đWeekâs Focus
This week focused on media and time, especially how time-based media (TBM) reshape curatorial space and narrative structures. I reflected on my SICP project, which includes multiple moving image works. I plan to integrate both black box screenings and white cube installations to host different forms of Ghost Art. Most importantly, I was inspired by the idea of looping: rather than presenting video works in a linear, beginning-to-end format, I will experiment with non-linear, looped video installations. As Brian Hatton writes in Looping the Loop, âLooping removes linear causality from time, making video experience closer to spatial perception.â This insight will guide my curatorial treatment of time as rhythm, echo, and return.
đđ»ââïžCollective Planning Meeting
We finalised our three Summerhall curatorial events:
1. A screening 20/03/2025
2. An Artsteps tutorial session 29/03/2025
3. A flower arranging collective workshop 05/04/2025
SICP Feedback Analysis
The peer review and presentation feedback highlighted key areas for refinement
1. Artist Selection: The chosen artists need stronger conceptual and aesthetic connections to enhance exhibition cohesion.
2. Narrative Links: Strengthening relationships between works will create a more immersive experience.
3. Expanded Programming: More workshops and performances could increase audience engagement.
4. Site Strategy: The integration of non-place (Marc Augé) and poor image (Hito Steyerl) theories is effective but needs further explanation.
5. Audience Interaction: Clarifying how visitors engage with artworks both physically and digitally.
6. Artist Residency & Public Programs: More details are needed to enhance exhibition impact.
7. Visual Materials: More imagery will improve clarity and communication.
âïžSICP Weekly Development Log:Â Curatorial Statementâ
The detailed definition of Ghost Art
Ghost Art is a fragmented, informal, anonymous, and temporary artistic practice that exists outside the mainstream art system. It takes place in informal spaces through DIY reproduction, illegal postings, digital leaks, and projection interventions. It moves through visual and social structures in an unclassifiable and nomadic way.
Ghost Art is influenced by Marc AugĂ©âs theory of Non-Place and Hito Steyerlâs concept of the Poor Image. It draws from spatial sociology and visual culture studies while also exploring the Third Space, questioning whether images in informal exhibition spaces can break geographical boundaries and create new modes of viewing.
In From Places to Non-Places, Marc AugĂ© argues that globalization and supermodernity have created spaces without history, identity, or communityâsuch as airports, subway stations, and shopping malls. These ânon-placesâ function as transient intermediaries rather than stable cultural sites. Ghost Art exists in these non-places, often appearing in urban peripheries, transitional zones, or fluid spaces like abandoned buildings and subway tunnels.
In In Defense of the Poor Image, Hito Steyerl examines how low-resolution, widely reproduced images challenge the hierarchy of visual culture in the digital age. Ghost Art inherits this critique of institutionalized art values. It resists high resolution, physical permanence, or fixed forms, instead wandering through visual culture with a transient and elusive presence.
Unlike Street Art, Ghost Art does not seek to leave permanent marks on the city. It emphasizes ephemerality and anonymity while forming a dynamic coexistence with street art. Street art relies on stable surfaces like walls and tunnels, using graffiti, spray paint, and stickers to create lasting engagement with the public. In contrast, Ghost Art appears and disappears, using projections, sound interventions, and flickering images to create temporary disruptions. It does not rely on a single medium or recognizable style but instead creates visual ruptures in the moment of its appearance and disappearance.
While Street Art often claims territoriality, Ghost Art avoids spatial competition due to its transient nature. It acts like a âreverberationâ in urban visual culture, subtly integrating into existing street art or urban environments. It does not replace street art but intervenes in its context, opening another layer of visual and conceptual dialogue.
Ghost Art questions the legitimacy, visibility, and ownership of art. By briefly appearing in marginalized spaces, it challenges the control of institutional art systems over visual culture. Its formation is closely tied to contemporary urban space, art circulation, and socio-political conditions.
Case Study: Curatorial Statement Analysis
Group exhibitions & the same medium – Case 1 ïŒON PAPER
Darren Almond, Giulia Andreani, Karel Appel, Louise Bonnet, Glenn Brown, AndrĂ© Butzer, Sarah Crowner, Jeremy Demester, Carroll Dunham, Ida Ekblad, Walton Ford, GĂŒnther Förg, Katharina Grosse, Mark Grotjahn, KAWS, Friedrich Kunath, Jake Longstreth, Eddie Martinez, Albert Oehlen, Adam Pendleton, Tal R, Bridget Riley, Eleanor Swordy, Rinus Van de Velde, Grace Weaver
London: 41 Dover Street
14 January â 22 February 2025
Figure 1: On Paper installation views, https://www.maxhetzler.com/exhibitions/paper-darren-almond-giulia-andreani-karel-appel-louise-bonnet-glenn-brown-andre-butzer-sarah-crowner-jeremy-demester-carroll-dun
1. Introduction
States the exhibition theme: exploring the artistic potential of paper.
Highlights paperâs physicality and its role as an independent medium.
Frames the exhibition as a study of how paper has evolved beyond a simple support material.
