Interview Chinese curator Feng Boyi

(scroll down for the Chinese version of the interview)

A new exhibition titled Dutch Photography: The Space Between Us unveiled at Shenzhen’s He Xiang Ning Art Museum on April 26. DutchCulture, together with the Dutch Embassy in Beijing, took the great opportunity to interview the Exhibition Director, Chinese independent curator and art critic Mr. Feng Boyi. As an “old friend” of the Netherlands, Feng Boyi co-curated the exhibition Fuckoff 2 at Groninger Museum last year. He was also one of the Chinese curators invited by the Mondriaan Funds for a one-week visit to the Dutch art scene in last November. Feng is since years leading He Xiang Ning Art Museum (Shenzhen) and Jinji Lake Art Museum (Suzhou) as artistic director.

Q: In the upcoming three months, He Xiang Ning Art Museum will set its excellent exhibition program on Dutch photography. How has this project come into being? Is there any geographical concern to make the show in Shenzhen?

I have relatively lots of contacts with the Netherlands in recent years. At very beginning we collaborated with Groninger Museum, trying to bring Iris van Herpen to He Xing Ning Art Museum. The plan unfortunately didn’t go further at the end due to financial insufficiency. However, last year in Suzhou Jinji Lake Art Museum we presented the solo photography exhibition We Are Here of the Dutch duo WassinkLundgren. One of the artists Ruben Lundgren studied and has been living and working in China for several years until now. Their work is to some extent very experimental. It not only provides an alternative perspective to China itself but also breaks the conventional perception of photography. I have explored the possibility of having their solo exhibition in Suzhou, as an individual case study, in order to show local, Chinese audience that photography can be done even like that. This is also because I always try to lay stress on the locality of an art museum, as a public art institution, besides its academic dedications, and hope to induce local apprehension of the abundant potentiality of photographic arts by showcasing different artists’ practices. This solo exhibition was previously produced by and at the FOAM (Photography Museum Amsterdam) then to Suzhou with an idea of traveling, although the artists made some adjustments locally.

The upcoming Dutch photography exhibition continues our collaboration with the FOAM. Nowadays in China photographing is at most of time done via internet, smart phones and computers. Many people are now agents of the so-called “self-media” and publish photos casually by, and of, themselves. Including some “Si” (private) photography, this has become a very common phenomenon especially among youngsters, which consequently introduces a different spectatorship than the conventional passive perception. Shenzhen, where He Xiang Ning Art Museum locates, is a migrant city with a big young population and speedy urbanization. Selfie, self-media is somehow part of the locals’ daily life. To associate with the dynamic youth culture in the Netherlands and the European country’s rich experiences in urban planning, curiosity of photographic works by younger generation Dutch artists was easily sprung up, especially after I saw some interesting works at the Unseen Photo Fair last year in Amsterdam upon FOAM’s invitation. I thus hope to make an introduction, by showcasing in Shenzhen representative Dutch young artists’ practices using photograph as medium for individual expression. So this brand new exhibition intends to react on the happening tendency of image popularization.

Q: How is your re-collaboration with the FOAM this time?

This exhibition could be seen as an introduction based on exchange. Last year Mr. Marcel Feil, Vice Director of FOAM visited Suzhou upon the opening of We Are Here. We explored the possibility of co-curating a new exhibition of Dutch photography to continue our great collaboration, and the project was soon officially built-up. I honestly have little, if not no, knowledge about photography in the Netherlands, therefor I respect and appreciate much of FOAM’s expertise. Marcel and his team made a wonderful selection of art works and proposed to us. The two museums then closely discussed and worked together to confirm all the details, including the title of the exhibition: The Space Between Us.

Q: How would you interpret “the space between us”?

The title refers to the context of globalization. The modernization in China is to some extent a process of urbanization along with the current of globalization. Although geographically there’s thousands of miles between Shenzhen and the Netherlands, both are localities within the one space (so-)called global village. Whereas, acknowledging a common space perhaps at the same time outlines the disparities and nuances. So we emphasized the notion of “between”, between us, between China and the Netherlands. Furthermore, “us” is also a comprehensive concept, for which I think it should not only refer to China and the Netherlands or Shenzhen and Amsterdam, but point to all the specificity under globalization.

Q: What’s the exhibition capacity of The Space Between Us? How about the public events alongside?

There will be 129 art works from 9 young Dutch photography artists. The group exhibition will be open on April 26 till July 20. Multiple lectures and dialogues will be held during the nearly 3 months’ time. Mr. Marcel Feil from the FOAM and two participating artists will be present in Shenzhen to exchange ideas with local art professionals from not only Shenzhen but also Guangzhou and Hong Kong. A plenty of interactive educational or promotional events will also be organized for public audience.

Q: At the end, in general how would you value your collaboration and exchange with the Netherlands so far?

The Netherlands has a splendid tradition and history in culture and art, e.g. Rambrandt, Johannes Vermeer and Vincent van Gogh; these classical masters’ works have imposed deep influence in Chinese contemporary art. Also, I personally appreciate the liberality, diversity and dynamics of the contemporary culture in the Netherlands.

The DutchCulture, centre for international cooperation and the Dutch embassy in Beijing actively devote themselves to the enterprise of cultural exchange between China and the Netherlands. Serving for two art museums in China, I share the same motivations to cooperate and exchange with Dutch art professionals and cultural institutions. Communications have been very smooth and pleasant between us. There are at the moment some other projects under discussion, while future prospect of collaboration is even more promising.

