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museum exhibitions might be an obsolete medium on the dying
jimb of an evolutionary tree, and unless they significantly adapt
to their rapidly changing environments in the coming years, they
‘could be headed toward extinction. 22
Ina period of pessimism, many curators might choose to give up the
battlefield, as Manifesta Journal observed, they ‘[felt] the need to “curate
outside the canon.” 2 Whereas curator Peter White would rather hit to the
core: ‘in the transition curating was moving in the direction of the very
power and authority that was being questioned’ *. Precisely here, a more
inherent obstacle is revealed
One could recognize a more fundamental ideology was in play that kept
holding it back from transforming the exhibitionary format. That is the
power in space. This phenomenon was described succinctly and vividly
in cultural critic Tony Bennett's notable essay ‘The Exhibitionary Complex’
%, in which he adopted philosopher Michel Foucault's groundbreaking
theory of using panopticon as a metaphor to illustrate politics of power
inherent in institutions 2, and further applied it to analyze exhibition
spaces. Bennett asserted that the conventional exhibition scene was in
fact a manifestation of power inscribed in space, where it ‘organize{d] [...]
22 Kathleen McLean, ‘Do Museum Exhibitions Have a Future?’, Curator: The Museum Journal, Vol.
80, lssuet, Jan, (2007), p.117,
[accessed 22/07/13}
Manifesta, ‘The Canon of Curating’. Manifesta, (2013).
_shitutraww manitestaiournal orgicanon-curating> [accessed 13/08/13]
* Peter White and Banff Centre for the Arts, Naming a Practice: Curatorial Strategies for the
Future, (Banft: Banft Centre Press, 1996). p.2
Tony Bennet, ‘The Exhipttonary Complex in Reese Greenberg, Bruce W. Ferguson and Sandy
Nairne (ed), Thinking about Exhibitions, (Oxon: Routledge, 1896), 81-112
8 Michel Foucault, Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison, trans. by Alan Sheridan,
(London: Allen Lane, 1979) se resulting fixation also manifested on a practical level, that [s]pace was
seated asthe dead, the fixed, the undialectcal, the immobile, * At this
point, in fact, net only it i fixed internally, but lso isolated from other
creative forces. AS museology scholars Dr. Suzanne Macleod, Laura
Houston Hanks and Jonathan A, Hale, ‘[mJuseum space and its
production [were] traditionally compartmentalized: disciplinary
boundaries [...]lwere] entrenched’ . Whereas, in the face of a
transdisciplinary future, ‘the classical abilities of conventionally trained
curators [...] no longer sufficed.” *, as stage director Christian Bartheimes
highlighted. Even curators had started to commission artists or various
exhibition design companies to deal with space presentations, there was
still a critical point not being addressed: if they do not hand over the
power of authorship, the transformation of the exhibition scene could be
very limited.
The whole situation is a closed system awaiting to open up. While in fact,
the Foucauldian view was a dual-facted-reference-point for insights. Apart
from the analysis of the deadlock, a new light could also be found. As
architectural academia Adam Sharr revisited Foucault's assertion,
Foucault's crucial juxtaposition [in analysis] of space, knowledge
% Colin Gordon (ad,), Power/Knowledge: Selected Interview and Other Writings 1972-1977 by
‘Miche! Foucaut, trans. by Colin Gordon, Leo Marshall, John Mepham, Kate Soper. (New York
nop! Doubleday Publishing, 1980), p.70
55 Suzanne Macleod, Laura Hourston Hanks and Jonathan A. Hale, Museum Making: Narratives,
‘Architectures, Exhibitions, (London: Routledge. 2012), p.rx
°% Christian Bartnelmes and Frank Den Qudsten, Scenography: Making Spaces Talk - Projacts
2002-2010 Arioiar Brickner, (Ludwigsburg: AVedtion, 2011), p17
1" section 2
‘The Phenomenon of Expanding Scenography :
its Potentials to Reform Exhibition-making
What the exhibitionary culture calls for is a new paradigm of radical
spatial reformation and, most of all, @ democratic ideology. However, the
question becomes: where could have such ideology be cultivated?
Probably not from within the traditional exhibition context, out from
without. It is observed that on the other side of the art world, a
transformative phenomenon had been emerging and expanding its
influence rapidly. As art historian and curator Dorothee Richter asserted
inher essay ‘When Truth Discourse Meets Spectacle’ in 2012,
[i]n recent times, we have experienced an increasing integration of
theatre and exhibition practices in terms of display. Evidence of this
may be found inthe inclusion of scenography and theatrical
scenery in exhibitions [...] leading to general breakdown in what we
might see as any strict narration, 3 i
This influential phenomenon should not be overlooked, and could be
traced back to a significant development of an artistic practice rooted in
contemporary theatre context that deals with mise-en-scene on stages.
