Publication Launch
'DOCUMENTING TIME, COUNTERING FORM'
Rachel Be-Yun Wang
Chisenhale Gallery, 64 Chisenhale Road, London E3 5RG
7-8PM, 11.02.2025
To mark the end of Rachel Be-Yun Wang’s Asymmetry Curatorial Research Fellowship at Chisenhale Gallery, please join us for the launch of her new digital publication, which explores practices of documenting and archiving through conversations with Joseph Grigely, Brian Castriota, and Sadia Shirazi.
The question of documenting an artwork is not as simple as taking the right photos; it requires a labour of archiving, and by extension, a versatile understanding of the systems of authorship that art is built on. It involves not only images of completed work, but also documentation of the extensive administrative labour and conceptual development behind a project. Following her fellowship working within Chisenhale Gallery’s nonprofit and non-collecting, commissions-based model, Wang observes that ‘situating the labour of documentation as a pedagogical effort could be a useful way to remind ourselves of why we do it, and in turn shape the attention we put towards a reflexive work culture’.
Throughout the digital publication, archiving and documenting are positioned as activities of ongoing negotiation that preserve the rigour, intention, and labour embedded in contemporary art practices. This new publication features an introductory essay by Wang, followed by three conversations with artist Joseph Grigely; conservator Brian Castriota; and writer and curator Sadia Shirazi. These conversations explore their unique perspectives, delving deep into projects that engage with documenting, archiving, and holding time as dynamic, discursive practices.
The digital publication is free and will be available for download on our website from the day of the event. The launch will include remarks from Chisenhale Gallery and Asymmetry, a reading by Rachel, and a celebratory drinks reception to mark the season.
FREE ENTRY, BOOK HERE
BIOGRAPHY
Rachel Be-Yun Wang (b. USA) works in curating and art-making, with a practice that involves exhibition, written, and studio production. Her current interests include methods of exhibition and dissemination, new media art, environmental humanities, and archival narratives. She has been involved in exhibition projects such as the Beijing Art and Technology Biennale: Synthetic Ecology (798CUBE, 2022), Ever Archive: The Publications and Publication Projects of Hans Ulrich Obrist (Serralves Foundation, 2022), and Material Tales: The Life of Things (Central Academy of Fine Arts Museum, 2021). Rachel has guest lectured at the Central Academy of Fine Arts in China, produced multiple publications and vitrine exhibitions with the Hans Ulrich Obrist Publication Archive, and pursues an independent writing and artistic practice.