The Constituent Museum: Collecting Relations and the Transformational Potential of Arte Útil
Visitors to the Van Abbemuseum in Eindhoven participating in the Qwearing the Collection initiative to bring a queer critical perspective to the museum © Olle Lundin
From the press release:
‘Outset Contemporary Art Fund, the leading international philanthropic enterprise, announces the recipients of six grants in a major new arts funding programme from its new accelerator unit, Outset Partners. In its first year, grants totalling £275,000 are awarded across a range of agenda-setting UK and European museums, galleries and organisations, to support challenging new art projects with a demonstrable transformative aspect for the creative ecosystem.
A one-of-a-kind Transformative Grant is designed to afford the opportunity for one significant project to radically re-think the art institution of the future. £150,000 is awarded jointly to the Whitworth, the University of Manchester and Van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven for their initiative, The Constituent Museum: Collecting Relations and the Transformational Potential of Arte Útil. Using the methodology of Arte Útil (‘art as a tool’ or ‘useful art’) developed by artist Tania Bruguera over the last ten years, the two museums will radically transform their core protocols by redrawing relationships with local constituency groups, creating an agency for them to inform the museums’ collecting, curating and presenting.
‘We are delighted to have this generous support from Outset,’ commented Charles Esche (Director of Van Abbemuseum) and Alistair Hudson (Director of the Whitworth and Manchester Art Gallery), ‘As an organisation dedicated to supporting public institutions with private means it has become a vital stimulus for creating and presenting contemporary art. Outset values art as a public good and positive contribution to society. Our museums are also committed to those goals and we will use the Transformational Grant to experiment with ways to repurpose the museum as a new social power plant to collectively generate ways of navigating the huge economic and political transition ahead.’
Drawing on Outset’s sixteen years of expertise in catalytic arts philanthropy, Outset Partners recognises that public art institutions are in a position of responsibility to address changes in society yet often face a gap in funding to realise their most ambitious visions for the future.’
For more info: www.outset.org.uk