Opening: 6 Sep 2008
For the curatorial discourse of this Triennial, we propose to say "Farewell to Post-Colonialism". This represents the theoretical basis from which we hope to explore our critical vision. "Farewell to Post-colonialism" is not a denial of the importance and rewards of this intellectual tradition; in the real world, the political conditions criticised by post-colonialism have not receded, but in many ways are even further entrenched under the machinery of globalisation. However, as a leading discourse for art curatorial practice and criticism, post-colonialism is showing its limitations in being increasingly institutionalised as an ideological concept. Not only is it losing its edge as a critical tool, it has generated its own restrictions that hinder the emergence of artistic creativity and fresh theoretical interface. To say "Farewell to Post- Colonialism" is not simply a departure, but a re-visit and a re-start.

2008 will be exactly 40 years since the heady days of 1968. In fifty years, waves of new social movement and multi-cultural theories have woven a tapestry of rich and clashing colours out of the world's changing social realities. International contemporary art has also benefited from the attention to socio-political issues surrounding identity, race, gender and class. But in fifty years, revolutionary concepts have also transformed into leading discourses safely guarded by "political correctness". Post-colonial discourse's analysis of the power structure within cultural expressions has triggered a series of cultural resistance, as well as the construction of the self as the Subject in relation to the Other. However, this kind of analysis and construction has also adversely developed an institutionalised pluralistic landscape (a multi-cultural "managerialism") that has today turned into a new form of stereotyping. In this Triennial we wish to draw attention to the "political correctness at large" that is the result of the power play of multi-culturalism, identity politics and post-colonial discourse. Urgent issues facing curatorial practice today are: How do we establish an "ethics of difference" within the framework of difference in cultural production? How do we prevent a "tyranny of the Other" without sacrificing the grounds already gained against the power status quo?
For some years major international contemporary exhibitions around the world have worked towards building up "discursive sites for a cacophony of voices" and "negotiated spaces of diverse values", emphasising "correctness" in cultural politics; these have inadvertently succeeded to the neglect of independent pursuit of artistic creativity and alternative imaginative worlds. Concepts of identity, multiplicity and difference are now slowly losing their edge to become new restrictions for artistic practice. In response to this, the curatorial team of The Third Guangzhou Triennial wants to bring attention to the "limits of multi-culturalism", and say "Farewell to Post-Colonialism".

By saying "Farewell to Post-Colonialism" we call for the renovation of the theoretical interface of contemporary art, to depart from its all pervasive socio-political discourse, and work together with artists and critics to discover new modes of thinking and develop new analytical tools for dealing with today's world.

The curators hope this Triennial will be a process of discovery for ourselves; not just the fulfilling of preconceived ideas. Instead of claiming what this Triennial "is", we wish to find out what it should not be. This Triennial may be understood as a locus of questions for the international art world, starting with an Exercise in Negation and a Questionnaire about art. We hope artists and critics will work with us to discover what new modes and imaginative worlds are possible for art beyond the boundaries of socio-political discourses.

Other participating artists: Cláudia Cristóvão (Angola/Portugal/ the Netherlands), feld72 (Austria), Christian Jankowski (Germany), Daniel Malone (New Zealand), Carlos Garaicoa Manso (Cuba), Zarina Bhimji (UK), Ecke Bonk (Germany), Jean-Philippe Toussaint(France), Thembinkosi Goniwe (South Africa), Matts Leiderstam (Sweden), Tank TV (UK), Georges Adéagbo(Benin), Maria Thereza Alves (Brazil/USA), Conrad Botes (South Africa), Matthew Buckingham (USA), Lyn Carter (Canada), Maria Magdalena Compos-Pons&Neil Leonard (Cuba/USA), Joseph DeLappe (USA), Allan deSouza (Kenya/USA), Dilomprizulike (Nigeria), Maria Eichhorn (Germany), Mary Evans (Nigeria/UK), Tamar Guimaraes (USA/Danmark/Brazil), Sharon Hayes (USA), Kiluanji Kia Henda (Angola), Michelle Heon (Canada)
Nicholas Hlobo (South Africa), John Kelly (Australia), Hew Locke (UK), Felipe Mujica (Chile/USA), Vik Muniz (USA/Brazil), Mario Navarro (Chile), Uriel Orlow (UK/Switzerland), Steve Ouditt (Trinidad), Amilcar Packer (Brazil), Jenny Perlin (USA),
Khaled Ramadan& Larissa Sansour (Lebanon), Hans Hamid Rasmussen (Norway), Neo Rauch (Germany), Josephine Starrs & Leon Cmielewski (Australia), Althea Thauberger (Canada), Barthélémy Toguo (Cameron/France), Gabriel Acevedo Velarde (Lima), Dalia Al-Kury (Jordan), Yasmina Ben Ari (Egypt), Mireille AstorE (Libanon), Reem Bader (Jordan), Kaya Behkalam (Iran), Alia El Bialy (Egypt), Hisham Bizri (Libanon), Shahram Entekhabi (Iran), Lamia Joreige (Libanon), Khaled Kafez (Egypt), Gülsün Karamustafa (Turkey), Nadine Khan (Egypt),
Shula Lipski (Libanon), Waheeda Malullah (Bahrain), WaëL Noureddine (Libanon), Ahmet Ogut (Turkey), Ayman Ramadana (Egypt), Hamed Sahihi (Iran), Larissa Sansour ( Palestine / USA), Silke Schmickl (Germany), Rania Stephan (Libanon), Wooloo Productions (Denmark), Nanna Guldhammer Wraae (Denmark), Akram Zaatari (Libanon), Marc Behrens (Germany), Jens Brand (Germany), Werner Herzog (Germany), Kristina Ask (Denmark), Daniel Andersson (Finland), Avi Alpert (USA), Eric Anglès (France/USA), Ricardo Cuevas (Mexico), Asa Elzen (Sweden), Tamar Guimaraes (USA/Danmark/Brazil), Carla Herrerra-Prats (USA/Mexico), Jesal Kapadia (USA/India), Runo Lagomarsino (Sweden/Argentina), Steven Lam (USA), Erin Ming Lee (USA), Sarah Lookofsky (Denmark/USA), Kasper Akhøj (Denmark),
Sreshta Rit Premnath (USA/India), Rebecka Thor (Sweden), Edward Schexnayder (USA), Dorothee Albrecht (Germany), Moira Zoitl (Austria),
Daniela Comani (Italy), Different Voices (Nepal/Denmark/Sweden), Dreams of Art Spaces Collected (Transnational artistic group project),
Stina Edblom (Sweden), Thomas Locher (Germany), Elke Marhoefer (Germany), Giancarlo Pazzanese (Chile), Oda Projesi (Turkey), Reynold Reynolds (USA), Asa Sonjasdotter (Sweden), Mayling To (UK), UNWETTER (Transnational artistic group project), Pablo Wendel (Germany)

