Asia Art Archive and Department of Cultural and Religious Studies, The Chinese University of Hong Kong present Shifting Sites: Cultural Desire and the Museum, a one day conference held as a satellite event of ART HK 08 and supported by the Home Affairs Bureau, HKSAR Government. Major resources are being allocated by governments to building cultural facilities – think Abu Dhabi and Hong Kong’s West Kowloon Cultural District. Today, art and cultural facilities are seen as necessary components of a world-class city; a desire reiterated throughout cities in Asia. Can the onestop cultural district really emulate the vibrancy of art scenes in cities like London and NY? And the idea of a museum – this is a recent construct in Asia – so what should today’s museum look like? Eight internationally renowned speakers will come to Hong Kong to address these issues.INTRODUCTION: There is no shortage of museums in Asia. But, for the most part, the idea of what a museum is, what it is for — this is a recent construct. The museum is a space still undergoing considerable negotiation — especially with regards to the current state of art production, which ranges from the exhibition of contemporary art at international biennales, to the trade in all manner of art objects. While the current state of many art museums in Asia are cause for concern, with emphasis on hardware over software, it may also offer the right conditions for new interpretations of the role of the museum. Included in an ambitious US$2.8 billion* Government project to build a major arts and cultural district on Hong Kong’s most famous landmark, the harbor, is a US$609 million*, 61, 950 sq meters museum currently labeled M+. M+ seeks to be a new type of cultural institution with its mission to focus on 20th and 21st Century visual culture.It is also part of a much bigger trend in the way that globalization is changing the role of museums in the 21st Century. The allocation by Governments of resources to building major cultural facilities represent a new trend where art museums are seen as a necessary status symbol of a truly “world class” city, a phrase and aspiration that has been adopted by cities across Asia. Cultural tourism and the economic benefits associated with this are the desired goals, as spawned by a yearning to emulate the Bilbao effect. * net present value in 2008 - MUSEUM CONFERENCE - Shifting Sites: Cultural Desire and the Museum 17TH May 2008, 10am – 5.30 pmIn this one day conference we invite key individuals and institutions to address these very issues and share with us their insights and experiences. Confirmed speakers include Sheena Wagstaff, Chief Curator of Tate Modern, London; Charles Merewether, Artistic Director & Curator of the 2006 Biennale of Sydney; Yuko Hasegawa, Chief Curator of the Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo; David Elliott, Independent Curator and Critic (Founding Director of the Mori Art Museum); Su Zhen Xie, Executive Director of Museum of China Central Academy of Fine Arts, Beijing; Philip Dodd, Chairman of Made in China, London/Beijing; Joe Thompson, Founding Director of Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art and Jane DeBevoise, Chair Asia Art Archive (and Former Deputy Director of the Guggenheim Museum, New York).Event DetailsEvent MAJOR CONFERENCE: Shifting Sites: Cultural Desire and the MuseumPresented by Asia Art Archive and Department of Cultural and Religious Studies, CUHKMain Supporter: Home Affairs Bureau, Government HKSARSupported by: PICODate & Time Saturday 17th May 2008, 10am – 1pm, 2.30 – 5.30pmVenue Meeting Room 301 B, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, WanchaiLanguage English with Cantonese and Mandarin simultaneous translationWebsite www.aaa.org.hk/shiftingsites will be ready in mid-AprilFurther Information and interviews Please contact AAA’s Chantal Wong on chantal@aaa.org.hk or2815 1112 or Event Coordinator, Orlean Lai on orleanlai@netvigator.comRegistration required, please contact shiftingsites@aaa.org.hk .Free Admission