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Now more than ever before, art is on the move. Today, works of art travel all over the world to fill, for a certain period of time, the splendid museums that have recently been built in cities such as New York, Cologne, Paris, Moscow, Beijing, Dubai and Bilbao. Not all of these museums have their own collections, so they are dependent on loans.
The current general policy is not to leave works of art in their home museums but to lend them out. For quite a while now, it's been a common practice to pack up entire art collections so that they can travel halfway around the world. They serve as ambassadors of a country, a culture and an epoch — or, in some cases, only to bring in much-needed funds. Viewers are of course fascinated by such a gift — that is, the opportunity to experience at first hand the cultural treasures of distant lands. However, the process of transporting these valuable artifacts is a source of concern for curators, art conservators and support staff. After all, every transport carries certain risks with it. In addition to special insurance policies for works of art, whose value in many cases cannot really be accurately assessed, increasingly effective climatised packaging guarantees that individual works of art are protected during transport. Sophisticated logistics also ensure smooth transport processes.
Within this context, present09 deals with all the diverse facets of art on the move. It addresses the requirements, demands, risks and opportunities associated with the management of "nomadic art", as well as the question of what kind of space is appropriate for temporary exhibitions that are characterised by a high degree of flexibility. In some cases, these temporary structures may even travel along with the works of art themselves. There is a broad spectrum of such structures, ranging from construction-oriented solutions such as modular systems to Marcel Duchamp's concept of the "box in a suitcase" — a miniature museum with a handle for easy carrying, which hides a surreal cosmos within its depths.
present09 is therefore issuing an invitation to guests who would like to present their projects in the context of an interdisciplinary exchange of ideas and to participate in talks at the forum associated with the event. At present 09, Koelnmesse will continue the dialogue it began in 2007 with architects, curators, artists, art intermediaries and technicians who are committed to examining and promoting the future of museums.
Dr. Thomas Schriefers, February 2008
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| © Dr. Thomas Schriefers 08 |
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