“At no other time in history have so many people been moving around the world. This
movement of peoples has been both in the spirit of hope and in the spirit of despair, as
travellers take a tourist route, immigrants find new homes, and asylum seekers go in
search of sanctuary. How we receive the guest is one of the key issues of our times. The
movement of peoples has its basis in the colonising forces of the 18th and 19th centuries,
the effects of which still reverberate today. This is manifested not only in the form of local
racial tensions, but also in the effects of globalisation. The globalisation of international
communications networks, trade, agriculture, currencies, security and information systems
has inherited colonial attitudes.
In turbulent times, the feelings of loss, fear, anguish, grief and anger, along with the
notions of hope, passion, sustenance, the capacity to dream and find refuge rise to the
surface. Such emotions might arise from a loss of sovereignty, identity, or a sense of
home. Equally they can arise from subjection. In general, the sources of such feelings are
not necessarily clear. They are everywhere and they are nowhere - emotions have multiple
reference points within a complex and changing environment.
Within this context, artists have the ability to create constructive interventions. Art has the
capacity to provide hope, a voice of difference, protest and, in general, an active, living,
and vital alternative expression. Artists often begin a work with the emotional filter situated
at the heart of the work. The question for them is not, how can I present the concept of
hybridity, but rather, how do I convey a sense of both longing and belonging. The principle
is not, how do I analyse globalisation, but how can I intervene in its absurdity. These are
subtle differences but important ones. The best of contemporary art does not illustrate
theory, it emerges from the emotional flux of life itself.
The exhibition turbulence deals with this emotional flux. Previous exhibitions that have
encompassed an interest in global systems and migration, have either analysed the
various manifestations of modernism in contemporary art, or have focused on the identity
of artists and their cultural difference. This exhibition seeks to build on such precursors, by
shifting the emphasis to the emotional manifestations of global turbulence. This exhibition
is not so much about where one is from, or where one is going, but the pervading
emotional states that emerge from real and imagined journeys.
As an island nation, New Zealand is an appropriate location for such concerns to be
exhibited. The sea that surrounds these islands has carried many stories colonisation,
survival, sustenance and economic exchange. Broadly populated by British and European
descendents, it is home, too, for significant populations of Pacific Islanders and Asian
immigrants. Like many nations today, New Zealanders are acutely aware of the
dependencies that are inherent in trade with larger nations. The artists in New Zealand
deal with a range of issues, but of particular interest are images of familial ties, symbols of
transition between cultures, and an awareness of what is at stake in the trade of objects
and ideas in the Pacific region.”

MEDIA RELEASE - 6 November 2006

Carlos Capelán Always there II (detail) 2006. Indian ink on wall, with digital photography, stones and plates

Curator Victoria Lynn is delighted to announce the second and final list of artists for
turbulence: the 3rd Auckland Triennial.
Israeli artist Michal Rovner joins Isaac Julien, Phil Collins, Mona Hatoum and Willie
Doherty as one of the headline international artists at the multi-venue exhibition opening
on 9 March 2007.
Rovner’s work was a highlight at the 2003 Venice Biennale. She has exhibited widely in
Europe and the US. She will show a recent video work that uses flames from oilrig
smokestacks as a symbol of constant change, unpredictability and volatility.
Don’t miss Carlos Capelán, a Swedish resident exiled from Uruguay, who will create one
of his large-scale wall paintings (above) in the New Gallery.
The first artist to leave for the Auckland Triennial is Alexandros Georgiou. The Greek artist
will travel from India’s holy city of Varanasi to Auckland entirely by public transport. He
leaves this month and hopes to arrive in time for the opening! Along the way, he’ll create
works responding to his environment and post them to ARTSPACE where they’ll be
exhibited.
For the first time, the Auckland Triennial includes film. Four documentaries from artists
Chantal Akerman (Belgium), George Gittoes (Australia), Alfredo Jaar (Chile/USA) and
Laura Waddington (UK) will screen at Academy Cinemas on weekends throughout the
exhibition.

