Watching Spider-Man in the dead of the night at the museum might sound like a mash-up of two films that no one asked for.
But on Nov 3, just before 3am, a crew of curators, artwork and exhibition management staff, construction workers and Argentinian artist Juan Maidagan watched...
…as two “Spider-Man” technicians – rope access technicians who perform tasks high off the ground – climbed up and secured a 10m-tall, 10-wide artwork titled Tigresses while suspended in midair.
The crew worked painstakingly for over seven hours to ensure the handsewn pieces were ironed, hung properly on wire frames and aligned correctly.
Tigresses consists of 10 handsewn banners (top and bottom) of synthetic leather and canvas and is half of the artwork Vientos Alisios (Spanish for trade winds) created by Argeninian artists Dolores Zinny and Juan Maidagan and commissioned by the Gallery.
“It was especially important to make adjustments and tweaks for Tigresses because the interrelationship between each banner renders the work legible, so the composition of the work has to be precise and correct – that’s why we spent a lot of time and care to do this together,” said curator Cheng Jia Yun, 33.
This artwork is part of Tropical: Stories From South-east Asia And Latin America, an exhibition comprising 200 artworks, sculptures, drawings, performances and immersive installations by more than 75 artists from 20 countries and compares the art of Latin America and South-east Asia.
Studies have found that the average time a person spends looking at a piece of art is eight seconds. But what is unseen to many are the years that go into the making of a major art exhibition like Tropical.
In fact, it took five years of research and conversations with key stakeholders like artists, lenders, museums, art historians, scholars and art organisations.
The curators also made trips to countries including the Philippines, Indonesia, Brazil and Mexico to immerse themselves in the different cultures.
When asked how long it takes to secure the loan of a single art work, senior curator Shabbir Hussain Mustafa, 39, said: “We have been waiting for five years for someone to ask (us about this), because that is the untold story of this exhibition.
“It takes a while; sometimes it takes up to two years to negotiate an artwork loan, especially when we are dealing with regional and globally iconic works.”
Taking an artwork on loan means that the curators have to ensure that the artworks adhere to global museum standards in terms of licensing and artwork handling.
Ms Cheng said that the team needs to give lenders “a peace of mind” and ensure that the artworks have the highest standard of care.
“We didn’t take anything lightly,” said Ms Cheng. “So just thinking about how each artwork speaks to those within the larger field of vision was a very important, deliberate and careful process for us.”
The Gallery spared no effort in showcasing the art in the best way, down to minute details such as text placement and colour schemes of the exhibition space.
The Gallery was very precise about the height each artwork was placed at, even taking into account an artwork’s position in relation to other pieces, said curator Teo Hui Min, 33.
“Curating an exhibition is an overall experience and we are very aware of the things that you don’t notice are actually all part of a complete experience,” she added.
“We need to be aware of our public and very conscious of wheelchair-bound members and their accessibility. Being conscious of the placement of text means that we are carrying out our responsibility to our audiences,” said curator Qinyi Lim, 42.
With the exhibition set-up completed, the curatorial team shifted gears to prepare for the various programmes and performances to continue audience engagement.
“We really hope people come in here and experience something new and unexpected, and go away with a new kind of openness to art,” said Ms Teo.
Tropical: Stories From South-east Asia And Latin America runs till March 24, 2024, at the National Gallery Singapore.