Such artistic practice has increasingly earned credibility in and outside
the field, which is called: scenography.
‘Scenography, throughout the past decades, has gone through a series of
28 Dovothee Richter, When Truth Discourse Mots Spectacle’, Onowrating or issue 15, (2012),
19.4555, (p46), cu >
[accessed 0408/13]
13 yope's contemporary theatre scene in the early twentieth century
scenography had evolved, from its historical root of pictorial
representation, into a presentation of the unity of staging spaces.
‘The pioneering Czech scenographer Josef Svoboda, who was considered
to be the father of modern scenography, dedicated to take scenography
to another level. Renowned for his kinetic staging and projection
techniques, as theatre critic Jarka M. Burian asserted, Svoboda’s core
aesthetic vision was an unification of
metaphoric power [...] intangible forces: time, space, movement,
non-material energy [...J[and] kinetic scenery [...] fused his
principle of dynamism with his profound sense of architecture. ©
In order to claim independence for authorship, ideation and artistic
production, Svoboda and director Alréd Radok founded the multimedia
group called Laterna Magika. With a new mission, Svoboda took
scenography out of its original theatre context, and experimented it in
Expo 58 and Expo 67 international exhibitions’ entertainment sections, as
akind of multimedia shows, as test bed, which could be considered to be
the first encounter of scenography and exhibition scene. As theatre critic
John Bell put it,
4 Jerk M. Burian, ‘Jose! Svoboda: Theatre Artist in an Age ol Science’. Educational Theatre
Journal, Vol 22, No.2, May, (1970), pp. 123-145, (p. 125-126)
-=21102494366581> [accessed 25/07/13)
6 environment, Scenograpry iS the intersection’, which pinpointed its
highly penetrativeness.
tne significance of scenography had increasingly received more
attention among academia and visionaries. However, for such an
exceptionally expanding discipline, the expanding scenography reaches
‘a polemic in its changing definition. As scenographer Howard
acknowledged:
[w)henever scenographers meet internationally the discussion
inevitably turns to that indefinable conundrum “What is
Scenography”" Lively debates flourish that show [...] how difficult
is to quantity. *
While Howard offered up to forty-four world views , art and media
theorist Scorzin stated that ‘a clear definition of “scenography” |S still
wanting’ s', The academia might fee! uncomfortable with ts phenomenon
that scenography kept expanding its meaning s0 frequent, but perhaps
most importantly, itis essential for the culture to recognize the very nature
‘0 further discussions. As notable
of scenography, before moving on t
scenographer Den Oudsten asserted.
ated by probabilities. JScenography
to ask questions
[s]oenography is dot
esnat be defined unequivocally and is bons
1d, intersection. (2019). —
accessed 08/07/73)
“8 Intersection, “Scenography: @ Bate
ay? (Landon: Rowllodge, 2002) PH
“2 Pamela Howard, What is Sconogra
vid, pine
sil Turn in Soenograghy in wemnes
Rb. Pash yetasconooranty: nthe MERIOT Scenogrant
1 ee Malt conempor'y A a0 Neo Forms, Functons, tomers
2at Explanation, (Amsterdam: Rodops. 2011)
gf vlan, eta: Rem ne Te Een a Fst Seecae SP
(Farnam: Ashgate, 2017). P55
a a, scenographer Boris Kudlitka’s response in the
ile among al Meni,
Struct
a Foc -scenography is an Open-Ended Structure’ made the idea my,
e ms
more graspable
-ended struct
Se ry [J is now an open Me ag
ee ok ideas, while at the same time provicing <2
| ST freedom for interpretation and metapn
arn yecoming an autonomous branch of visual av
or. I
In this sense, one might ask: how scenography Could inform the tues,
exhibitionary culture and curating? Instead of drilling on finding 2 tic,
definition, one should pay more attention to the capacity of expandny
scenography as a transformative force characterized by i
degree of artistic self-sufficiency’ S*, as Professor Chrisiopner Baus:
asserted in ‘Scenography with Purpose: Activism and Intervention. Wie
in time of a crisis in curating, scenography could offer a piatiorm fo
profession to undergo a reformation in its practices, by filing the 920"
the culture that calls for a transformation in the notion of staging
ae
2 Matkéta Hore
“ Ov, $0
(eS tetie Baugh, Saree REDNY i an Open-Ended Smuctre’, PO MAG ise
Theat gt 22 EarIng Siaoe ery With Purpose: Activism and intervention I ATE tsa
Irate 2012p af? Pellectons on the 2011 Prague Quacrennial Pa
18 section 3
scenography in Exhibition Context :
The Intersection, Mergence and Reformation
after the testbed:period, there came some significantly progressive
moments when scenography and exhibition scenes created an official
intersection. In Expo 2000 held in Hanover, according to Den Oudsten,
the term and notion of Scenographie (scenography) was for the first time
officially applied to international exhibition context by the president of its
thematic area Dr. Martin Roth $5. After Expo.02, exhibition makers started
to call themselves Szenograt (scenographers). and later in 2006, ‘not only
exhibition makers, but also architect, graphic designers, curators and
consultants [...] started to add the title of Szenograf to their business
cards." As Den Qudsten noted, ‘{tJhe label of scenography apparently
has a certain attraction’ £7 since it proved itself of its competence.