Artists announced today:

Lida Abdul Afghanistan
Chantal Akerman Belgium
Vyacheslav Akhunov Uzbekistan
and Sergey Tichina Uzbekistan
The Atlas Group / Walid Raad Lebanon/USA
Carlos Capelán Uruguay/Sweden
Alexandros Georgiou Greece
Monica Giron Argentina
George Gittoes Australia
Alfredo Jaar Chile/USA
Oscar Mu?oz Columbia
r e a Gamilaraay/Wailwan people of NSW, Australia
Julie Rrap Australia
Michal Rovner Israel/USA
Laura Waddington United Kingdom
turbulence: the 3rd Auckland Triennial is proud to be part of the Auckland Festival, AK07.
The exhibition is presented by Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki in association with
ARTSPACE, The Gus Fisher Gallery, St Paul St and Academy Cinemas.
Melbourne-based curator Victoria Lynn is in Auckland this Wednesday and Thursday.
She and four other speakers will give a free public talk on the Auckland Festival, AK07’s
visual arts program in the Auckland Art Gallery auditorium on Thurs 9 Nov at 5pm.
www.aucklandtriennial.com
exhibition + films + symposium + catalogue + performances + events
For more information contact:
Jennifer Dann, communications co-ordinator, Auckland Art Gallery, Ph +64 9 307 7706 or 027 290 6990

Imam mosque, Isfahan	Mullah in the Park, Iran	Hanuman, India

MEDIA RELEASE – 20 September 2007

Welcome to the launch of the 3rd Auckland Triennial - New Zealand’s premier international
contemporary art event.
This multi-venue exhibition provides a window onto the world of contemporary art, creating
a dialogue between local artists and their global counterparts.
Forty artists from over 20 countries present major works never seen before in New
Zealand from diverse mediums including painting, sculpture, photography, video,
installation, film, performance and international collaborative actions.
Big name stars like Turners Prize finalists Isaac Julien (UK), Phil Collins (UK) and Willie
Doherty (Northern Ireland), Mona Hatoum (Palestine/UK), Fiona Hall (Australia), the Long
March (China) and Carlos Garaicoa (Cuba) present works alongside nine New Zealanders
including Shane Cotton, John Pule and Yuk King Tan.
Renowned international curator Victoria Lynn says the 3rd Auckland Triennial will address
the condition of turbulence.
“We live in turbulent times. Our cultural and political environment is complex and
unpredictable. The artists in this exhibition engage with the emotional flux of their daily
reality, responding to the ambient hopes and fears in our midst. They create aesthetic
interventions - active, vital and alternative ways of looking at the world around us.”
“turbulence includes stories of ancestry and exile; journeys through literal and imagined
spaces and reflections upon the fragility of existence and humanity’s capacity for
resistance and resilience,” she says.
Auckland Art Gallery director Chris Saines says the Auckland Triennial gives the public
access to some of the world’s most innovative new art - without leaving the country.
“The Triennial puts Auckland on the map of the international arts community. It allows us
to thematically drive the way social and political issues are explored by invited artists and
sets the stage for a continuing dialogue between us and the rest of the world,” he says.
The 3rd Auckland Triennial coincides with AK07 and will be the Auckland Festival’s key
visual arts event.
The opening weekend includes a keynote address by prominent Cuban curator and writer
Gerardo Mosquera and a must-see performance by Walid Raad’s Atlas Group
(Lebanon/NY).
Since the launch of the 1st Auckland Triennial Bright Paradise in 2001, this three-yearly
event has shown 70 artists from 14 different countries, attracted over 30,000 visitors and
received extensive international media coverage. The 2nd Auckland Triennial
Public/Private: Tumatanui/Tumataiti won Metro magazine’s 2004 Exhibition of the Year
award.
turbulence 3rd Auckland Triennial is presented by Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki in
partnership with ARTSPACE, The Gus Fisher Gallery, St Paul St Gallery and Academy
Cinemas.
The event opens on 9 March 2007 across all five venues. Closing dates are staggered:
Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki until 3 June 2007. All Day Pass: Adult $7,
Concession/Friends of the Festival $5, Friends of the Gallery $4, Under 5s free
ARTSPACE until 15 April 2007 – free admission
The Gus Fisher Gallery until 28 April 2007 – free admission
St Paul St Gallery until 21 April 2007 – free admission
Academy Cinemas dates and prices to be announced
exhibition + symposium + publication + events + films + performances
www.aucklandtriennial.com
For more information contact:
Jennifer Dann
Communications Co-ordinator
Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tamaki
Ph +64 9 307 7706
Mobile 027 290 6990

Major supporters:

Support sponsors

Cultural funders:

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