The sprawling art extravaganza that is Art Basel Miami Beach and its satellite fairs begins on Thursday, and the Norton Museum of Art in West Palm Beach, an hour north, is responding with a new, great idea. It’s planning exhibition called Now WHAT? — put together via a kind of “Amazing Race” for the art world. The exhibit will be curated and put on display for all to see on Dec. 15, ten days after the fairs close.
As the headline of the Norton’s email to me put it,
Take two curators, add five days, mix in tens of thousands of works of art, yield: one exhibition encapsulating what’s happening now in art.
The curators, Cheryl Brutvan, the Norton’s curator of contemporary art, and Charlie Stainback, the curator of photography — pictured at right — got the assignment.
Curious about the project, I sent them five questions, and Stainback replied. Here are his answers:
1) It’s practically impossible for anyone to make the rounds of all the art fairs without the experience becoming a blur. What’s your plan of attack? Will you go separately or together?
We are going to make every effort to view every fair possible. We are well aware of the difficulty in seeing so much visual material at once and we continue to discuss the logic of how to approach the largest fairs (with repeat visits – as typical) and what can be achieved daily. We will plan sessions to discuss what has been most memorable, interesting, etc. routinely. We will view most of the fairs as a team.
2) Have you done any pre-fair perusing (online, say, or via press releases), and have dealers sent you advance information or lobbied for their artists?
We are receiving the wealth of unsolicited information that you’re probably receiving as well; there have been efforts by individual and collective artists about their location when not associated with the fairs. But overall, the typical sharing of information. We have both experienced queries from galleries when visiting them and have received very enthusiastic responses about the concept from artists, collectors, colleagues.
3) You’ve said (in a press release) that the number of works chosen, media mix, etc. is open — but realistically, what are your goals?
We recognize the space we have available in which to present Now WHAT? and will continually bear that in mind. We propose 30 – 50 objects of a variety of media; no restrictions really.
4) Your assignment assumes that the works chosen will be lent to the Norton (until Mar. 13, 2011, when the exhibition closes). But if a buyer won’t part with his/her new purchase, won’t that affect your view of “art now”?
Most collectors are very respectful of an artist’s work and feel a responsibility to make it available for a serious project that is to be viewed by the general public. We understand the potential for missing something mutually desirable and will expect that there will be many, many choices. Few exhibition checklists are the original ideal envisioned by the curator.
5) Do you and Cheryl have the same artistic sensibilities, or will you probably disagree, and if so, then what?
We are respectful of each other’s sensibilities but may, indeed, disagree. We are confident that we will be able to create a smart and thoughtful exhibition together.
I had a sixth question, wondering if the Norton intended to acquire any of the works at ABMB and beyond that they are rounding up for the exhibit. “Very possibly,” Stainback said, “but it isn’t the overriding objective of this project.”
Excitement is, I think. Being part of the conversation. Wags may say that this show will have little, if any scholarship behind it, and there’ll be no time to research and write a thoughtful essay about it. But I’ll be still eager to see if Brutvan and Stainback can choose and display a coherent exhibition, one appropriate for a museum, one that doesn’t look like an art fair.
Good luck.