Guangdong Museum of Art
38 Yanyu Road, Er-sha dao, Guangzhou, China
Tel: 86 (20) 87351261
Website: http://www.gdmoa.org/ 
    
When: 6/9/2008 - 16/11/2008 
   
Where: Guangdong Museum of Art, Guangzhou 
   
Region: Asia/East/Pearl River Delta
   
Country: China
   
Artists: (Group) Lin and Lam, Hui ZHANG(張慧), Wei LIU(劉韡 b.1972), Gang ZHAO(趙剛 b.1954), Sopawan BOONNIMITRA(โสภาวรรณ บุญนิมิตร), Corazon AMAYA-CANETE, Jaishri ABICHANDANI, Haegue YANG(양혜규 b.1971), Doris Waiyin WONG(黃慧妍), Masahiro WADA, Nana Seo EUNA, Arin RUNGJANG(อริญชย์ รุ่งแจ้ง), Warren Chiwo LEUNG(梁志和), Kit LEE(李傑), Michael Honghwee LEE, Ade Darmawan, Sreshta PREMNATH, Jeuno KIM, Jesal KAPADIA, Apichatpong WEERASETHAKUL(อภิชาติพงศ์ วีระเศรษฐกุล), Minleong CHAI(蔡明亮), Matyn SEE, Riri RIZA, Amir MUHAMMAD, Chihyin LIN(林志穎), Minjie ZHONG(鍾敏杰), Anding ZHANG(張安定), Yan MA, Tao JIANG, Kaiyu XIAO(蕭開愚), Yin WANG(王音 b.1964), Qin QI(秦琦), Xiaodong LIU(劉小東), Jianyu DUAN(段建宇), Yi ZHOU(周毅 b.1961), Duanxiang ZHENG(鄭端祥), Fang YE, Jiechang YANG(楊詰蒼 b.1956), Zhen XU(徐震 b.1977), Junyong WU(吳俊勇), Jiahao WANG(王家浩 b.1975), Kaisyng TAN(陳凱欣 b.1975), Muchen(慕辰), Yinong SHAO(邵逸農 b.1961), Dalkh OCHIR, Jun NGUYEN-HATSUSHIBA(阮初枝淳), Huma MULJI, Heungshing LIU(劉香成), Simon LEUNG, Kesang LAMDARK, Tomoko KONOIKE(鴻池朋子), Jitish KALLAT, Aili JIA(賈藹力), Xiaopeng HUANG(黃小鵬), Archana HANDE, Soonmin YONG, Ran CHENG(程然), Hamra ABBAS, Yu ZHU(朱昱 b.1970), Shanzhuan WU(吳山專), Jianwei WANG(汪建偉), Inga Svala THORSDITTIR, Shiming QIU(裘世明), Anxiong QIU(邱黯雄 b.1972), Tozer Sheungchuen PAK(白雙全), KOOSIL-JA, Yongping HUANG(黃永砅), Ping LUO, Xiangcheng HU(胡項城), Emily CHENG(成瑞嫻), Tong CHEN(陳侗), Guogu ZHENG(鄭國谷 b.1970), Bo ZHENG(鄭波), Yuxing WU(吳語心 b.1976), Weili YEH(葉偉立), Fudong YANG(楊福東 b.1971), Total Art Group, Zhijie QIU(邱志傑 b.1969), Bundith PHUNSOMBATLERT, T. Minh Ha TRINH, Xiong XIAO(蕭雄), Jie LU(盧杰), Dahong LIU(劉大鴻), Mengbo FENG(馮夢波), Amy CHEUNG(張韻雯), Chiehjen CHEN(陳界仁)
   
Curator: Sarat MAHARAJ, Shiming GAO(高士明 b.1976), Johnson Tsongzung CHANG(張頌仁)