This week (23 March) we held a group meeting organized by Feng Zhao, Xinyao and Chuni, which focused on three parts: personal project updates, funding sources, and peer blog feedback. Each member gave a brief report on their curatorial projects and shared their current dilemmas and questions.
In my personal update section, I highlight the project progress of the exhibition “Vanishing Existence”. I have basically confirmed that The exhibition will be located in Custom Lane in Edinburgh or The Memory Museum next to it. Last week’s field visit made me realize that space is not necessarily big or famous, but small but flexible places are more suitable for the delicate expression of the heavy theme of “death”, and also conducive to creating an immersive experience atmosphere for the audience. In addition, Custom Lane itself has integrated exhibition, workshop, cafe and other functions, which is very suitable for my “exhibition + experience + interaction +VR” compound curatorial structure.
I also updated the planning of curatorial form and content: the exhibition will start from the “color of death”, combine Eastern philosophy and Western existentialism, and guide the audience to rethink the symbolic path and perception of death through multi-sensory forms such as installation, behavior, smell and image. The first part of the exhibition will start with color and space impact, the middle part will be a workshop and art display, and the end will be an immersive virtual cemetery and VR interactive experience.
At present, the main problems I have encountered include: the art has not been fully collected, the funding structure is not clear, and the technical path and presentation method related to VR still need to be further clarified. In addition, I also hope to complete the layout of the exhibition as soon as possible and start the recruitment process of volunteers.
Funding source research update
I researched Creative Scotland’s Open Fund for Individuals, which is friendly to emerging artists and small curatorial projects. The fund is worth between £500 and £100,000 and accepts applications for exhibitions, events, interdisciplinary collaborations and more. Also consider participating in the “Resident Entrepreneurs” program of Creative Informatics to support digital interactive art practices.
These funding channels are very much in line with the exhibition structure I currently envision for VR+ immersive experiences, and I will move forward with the application process based on the actual budget.
-
Venue rental (2 weeks): approx. £2,200–£3,300
-
Exhibition design and technical support: approx. £3,300–£5,500
-
Artist production and artwork transportation: approx. £4,400–£6,600
-
Equipment rental (VR, projector, server, etc.): approx. £5,500
-
Promotion and event operations: approx. £2,200
-
Opening forum/talks: approx. £1,100
-
Volunteer and staff support: approx. £1,100
Estimated total budget: approx. £19,800–£24,300
