similar event staged there since. At the heart of performance is, of course, the body. Its representation in the 1990s was often connected to explorations of identity, yet what seems to occupy the public sphere now are bodies that are often unidentified. In many cases these are treated as a threat —be they refugees, foreign labour, women wearing the veil, or crowds massing in protest. On the other hand, we see the perfected, unattainable bodies of popular culture. Do you think we have been moving away from a preoccupation with identity, or has it perhaps taken other forms? LR Identity is still important, perhaps now more than ever. The move from traditional homelands or islands and their cultural traditions, and the rise of second- and third-generation peoples, means that more than ever art and the creative impulse provide the platform to explore, challenge and create. SK I do not think we are yet moving away from the preoccupation with identity. Identity had taken on the literal form of the body, but today it is through other forms — such as discussions — that artists investigate the issue of identity. BC The identity issue is political and will be always present. It is not just art-related . . . Artists’ personal perspectives, sharing concerns publicly related to these questions, will always remain important. Since the 1990s, the notion of the public sphere has changed drastically to more cooperative 218—219 APT8 ROUND TABLE