Takahiro Iwasaki (Japan), 'Reflection Model (PerfectBliss)', 2010-12.

Installation view
THE 7th ASIA PACIFIC TRIENNIAL
Queensland Art Gallery and Gallery of Modern Art, Brisbane, 8 December,
2012-14 April, 2013
T
HE Asia Pacific T riennial
of Contemporary Art (APT ),
which was first held in 1993,
now marks its 20th anniversary
and, as with any biennale or trien-
nial passing a major milestone,
questions of its relevance come to
the fore.
T he Biennale of Sydney, which
began 20 years earlier in 1973, has
long passed its use-by date and
carries on largely through inertia
and the pressure of tradition. Its
original purpose of keeping Aus-
tralian art up to date by showing
the latest trends and developments
from abroad makes little sense in
the second decade of the 21st
century, when we are no longer
held back by the "time lag factor"
caused by a lack of travel oppor-
tunities, publications, high quality
reproductions or access to infor-
mation on contemporary art. On
the contrary, today we are utterly
swamped with information, both
Greg Semu (New Zealand/Aus-
tralia), 'Untitled (from 'The Battle
of the Noble Savage ' series) ', 2007,
reprinted 2012, digital print on PVC
canvas, ISO x 250 cm. Edition 10
An-My Le (Vietnam/US), 'Patient Admission, US Naval Hospital Ship
Mercy, Vietnam' (from 'Events Ashore'series), 2010, archival inkjet
pigment print on 380 gsm Harman Professional InkJet paper mounted on
sintra, 101.6 x 143.5 cm. Edition 2/5
electronically and in hard copy,
and the poorly funded Sydney
biennales appear as interesting and
as relevant to contemporary Aus-
tralian artists as old issues of auc-
tion catalogues. T oday it continues
more as a trade fair and as a tour-
ist attraction.
T he huge difference with the APT
exhibitions is that they do not
essentially set out to reflect what
is happening elsewhere; they are
the major trendsetters and it is the
rest of the world which takes note.
T hey have become the centre for
recording developments in contem-
Lorraine Connelly-Northey (Aus-
tralia, Waradgerie people NSW/VIC)
'Narbong (String bag)', 2012, found
materials, 10 pieces, variable sizes
porary art from the Asia Pacific
region. T he T riennial is relevant
because it is the benchmark exhi-
bition and it is the only one doing
it on such a scale and with such
style and consistency.
One can argue and should argue
about geographical definitions.
Should the Asia Pacific be thought
of as being Asia and the Pacific
and include T urkey, Egypt, Iran
and Kazakhstan, as has been done
in this exhibition, or should that
be left to the Istanbul Biennial?
Should one stick more to the core
areas with greater emphasis on
Fiji, Burma, Kiribati, Cambodia,
T onga and so on, all of which have
been largely excluded from APT 7?
Should one think of it as the Asia-
Pacific rim and include the West
Coast US, where there has been
a lively exchange with Australian
'Paramodel' (Japan, established
2001 paramodelic - graffiti installa-
tion view), 2010 installation view,
Otani Memorial Art Museum,
Nishinomiya City, Japan
Craft Arts International No. 88, 2013
85
Eiona Tan (Indonesia/Netherlands), 'Cloud Island' (still), 2010, single-channel HD video projection, 47 minutes
art for more than 150 years? The
geographic understanding of Asia-
Pacific remains a core question
for this Triennial. Asia Pacific was
originally spelt with a hyphen for
APT 1, but then it was airbrushed
from existence.
The APT came into being in 1993
as quite a modest affair, but gen-
erated immense excitement and
intellectual energy. About 60,000
people visited the inaugural event.
With the APT 5 in 2006, the Gal-
lery of Modern Art (GoMA) was
added to the venue, more than
doubling the display space, and
some 700,000 visitors attended it
that year. At APT 7 we have over
290 exhibits by 75 artists from 27
countries spread across the two
adjoining venues. The APT now
operates like a well oiled machine
and one has grown to anticipate a
spectacular installation in the long
hall of GoMA and some overar-
L.N. Tallur (India/South Korea),
'Unicode (33)', 2011, bronze, Dayanita Singh (India), 'Nalin and Natasha (from 'What happened is
coins, concrete, 183 x 152 x 117 cm this' series) ', 1996, pigment print, 70 x 70 cm
ching installation over the water
mall in the other building. These
huge site-specific installations have
become the anticipated features
of this and previous triennials.