Meanwhile, I and my Dutch friends have learned that the meaning of exchange lies not only in discovering commonness between us. But more is to present a status quo, to recognize and accept the difference. Specifying cultural difference does not mean to necessarily overcome certain barriers, or to show forth the superiority of a culture. It is not to say that a constructive collaboration would certainly bring intimacy between the two parties and dissolve barriers. On the contrast, I always think through exchange the barriers would probably become more visible. Nevertheless, only if we acknowledge the differences and barriers on the premise of respect and equality, could we deepen mutual understanding.

(中文稿)

深圳何香凝美术馆4月26日即将开幕新展《荷兰摄影：我们之间的空间》。我们很荣幸值此机会采访到了展览总监，中国著名独立策展人、美术评论家冯博一先 生。作为荷兰的一位“老朋友”，冯博一曾在格罗宁根美术馆联合策展《不合作方式2》，他也是蒙德里安基金会去年邀请访荷的中国策展人之一，目前兼任中国深 圳何香凝美术馆和苏州金鸡湖美术馆艺术总监。

此次何香凝美术馆举办关于荷兰摄影的展览，是基于什么样的契机？在深圳做这一展览有何地缘性意义？

这些年我跟荷兰的沟通相对较多，最开始是跟格罗宁根合作，想把Iris van Herpen（注：荷兰前卫时装设计师）的作品带到何香凝展出，虽然最终因资金不足没有成功，但去年我们在苏州金鸡湖美术馆做了鲁小本和泰斯的摄影个展 《我们就在这儿》。鲁小本作为一个在中国学习、生活和工作多年的荷兰年轻艺术家，他的摄影作品提供了对中国本身的不同视角，而且完全打破了一般人对摄影的 概念，试验性挺强的。我就想能不能把他作为一个个案，在苏州做个展，让苏州的、中国的观众了解摄影还可以这么做。因为我还是比较强调美术馆作为一个公共艺 术机构，除了学术性之外，还是要和“在地”发生联系；并且希望通过不同的艺术家创作，引导中国观众对摄影艺术角度的丰富性和不同观看方式的理解。这个展先 前在FOAM（阿姆斯特丹摄影博物馆）展出，带有巡展的概念，艺术家在苏州也重新做了一些调整。

这次何香凝美术馆的荷兰摄影展则延续了与FOAM的合作。现在在中国国内，很多时候摄影就是通过互联网、手机、电脑来进行的，很多人就是一个“自媒体”， 可以随性发布照片，包括有些私摄影啊，尤其在年轻艺术家中非常普遍，跟原来观众被动地观看和接受不同。何香凝美术馆所在的深圳又是一个以年轻人为主的移民 城市，挨着香港，它的城市化是平地起的，自拍啊，自媒体啊，其实是人们日常生活中的一部分；而荷兰则是欧洲城市化的一个典型，青年文化十分活跃。后来就 想，那荷兰目前以年轻人为主的摄影作品是一个什么样的形态？年轻艺术家怎么做？去年受FOAM之邀，我在阿姆斯特丹的Unseen摄影展上也看了一些，就 希望做一个引介，在深圳呈现荷兰年轻、有代表性的艺术家创作手法和个人化的自我身体表达，针对当下这种影像普泛化的共同趋向来做一个全新的展览。

这次您与FOAM再度合作策展，是以何种方式进行的？

这个展览主要是在交流基础上的引介。去年鲁小本的展览开幕时，FOAM的主策展人、副馆长马塞尔•菲尔也去了苏州，我们当时就做了讨论，保持合作联系，去 年就立了项。特坦率地说，我对荷兰摄影也不了解，所以我尊重FOAM的专业意见，他们做了艺术家和作品的挑选和推介，之后双方讨论确认，包括展览的题目 《我们之间的空间》。

如何理解“我们之间的空间”？

展览标题指向了全球化语境。中国现代化的过程，其实就是城市化伴随着全球化。深圳和荷兰相隔万里，但从某种角度上，同处“地球村”的概念之下。可能也意味 着，虽然共处同一个空间，彼此有共性但也有差异，所以叫我们“之间”，中荷之间。但“我们”又是一个大概念，我想也不止是中荷，或者深圳和阿姆斯特丹，指 向了全球化处境之下的各种具体情境。

展览的容量如何？展期内有何相关公共活动？

这次一共展出9位荷兰年轻摄影艺术家的一百来件作品。4月26日开幕，展至7月20日，适时举办讲座和对话，包括荷兰方的马塞尔•菲尔及两位艺术家届时来华与深圳、广州和香港的艺术专业人士做交流，还有一些面对普通观众的互动教育推广项目，内容很丰富。

最后，总的来说您如何评价近年来与荷兰的文化交流合作经验？

位于欧陆的荷兰有着深厚的文化艺术传统，比如说伦勃朗啊，维米尔，梵高等，荷兰的艺术大师至今为止对中国当代艺术影响至深。从我个人角度而言，也比较认同 荷兰文化中的自由开放、多元和活力。荷兰国际文化合作中心及荷兰驻华大使馆的工作积极而主动，力推中荷之间的文化交流。我在两个博物馆任职，有着相同的诉 求和愿望与荷兰的文化机构合作交流，可以说是一拍即合，沟通起来特别顺畅。目前还在谈其他的项目，未来的合作前景广大。同时，我们彼此都认识到，交流能够 发现共性，但更多是呈现现状，认可差异性。把这种所谓的差异性具体化，并不意味着一定战胜隔阂，并非在于显示一方文化的优越性。重要的是在平等和相互尊重 的前提之下，加深互相理解。并不是说我们通过一个交流活动就变得亲密无间没有障碍，我一直觉得可能这种障碍可能更明显了，但是，认识了这种障碍才能理解和 宽容的对待彼此，才能进步。