Arndt Art Agency

Terra Incognita

Patricia Piccinini, "Unfurled" (2017), silicone, fibreglass, human hair, masked owl, found objects, 108 × 89 × 80 cm

TERRA INCOGNITA

Curated by Matthias Arndt

14.09.17 - 15.10.17

Group exhibition: HILGER BROTKUNSTHALLE, Vienna, Austria

Opening Reception: Thursday, September 14, 2017, 6pm

As part of the curated by_vienna 2017 arts festival

Exhibiting artists: Jumaldi Alfi, Khadim Ali, Del Kathryn Barton, Zean Cabangis, Jigger Cruz, Marina Cruz, FX Harsono, Mit Jai Inn, Eko Nugroho, José Santos III, Svay Sareth, Yudi Sulistyo, Melati Suryodarmo, Agus Suwage, Rodel Tapaya, Entang Wiharso, Kaa Yeo

A group exhibition curated by Matthias Arndt at BROTKunsthalle in Vienna in September 2017.

The group exhibition is part of the gallery festival curated by_Vienna that includes a program of curated exhibitions in museums, art centers and galleries throughout Austria’s capital. Supported by the Vienna Business Agency in order to promote cooperation between Viennese galleries and international curators, curated by_Vienna’s projects run in parallel with viennacontemporary art fair.

About the Exhibition:
Terra Incognita unites a selection of leading artists from the South East Asian and Pacific regions. This vast area includes some of the most prolific and vital art communities – such as Indonesia and the Philippines – that hold tremendous potential due to their burgeoning art markets and museum landscapes, specifically in Australia. Despite being regionally celebrated, art from Southeast Asia and the Pacific remain "unmapped" and off the radar from larger international audiences, museums and the art market art large. Terra Incognita, by definition is "a place, subject, or situation that you are not familiar with” or “a place that has not been discovered or that is unknown”. The reasons for this phenomenon are manifold and divergent for each region. In Southeast Asia, despite vital market activity, the lack of state institutions supporting contemporary art beyond the region, and lack of commercial gallery infrastructure with access to the international market are some of the contributing factors. Australian contemporary art has simply suffered from what Australians refer to as the "tyranny of distance". Despite ambitious private collecting schemes and strong support by the most active state museums, accompanied with the rise of a new generation of the philanthropist, Australian contemporary art is yet to be fully discovered on a global level.

Therefore, there are extremely exciting discoveries and artistic positions to be found. Terra Incognita brings together a selection of leading artists from Indonesia, the Philippines, Cambodia and Australia, working in a variety of media.

Citing reference to the thematic frame of the 2017 edition of curated by_Vienna “Icon, Codes, Significance: Language, text, and poetics in the visual arts”, the selection of artists are connected by their common "utopian spirit" inherent in universal artistic creation. Taking the point of departure that art can change the world and transform perspectives, each artist isolates issues and obstacles within our civilisation in the 21st century. By telling stories, these distinct voices impart unique creative outlooks for audiences. These narrated tales lead viewers on possible paths beyond chaos, trouble, pain and inequality.

Commissioned by Hilger BROTKunsthalle Terra Incognita is organised in collaboration with A3.

About the Curator:
Matthias Arndt is a seasoned contemporary art expert who ran his successful global gallery business more than two decades. Active in the Asia-Pacific region since 2010, and with his gallery in Singapore since 2013, Arndt became an early supporter of Southeast Asian art in the West. He has arranged in excess of 30 exhibitions presenting major positions of Southeast Asian art in galleries and institutions worldwide. Arndt also published monographs of artists from the region and thematic books, such as "SIP! – Indonesian Art Today" (2013) and "WASAK! Filipino Art Today" (2015). Together with his wife Tiffany Wood, Arndt founded the Art Agency "Arndt Art Agency (A3)" that is currently involved in the "Australia Now 2017" festival in Germany and also organises BERLIN MASTERS, the talent and support platform for Berlin based artists that occurs annually during Berlin Art Week. Matthias Arndt is a member of the Asia Pacific Acquisition Committee of the TATE in London and received the French Medal “Les Arts et Les Lettres”. – Matthias Arndt/A3 January 2017