2. Thematic Sections
Paper as a Drawing Medium (Bridget Riley, KAWS, Carroll Dunham) â Exploring abstraction and figuration on paper.
Paper as an Experimental Space (Katharina Grosse, Adam Pendleton) â Using chance, spray paint, and collage techniques.
Paper and Immediate Thought (Mark Grotjahn, GĂŒnther Förg) â Capturing spontaneity and perception.
Paper and Landscapes (Tal R, Jake Longstreth) â Interpreting natural scenes through paper-based art.
Paper in Portraiture (Karel Appel, Glenn Brown, Giulia Andreani) â Pushing boundaries of human representation.
3. Conclusion
Contrasts between traditional vs. experimental and figurative vs. abstract approaches.
Reinforces paper as a versatile, standalone art form.
Artist film & tightly curated selection of artists – Case 2: Birgit Brenner & Ricarda Roggan Duo exhibition
Birgit Brenner & Ricarda Roggan
Duo exhibition
Galerie EIGEN + ART Berlin
13 March â 19 April 2025
Writing Techniques to Learn
(1) Establishing Historical Context
The text explains Stadt Nâs political background (Cold War, utopian ideals, nuclear fears).
Instead of direct criticism, Roggan uses images and archives to let the audience experience history visually.
(2) Multimodal Approach
The exhibition includes photography, film, installation, and text, creating a layered experience.
This structure can help curatorial writing by integrating different media into a cohesive narrative.
(3) Archive-Image-Installation Structure
The text connects artworks to historical documents (maps, city plans) to enhance credibility.
Next Week’s Blog Plan
(1) Draft the Exhibition Foreword
Using this week’s case studies( or more), create the first draft of the Ghost Art exhibition preface. Clearly define the theme, theoretical background, and artist selection logic while highlighting the unique aspects of the Telfer Subway venue.
(2) Further Argumentation for Artist Selection
âą Analyse how each artist’s work connects with ghost art concepts.
âą Explain how different media (projections, videos, sound interventions, etc.) interact with the exhibition space.
âą Use case comparisons to emphasize narrative connections among works for better coherence.
SICP Refinement: Curatorial Statement © 2025 by Yiran Gu is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 
23 March 2025 at 21:05
Hey Yiran Gu!
Your recent blogs offer a glimpse into your curatorial process, with reflections on the site-specificity of your project Echo of Petals in the Dark, as well as the application of theoretical frameworks such as your concept of Ghost Art. You also delve into observations on contemporary art exhibitions you have visited. I enjoy how your blog includes a mix of both updates on your SICP, as well as examples of engaging with materials beyond the project. Each post addresses different stages and considerations in your curatorial practices, which provides a rich (if not slightly fragmented) narrative.
Week 6 provided an insightful overview of the CAP exhibition Corpse Flower. Your ability to contextualise the exhibition is refreshing, offering perspectives I hadn’t considered. Your analysis of Keyi Juâs The Latest News was especially thought-provoking – questioning whether or not the artist should have explored other mediums beyond newspapers when representing the manipulation of contemporary news in their work. I also appreciated how you included your previous engagement with one of the artists Layla Knox and her work at the beginning of the academic year, adding a personal dimension and new level of understanding to your blog.
Week 7 is well-structured and demonstrates strong engagement with the Glasgow course trip, focusing on the curatorial methods used by each institution. However, extending your analysis with personal commentary would enhance it. You do this effectively in Week 6 when discussing the CAP exhibition, balancing description with critical reflection.
Week 8 provides a structured summary of the peer feedback on your SICP, with concise reflections on each point, demonstrating your ability to engage critically and refine your project. You then expand on Ghost Art, offering a more in-depth explanation of the theories informing your concept. Your articulation of Ghost Artâas art that utilizes temporary, unconventional methods to create fleeting urban interventionsâresonates with Week 9âs discussions on ephemeral art and its archiving. In your Week 5 blog, you briefly mentioned that the SICP would culminate in a publication of oral histories and local anecdotes about Telfer Subway. You might find Mathilde Lavenneâs TROPICS (2019) relevant. In this work, Lavenne captures scientific data through an anthropological lens, using a FARO scanner to create a phantom map of territories. The piece, reminiscent of a dreamscape, explores how land holds memory. Its ghost-like quality aligns with your exploration of ephemerality and could inform your approach to archiving your SICP. You can view an extract here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RyxvZPwgKZg
The third part of your blog briefly introduces two case studies. While they are interesting additions, they feel somewhat disconnected from the rest of your discussion. Integrating them more cohesivelyâperhaps in an essayistic summary that links them back to your SICPâwould strengthen their relevance. I am also unclear on their direct relation to your project, so further reflection on their significance would be helpful.
Overall your blog demonstrates a clear engagement with the course material. I would love to hear your voice in your writing, especially in Week 7 and parts of week 8. However your passion for your SICP shines through, with the blogs dedicated to this project going into great detail and showcasing the thought and consideration that has gone into each and every aspect (I really enjoyed your explanation of the name âEcho of Petals in the Darkâ from Week 5).