The two expositions, in fact, acted as touchstones of scenography's
potentiality in exhibition context. Themenpark was a highlight in Expo
2000 that illustrated an outline framework of how scenography worked in
an exhibition. It transformed the 100,000-square-metres site imo 2
conceptual exhibitionary stage, a seamless scenic space for encounters,
while metaphors played a crucial of role in it. The exhibition became a
% Frank Den Oudsten, Space. Tine. Narrative: The Exhibition as Past Spectecter Sta9®,
(Farnam: Ashgete, 2011) 8.3, 6
% ibid., p.13, 69
ibid, p13,
19 vjtors to make experienceable what isnot exhibitable'. Yet, it could
ne debatable for these scenographic exhibitions to create
speculative formats of experiences. In situationist theorist Guy Deborc's
sense, they could be accused of their artificial approaches that led to a
-pseudo-worid'€®, However, in both cases, scenography unprecedentedly
proved its diverse potentials and enormous capacity to stage a topic’s
content with unique critical voices,
‘These manifestations had well set up a foundation for discussions later on
about scenography and content curation. Since then, the narrative
potential of scenography in exhibitions became @ central focus of
concerns. Wider awareness was built when International Scenographers’
Festival (IN3) 8 was founded in 2006 by Professors Brickner, Andreas
Wenger and Heinz Wagner. In its 2010'S symposium entitled “Exhibit!
Scenography in Exhibition Design’, the discussion even furthered the
focus on the topic of ‘modern scenography, exhibition and staging in anc
around museum's’ , in which Professor Brickner prompted the
professionals to think about the future of curating scenographic
exhibitions:
© Une R. Brockner, Form Follows Content - Scenography or the Choreographed Space in Luca
Basso Peressut and others (ed), Places & Themes of ntonars. Contemporary Research
Woridvde, (Milan: Franco Angel, 2008), p.82
$5 Guy Debord, Tho Society ofthe Spectacle, wans. by Donald
Books, 1995), 6.12 a ae
&® Corporate Scenograpty, Websites ofthe Previous Festivals, Corporate Scenography, (2013),
Lestivals/> [accessed 16/08/13]
ion Design, Apple TV tunes, (2011),
hibt-scenoat hibits 174017
‘Nicholson Smith, (New York: Zone
. Ex!
lunes, "EXHIBIT! - Scenograph
(accessed 18/06/13}
a exhibitionary culture to realize that a convergence of scenography and
curating had been developed,
By entering the new paradigm of scenographic exhibitions, it did not
simply imply that it was something eclectic or quick and easy, but rather it
raised the level of new challenges in contemporary curating, As curator
Hans Peter Schwarz identified the current situation and critical questions
in his essay ‘Forward: Routes to a New Scenography’ in 2011
[on the one hand, how may or should a complex super medium
like an exhibition be charged with meaning in a sensible way? On
the other: how may or should we produce a sophisticated
translation of a complex content into a multimedia form that is
expressive?”
The inquiry here has become a question of how As in scholar
Kirshenblatt-Gimblett’s words, ‘{e]xhibitions are fundamentally theatrical
” therefore, it could be more than sensible for scenographic exhibition-
making to borrow the ideological strategies from theatres, and translate
them into the use of curating the contemporary. This assumption leads to
an intersection of ideological exchange. As theatre critic Susan Bennett
asserted in Theatre and Museums,
both theatre and museums require an infrastructure ‘supported by
a diverse range of technical and intellectual skis, acts of
interpretation and mediation, and, eventually, an audience. 3
New Scenogrephy’in Frank Den Oudsten. Space.
ular Stage, (armbar: Ashgate. 2011), p25
Tourism, Museums, and Heritage, (London:
7" Hans Peter Schwarz, ‘Forward: Routes to a
Timo. Narrative: The Exhibition as Post-Soectac
72 Barbara Kirshenblat-Gimblatt, Destination Culture
University f California Press, 1998), 9.3
guean Barratt, Theatre & Museums, (Basingstoke: Palgrave Macrrlan, 2012), p4
23
