策展 Curatorship

何慶基 Ho Hing Kay Oscar

策展人的工作，包括籌備和落實展覽的行政和技術工作外，亦需顧及相關旁邊工作如籌款、公關、教育等。不單需要行政技巧，還需具有藝術知識和文化觸覺。策展工作更有另一重要層面，就是對策展工作的反思。策展人是社會的重要文化中介者和演繹者，其策展決定往往影響藝術的定義和公眾對藝術的理解。現實是，展覽策劃深受傳統、機構的文化和價值取捨，以及左右文化發展的權力架構所影響。缺乏對文化藝術發展的種種力量和傳統作反思，只會淪為單是追求製造名牌、市場推廣和成為「文化領袖」的行政技術官僚。

The work of a curator involves the management, coordination and technical implementation of exhibitions and their related activities, such as fund-raising, public relations and educational activities. It requires not only administration skills, but also specialized knowledge and artistic sensibility. There is also another level in curation that is equally important: the critical contemplation of curatorial practice. Curator plays a crucial role as the mediator and interpreter of culture in our society. His/her curatorial decisions shape the public’s definition and understanding of art. In reality, curatorial practice is shaped by traditions, institutional culture and the infrastructure of power that strongly affect the development of art. Lacking the ability to engage in the critical review of the dominating forces that dictate curatorial practice would only produce administrative bureaucrat who seeks for success in bland building, marketing and obtaining the fancy title of ‘cultural leader’.