One spectacular focus of this year's
APT is on the art of Papua New
Guinea, including the giant Spirit
House (korumbo) constructed by
the Brikiti Cultural group as a site-
specific installation. There is also
the huge and beautifully carved
Bisj pole, and the incredible ritual
masks by the Arawe, Sulka, Pomio
and Baining peoples, also masks
by Damien Gulldedep and Alex
Gabour, as well as those from the
village of Yenchen. There is always
the problem of the translation of
ritualistic ephemeral artefacts into
museum objects once the plants
have withered, the fragrance of the
flowers has gone and the music
Nguyen Manh Hung (Vietnam),
'Living Together in Paradise' (detail),
2009, mixed media installation,
dimensions variable
and chant have disappeared. It is
a very fine line that any institution
threads between a culturally sen-
sitive theme park, a transcultural
attempt at preservation of a van-
ishing culture, or a glitzy display
of exotica. For me the present dis-
plays are mesmerising in their
beauty, and the accompanying well
illustrated catalogue, containing
Martin Fowler's brilliant essay,
make the APT 7 into a beautiful
and meaningful experience.
Another highlight is the wonderful
paintings and carvings by the Tiwi
artist Timothy Cook with the
three enormous Pukamani poles
and large Kulama paintings. The
experience of this work, accompa-
nied by the Tiwi dancers and the
Nguyen Thai Tuan (Vietnam),
'Black Painting No. 80', 2009, oil
on canvas, 130 x 110 cm.
86 Craft Arts Intemational No. 88, 2013
artist singing it into being, gave
all of this a special potency. Gen-
erally, in the selection of some of
the Australian Indigenous there is
a strong sense of curatorial fashion,
with Lorraine Connelly-Northey's
giant handbags, narbongs and
koolimans made out of discarded
rusted metal, and Michael Cook's
postcolonial photomontages in
vogue. I admire the work of both
artists, but of late there seems to
have been a bit of an over expo-
sure to it.
Over the 20 years which has sepa-
rated the first APT and the one
today, there has been a dramatic
social and economic repositioning
of Asia. Urbanisation has acceler-
ated dramatically, the middle class
has become a major and rapidly
growing force to be reckoned with,
and the place has become linked
up through broadband with the
internet and mobile phones, as
Michael Wesley has argued in his
catalogue essay. The Indonesian
artist, Hahan (Uji Handoko Eko
Saputro) is one of the few artists
in this exhibition who combines
a healthy dose of street art, punk
Uji Handoko Fko Saputro (Indonesia), 'The New
Prophet' (from 'Trinity'series), 2011, polyester
resin and air brush, ht 100 x 75 x 100 cm
music, comics and Javanese mjTii-
ology to add a bit of spice in their
criticism of the art world.
Parastou Forouhar is an interesting
Iranian artist whose work I have
long admired and her site specific
"written room" with floating Farsi
calligraphy creates a remarkable
Timothy Cook (Australia,Tiwipeople, NT), 'Kulama',
2012, ochre and natural pigments, with acrylic binder on
linen, 180 x 200 cm
AlmagulMenlibayeva (Kazakhstan/Germany), 'Kurdiatov 22' (still),
2012, five-channel HD video projection, 26 minutes, with English subtitles
Sara Rahbar (Iran/US), 'Glorious Haze',
2012, handwoven textiles, with military
accoutrements, found objects, 150 x 89 cm
Madein Company (China, est. 2009), 'Spread 201009103', 2010, nylon,
plywood, plastic, plaster, palm fibre, paint, approx. size 500 x 400 x 400 cm
meditative space, one, where I'm
told, that meaning remains obscure
to even those conversant with the
language. Entering her environ-
ment is like being enveloped within
a seductive dream.
Of the strong selection of video
work, for me the most memorable
piece is by the Turkish artist, Inci
Eviner, where in Broken Manifestos
there's a healthy dose of the absurd
as all is submerged into a world of
dancing figures.
This is one of the strongest APT
exhibitions to date and despite
reservations concerning some of
the inclusions and tedious glitter,
it has a strength and integrity that
is rarely encountered in a cultural
festival that has run for 20 years.
Prof. Sasha Grishin, AM, FAHA
The Sir William Dobell Professor of Art
History. Head, Art History, ANU.
Damien Gulkledep (Papua New
Guinea, Pomio people, Bitapaka),
'Avalau', 2011, mask, mixed media,
fabrics, paint, 131 x 66 cm (diam.)
Craft Arts International No. 88, 2013
87