Progressive moment
Nafas is a well put together exhibition, driven by two main curatorial questions.
The first question ponders on which curatorial approach would be sympathetic to artists whose practices have been excluded from the mainstream art discourse and rendered invisible by the different power systems within the art galleries.
“Despite vigorous efforts to elevate women artists, their representation in local art institutions and galleries is still lacking. Access to these sites are limited to women perhaps attributed to art history that leans towards the cultural contribution of male artists. In their infamous words, the New York-based art collective Guerrilla Girls stated, ‘Less than 5% of the artists in the Modern Art section are women, but 85% of the nudes are female’,” says Suzy.
Secondly, it raises this point: how can we see something that we have been made blind towards?
Suzy reflects on how this invisibility could be eluded if we reexamine curatorial practices that are accepted as the norm.
“Firstly, there was a conscious blurring of the definition of ‘artist’. A number of artists in this show do not possess formal training in art and come from various educational backgrounds. In place of a formal art training, their tenacity, coherence and consistency of their creative practice became a deciding factor. Secondly, it was intended to include fringe art practitioners, identified by their unconventional mediums or non-gallery based artworks. Loosening these definitions allows it to be more inclusive,” she shares.
In a challenging landscape compounded by the pandemic, she notes that Maybank Foundation is doing a great part in ensuring visibility to women artists by organising this show every year.
“However, it’s also important that we don’t lull ourselves into depending on given visibility so that we strengthen ourselves, and one day perhaps, we don’t need to call it a ‘women’s show’ anymore,” she says.
Lastly, she points out that “nafas baru” is a common phrase in Malay that implies the new and the emerging, surely an apt description of the artists in this exhibition as a breath of fresh air.
More info: maybankfoundation.com.