Max Hannus

Conference Report. November 2023

I personally really enjoyed the topics discussed on the first conference day, so my report will focus on reflecting those themes. However, everything was new and exciting, so my notes that day were somewhat confusing. Here are some interesting thoughts from that day, nevertheless. The first speaker of the day was Elvira Espejo Ayca, who addressed the role of communities as part of the work of the museum. She claimed artworks are not objects but subjects when worked from this standpoint.

Speaker two was Pablo Lafuente, who discussed the concept of destruction and how, in Brazil, things had to burn first in order for new things to emerge. He related the history of the institution, and how they didn’t need to imagine burning down the museum, because it had already burned down accidentally. At some point, all the documents relating to slavery were burned, as it was not thought it would be good to keep archives of this period of history. He asked what happens when the institutions are burned down, and talked about ruins as a capitalist strategy. How do we construct and maintain new structures? He stated the institution is still not especially accessible because of prices and physical location.

These questions resonated with me. Earlier this year, I was on a panel myself, and the moderator asked: “What do you dream of, in relation to institutions?” I replied, that institutions should be burned down, adding that the changes we can make in the old structures are not enough: we have to take them down and build new ones, more sustainable, more accessible, more aware.

The third speaker of the day was Simon Njami, who discussed the museum’s power and how they were constructed to show power. He addressed the concepts of centrality and peripherality in relation to language: “What can we say when the language we use is not connected to our soul?” He continued by asking, while the words “colonizing” or “decolonizing” are very popular, how do we think of ourselves, how do we find systems within systems? For example, “the blue note” and the pentatonic scale were used by African slaves because they couldn’t play music observing the traditional Western octave of eight notes. So, what is this museum going to be for? he asked. He called for a contradictory dialogue, a notion of spaces that don’t have everything, saying the museum is failing if it doesn’t include all the different forms of discourse. He also brought up questions of accessibility: how can we transform the museum into a place for everyone?

Lastly, Nicolás Testoni addressed the process of collective creation, and Coco Fusco asked: What does the social responsibility of the museum mean in the current cultural landscape? Fusco referred to Giorgio Agamben and compared museums to agoras. She stated that museums are one of the few places that are for contemplating rather than consuming. And how it may be disliked by some political actors because it can cultivate change.

In the panel discussion, all speakers came together to elaborate, reflect, and wrap up the day’s topics. Simon Njami started by saying that Magritte’s painting is not a pipe, it’s just a painting – so why don’t we make the museum just a painting? He highlighted the importance of contradictions and, as a response to Pablo Lafuente, said that burning the museum is not burning the museums, meaning the change is made for the thing to function. So, the point of theories is to make them useful, someone clarified. Elvira Espejo reminded us that it can be difficult to read contemporary art in relation to one’s own communities, because art is usually focused on looking from the outside, and communities are objects of study. She talked about the concept of mutual nurturing, and how sensitivity and touching were developed in communities. Lafuente made a point about audiences, and whom the museum is for, saying that instead of trying to be spaces for everything, museums can be specific spaces. For me, this in an important notion. What is a specific space? How is a museum specific and to whom it is for?

Following a saying, “a friend to all is a friend to none,” I would argue that a museum that tries to be for everyone, is for no one. But it can make theories useful, make space for contemplation, foster communities, and put resources into building more accessible spaces, in every aspect. So, do I still want to see the museums burn? Maybe not. Maybe let’s see first what we can do with them.

Bio

I'm an independent curator and writer (MFA) with an interest in the interfaces of desire, human relationships and making of art. In my projects I aim at highlighting the subjective characteristic of curatorial practices, while still actively pursuing the ethical position of a curator and stressing the politics of representation. My MFA thesis exhibition for University of The Arts Helsinki in 2015 was called I want you, and it addressed the desire of the curator, aiming at making transparent the underlying dynamics and motivations of curatorial practice. Since then, my practice has taken deeper and more nuanced forms, but I still lean heavily on that research and positioning, and questions of desire never seize to interest me.

My recent curatorial projects include exhibitions Dreamy — Queer Imaginaries (2023) at Contemporary Art Museum Kiasma, Helsinki; Moon in your mouth (2023) at UKS, Oslo; Chinchilla (2021) at Maatila Project Space, Helsinki and Fantasy 1 & 2 (2020) at SIC, Helsinki. Chinchilla focused on dynamics related to caressing, petting and affection. Fantasy 1 & 2 looked at different relationship forms as a fantasies, choices and societal structures. In both exhibitions I worked with queer artists. Moon in your mouth revolved around questions of consent, intimacy and access in the realm of exhibition making. Dreamy is currently on view and showcases queer art/practices selected from Contemporary Art Museum Kiasma’s collection.

My publications focus on art, feelings and relationships, and the ethical demands of those relationships. Among recent publications are Art as a way of creating safer spaces, possibilities for intimacy and connection — A conversation with Sarah Nõmm and Maria Izabella Lehtsaar, A Shade Colder Magazine, Tallinn (2022); Puoliksi tyhjä (Half Empty), essay in OHI — Writings about death, an essay anthology, WSOY, Helsinki (2022); Dear Friend, essay for Dear Friend November issue, Tallinn (2021); Kaikkea hyvää (All the best), essay for Kuvan Kevät katalogue, University of The Arts, Helsinki (2021); Ristiriitaiset fiilikset (Mixed feelings), essay for Tidskriften Kontur #9, Helsinki (2021); Ikuisesti sinun (Forever yours), essay for Edit, Helsinki (2021); Kuka on se oikea? (Who is The One?), essay in collection 13 katseluasentoa (13 viewing positions), Kosmos Helsinki (2020); Halu (Desire), Chief editor of issue in Mustekala art magazine (2021)