Donna Miranda: Philippines

Name of your organisation: Green Papaya Art Projects

 

Website of your organisation: www.greenpapaya.org

 

How is your organisation funded?

 

Privately funded by managing partners from adjunct graphic design practice serving local cultural institutions and non-government agencies. Supplementary income from its annual art sale, sales from selected exhibitions, management fees for international cultural exchange projects and sales from bar/café.

 

Explain what your organisation is about (to somebody who does not know about it).

 

Green Papaya Art Projects is an artist-run initiative that supports and organizes actions and propositions that explore alternative approaches to the production, dissemination, research and representation of art in various disciplines. One of the most important core values that Green Papaya endeavors to provide its artistic community is the importance of intellectual exchange, sharing of information, critical dialogue, and creative and practical collaboration in the production of contemporary art. It consistently seeks to strengthen this position by providing a platform for multidisciplinary, collaborative, and cross-borders among Asia Pacific and Filipino contemporary artists.

 

Founded in 2000 by Norberto Roldan and Donna Miranda.

 

Describe how your organisation is engaged in international cooperation and exchange.

 

Since its inception in 2000, Green Papaya Art Projects has developed into a hub for visiting international curators and administrators (from Tokyo, New York, Hong Kong, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Sydney, Havana, Melbourne, San Francisco, Denmark and Germany) doing research on local contemporary art practice. As well as facilitating selection for in international exhibitions and biennales/triennales. Among these are the Fukuoka Asian Art Triennale, the Singapore Biennale and the Chang-Won Asian Art Fair in South Korea.

 

Beginning 2003, it has hosted residencies by artists coming from Australia, Thailand, Japan, Korea, Belgium, Denmark, Brazil, Turkey and Afghanistan.

 

Aiming to strengthen international collaborative endeavors, it has organized/coordinated Philippine exhibitions at Fukuoka Asian Art Museum, 24Hr Art: Northern Territory Centre for Contemporary Art (Darwin, Australia),Goliath Visual Artspace (New York), and Valentine Willie Fine Arts (Kuala Lumpur). Recognizing the importance of network building, exchange and interaction among independent initiatives in the Asia Pacific region, Green Papaya has actively participated in international fora/workshops concerning alternative platforms for artistic productions and artists’ mobility programs as a founding member of Intra-Asia Network.

 

Describe how your art space relates to the local community. If you are about to open an art space, explain how you related to the local community in your previous experiences.

 

Green Papaya’s immediate community is composed mainly of artists working outside the mainstream arts and culture agenda established by a post-Marcos politico-cultural condition. More than 20 years after the People Power revolution, the art and culture development in the Philippines continues to struggle in the backdrop of unstable economy and political corruption. Such that government artistic and cultural institutions have also receded to become mere vehicles of power by techno-bureaucrats who either have no idea of the current art practice or ‘too busy’ to do their research.

 

Hovering under this almost bleak situation, Filipino artists themselves have always sought to establish parallel independent centers and initiatives responsive to their practice. Seeking to present themselves and their work their own terms. The emergence of artist-run spaces, along with more than 10 years of internet, Googlesearch and Hotmail have become important factors in keeping the alternative art economy alive, dynamic and relevant. In the absence of support for contemporary art and artists working outside the national arts and culture agenda, Green Papaya has become significant breeding ground and platform for the community to develop and survive.

 

More than the physical space, it’s the political dimension and DIY spirit “we can take matters into our own hands” that brings a whole new approach to community building. In effect, strengthening our connection with the very community we wish to serve. We have strived to uphold the artists’ positions and sentiments by providing the most conducive conditions for both production and presentation of their works. We are proud to say that our activities have been well attended by the artistic community. It has become a place for communing, critical dialogue and play. More so, during the last three years, Green Papaya has become a meeting place between local artists and international curators, researchers, artists and scholars made possible through consistent networking activities and communication.

 

What are the major internal and external challenges your organisation is facing?

 

As an artist-run initiative, Green Papaya’s aim is to provide a parallel platform for contemporary art practice in the Philippines. It is sustained through very limited financial resources and run by a lean organizational structure composed of the two managing partners who themselves oversee the organization’s curatorial, operations and administrative responsibilities. Among the major challenges that confront our organization is ensuring its sustainability through the next years mainly due to the lack of steady funding and human resource to run day-to-day operations as well as fully implementing our artistic agenda.

 

While we have survived the three-year life expectancy of artist-run spaces in Manila, a feat attributed to ingenuous revenue streams accomplished with the help of the artist community, we continue to face the challenge of keeping our momentum, developing new management strategies, other revenue streams and artistic direction that is responsive to ever-changing landscape of local and global contemporary art practice.

 

Moreover, the lack of government support for the contemporary art practice, the absence of local private arts funding bodies, and the dearth of corporate sponsorship for local arts activities and poor art infrastructure are the main hurdles affecting not just Green Papaya but similar initiatives in the Philippines.

 

What are the main achievements and strengths of your organisation?

 

Green Papaya has established itself as an important platform for contemporary art practice in the Philippines. Providing space and alternative support mechanism for young-emerging and mid-career contemporary artists otherwise unavailable, if not inconsistently present in Philippines. It has ensured that a creative and critical environment for experimentation, research, and presentation of art persists despite the dismal state of art infrastructure in the country. More so, it sets a precedent that artists can mobilize and organize themselves to take active role in cultural production.

 

Along with these it has been a significant meeting point for interdisciplinary art actions, bringing together artists from varied disciplines to engage in critical and creative dialogue with each other. Our programs like Amplified Assemblage and Anatomy Projects have not only brought artists from music, contemporary dance, video, experimental sound, fashion and poetry together serving as springboard for future independent collaborations, but has also become an avenue to promote awareness and develop new audiences for each field. These programs emphasize creative interaction, exchange, practical collaboration and cooperation among artists. The last four years Green Papaya has also developed to become a space where artists, scholars, art enthusiasts and urban hipsters converge, commune and engage in meaningful dialogue.