Complicated. Complex. Hard. So lets try.
If you went to school in North America or Europe, you may not be aware of the vast array of gorgeous performance art (or any art). Why? Because most history, art, or any subject is taught through the lens of the dominant culture. Other parts of the world are connected to European and US cultures through a long history of colonialism. Through a mix of pride, mythologies ( exceptionalism, manifest destiny), myopic world view, power, nationalism, and (a perhaps sublimated) prejudice, cultures tend to center themselves in the narrative while taking focus away from how other cultures, societies, and people built the basis for the culture you are in. To assume your particular culture is the pinnacle of what is right and good is to willfully ignore so many innovations and insights into the world. Yes, your culture is awesome! As are other cultures. Each one is a new way to see and approach the world, each one unique, multifaceted, complicated, rich in tradition.
“Decolonising the art institution usually means reviewing the canon and questioning its ability to include different voices or perspectives (remembering that decolonisation is not the same as diversity).“
Be curious about how others think, create, celebrate. Explore multiple narratives side by side. Is it possible that these multiple narratives all have value at the same time?
” It’s not just about inviting indigenous and other marginalized people into the museum to help the institution improve its exhibitions; it’s an overhauling the entire system. Otherwise, museums are merely replicating systems of colonialism, exploiting people of color for their emotional and intellectual labor within their institutions without a corollary in respect and power.”
For European and North Americans in performance art (live art, action art, durational art etc), this means paying attention to how the form developed, incorporated, reacted, created, bloomed, and thrived in other places. This includes questioning the narrative of how the form developed in Europe also. Was it so simple as a step by step from Dada, Surrealism, to conceptual art, or were there historical precedents for public, interactive, political art that questioned the status quo, challenged power, and examined the predominant culture? Yes. yes there were. This is true all over the world, so lets look at how older versions of the forms are still present in Performance art, are influencing practitioners, have led us to where we are and where other artists are.
Articles, Literature, Writings:
- DECOLONISING MUSEUMS,a publication of L’internationale Books
- EN MAS’: Carnival and Performance Art of the Caribbean
- ArtConnect: Decolonizing Art Institutions: The Museum and Beyond
- Black, Charlene Villaseñor, Barringer, Tim: Decolonizing Art and Empire
- Ciel, Sophia M.: Decolonising Art Criticism
- Decolonial Dovetailing: Potential Encounters and Archival Elisions in Thorold Dickinson’s Archive
- Elkin, Lauren: Recognition, at Last, After Decades Decolonizing Art – Sutapa Biswas
- Grant, Catherine, Price, Dorothy: Decolonizing Art History
- Jaime, Angie: The ‘Art World’ Can’t Exist in a Decolonized Future
- Kelly, Dr Mary, Özpınar, Dr Ceren: How can art history be decolonised?
- Minneapolis Institute of Art: Decolonizing the Collection
- Shoenberger, Elisa: What does it mean to decolonize a museum?
- Tan, Kathy-Ann: Decolonizing Curatorial and Artistic Practices
Groups and Organizations
- Decolonize This Place (site) – Amin Husain and Nitasha Dhillon (article on co-creators)
