Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art

Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art
Name	Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art
Genre	Contemporary art exhibition
Frequency	Triennial
Location	Brisbane, Queensland
First	1993
Organizer	Queensland Art Gallery

Contents

Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art is a recurring international exhibition established in 1993 held in Brisbane, Queensland that surveys contemporary visual culture from the Asia-Pacific region. Conceived and developed by the Queensland Art Gallery and later staged in partnership with Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA), the Triennial has featured artists, curators, and institutions from across Australia, China, Japan, India, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Korea, Taiwan, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Samoa, Solomon Islands, and the Pacific Islands Forum region.

History and Development

The project began under the direction of curator Timothy Morrell and director Geraldine Ridgway within the Queensland Art Gallery framework, responding to late 20th-century shifts that included exhibitions such as Documenta and the Venice Biennale. Early iterations engaged with networks including Asia-Europe Foundation, Asia Society, British Council, Australia Council for the Arts, Australian National University, and institutions like National Gallery of Victoria, Museum of Contemporary Art Australia, Art Gallery of New South Wales, and Gallery Nasional Indonesia. Directors and curators such as Shoichi Hasegawa, Peter Hill, Doug Hall, Juliana Engberg, and Lauren Carroll Harris influenced trajectory, intersecting with events like Sydney Biennale and collections from Tate Modern, Museum of Modern Art, Centre Pompidou, Asia Art Archive, and National Gallery of Singapore. The Triennial evolved amid debates referencing postcolonialism, globalization, and regional dialogues involving figures associated with Southeast Asian Studies, East Asian Studies, South Asian Studies, and Pacific museum networks.

Each edition foregrounds curatorial themes shaped by curators such as Victoria Lynn, Benjamin Genocchio, Philip Tinari, Alexie Glass-Kantor, and Mark Hudson. Notable thematic frames have dialogued with histories seen in exhibitions like Asia Pacific Perspectives, Asia Pacific Art Triennale, and practices represented in shows at Kunsthalle Basel, Whitechapel Gallery, Serpentine Galleries, and Guggenheim Museum Bilbao. Editions have navigated topics resonant with artists comparable to Ai Weiwei, Yayoi Kusama, Anish Kapoor, Bharti Kher, Ravi Shankar (artist?), Titirangi? and institutions such as Asia Pacific Triennale peers: Istanbul Biennial, Shanghai Biennale, Gwangju Biennale, Lagos Biennial, and Biennale of Sydney. Curatorial essays have referenced scholarship from Homi K. Bhabha, Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, Arjun Appadurai, and commentators at The Conversation, Frieze, Artforum, ArtAsiaPacific, and The Guardian.

The exhibition has presented a wide roster including figures from diverse generations such as Xu Bing, Zhang Huan, Rirkrit Tiravanija, Tracey Emin, Song Dong, Cao Fei, Lee Bul, Kimsooja, Mithu Sen, Raqs Media Collective, Kishio Suga, On Kawara, Yoko Ono, Koki Tanaka, Ah Xian, Benny Andrews, Projek Sixty, Gordon Bennett, Michael Zavros, Yeo Chee Kiong, Jackson Pollock-adjacent discussions in relation to Abstract Expressionism scholarship, and artists from Pacific contexts such as John Pule, Michel Tuffery, Fatu Feu'u, Lisa Reihana, Pipilotti Rist-style installation references. Works have included painting, installation, performance, video, photography, sculpture, and new media by contributors associated with National Museum of China, Korean Cultural Centre, Japan Foundation, Goethe-Institut, Alliance Française, Embassy of the United States, Canberra, and regional collectors linked to Art Gallery of New South Wales Collection and National Gallery of Australia Collection.

Main venues are the Queensland Art Gallery and Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA), supported by satellite programs across Brisbane Powerhouse, State Library of Queensland, Brisbane City Council, University of Queensland, QUT Art Museum, and off-site projects in partnership with Brisbane Festival, Asia Pacific Screen Awards, Museum of Brisbane, and community centres in locations such as Fortitude Valley and South Bank. Programming has included public talks with curators from British Museum, Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Korea, film programs with Hong Kong International Film Festival, symposia featuring scholars from University of New South Wales, Monash University, Australian National University, and workshops with collectives like Nguyen Trinh Thi-affiliated groups, educational outreach, and publication series comparable with catalogues from Sternberg Press and exhibition collaborations with publishers such as Routledge and Bloomsbury.

Critical response has ranged from praise in outlets like Artforum, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, and Le Monde to debate in regional journals such as ArtAsiaPacific and platform critiques by curators linked to Gwangju Biennale Foundation and Singapore Art Museum. The Triennial influenced collecting policies at National Gallery of Victoria, Art Gallery of New South Wales, National Gallery of Australia, Museum of Contemporary Art Australia, and prompted acquisitions by corporate collectors and foundations including Art Gallery of South Australia Foundation and private donors affiliated with Andrew Forrest-style philanthropy. Its impact shaped curatorial careers leading to appointments at Tate Modern, MoMA, Centre for Contemporary Art Ujazdowski Castle, and collaborations with biennials such as Sharjah Biennial and ZKM.

Administration is led by the Queensland Art Gallery with curatorial teams drawn from institutions such as National Gallery of Victoria, Museum of Contemporary Art Australia, National Gallery of Singapore, and international advisors from Tate, Guggenheim Museum, and M+. Funding sources include the Queensland Government, corporate sponsors, private philanthropy, ticketing, and program partnerships with organizations like Australia Council for the Arts, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Australia), Asia Pacific Cultural Centre, and international cultural agencies including Japan Foundation, British Council, Goethe-Institut and foundations such as Getty Foundation.

Category:Contemporary art exhibitions