The transcultural curator : translating networked curatorial practices in the Chinese context since 1980

• Main Author: Marsden, Rachel E. M.
• Published: Birmingham City University 2017
• Subjects: 069
• Online Access: https://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.743084

Initiated from discussions of key curators and exhibitions at the end of the Cultural Revolution, this thesis explores cultural translation through networked curatorial practices in the Chinese context since 1980. In response to increasing local (Chinese) to global (international) exchange, termed as ‘glocal’, I examine different curatorial practices and strategies used to translate exhibitions of avant-garde and contemporary Chinese art towards the development and definition of the role of the transcultural curator. A framework for translation is developed from Homi K. Bhabha’s three-tiered, postcolonial methodology of ‘Third Space’ in parallel with Ray Oldenburg’s theory of third place, whilst rooted in the development of social and cultural networks within Fei Xiaotong’s concept of Chineseness. From these perspectives, it is argued that guanxi self-reflexively provides a basis through which networked curatorial practices can be understood. As a non-Chinese curator and researcher, this thesis is crucially informed by a practice-led component to the research methodology. Responding to China’s unique moment of “museumification”, I establish The Temporary to actively and explicitly reflect on my curatorial practice in relation to research findings. This platform functions as a site of “research curating” (based on the construction of networks of practice) and “curating research” (mapping the action archive), to test and evaluate curatorial strategies, whilst revealing a new internal logic of cultural translation in the Chinese context. This nexus of research explored through theory, concept and practice aims to create a unique set of definitions and arguments to define the role of the transcultural curator. In turn, it presents a series of considerations to be implemented when curating exhibitions of contemporary Chinese art in an international context whilst contributing to the ongoing debate in the field.