The Role of Institution in the Malaysian Art Infrastructure: A Roundtable Session (Edited Transcript)

 Baverly Yong, Nur Hanim Khairuddin, Rahel Joseph & Tengku Sabri Ibrahim (Ed), 'The Role of Institution in the Malaysian Art Infrastructure: A Roundtable Session (Edited Transcript)' in Infrastructures - Narratives In Malaysian Art (Volume 3), Rogue Art, Kuala Lumpur, pg 78.

Session 1:

Building, Programming, Collecting, Funding, Connecting: What are some of the practical issues faced by institutions involved in Malaysian art?

Target, Benchmarks and Best Practices

M1: Let’s begin with the first sub-topic: What are the targets, benchmarks and best practices for our art and related institutions? When you have reviews of your institutions, or when you are setting up your institutions, what do you look to as best practices? Which institutions do you emulate? Are you following an internal direction? What are your target ? What are your best practices?

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Faizal Sidik: One of the biggest challenges the National Visual Arts Gallery faces is that there are secretarial and administrative changes every three years so our approach and direction has change as well. NVAG has to satisfy the needs of all its stakeholders. What I am about to share with you is in the 10^th Malaysia Plan-some long and short term plans. Our aim is to always support the development of visual arts in Malaysia, supporting not only artists but all relevant parties in the country. As you know, the name of the gallery has changed from National Art Gallery to National Visual Arts Gallery. This means that the scope has widened considerably as it is not just painting and sculptures we are focusing on-we are looking at other art forms such as photography, ceramic, etc. We are also spreading our wings to every region in the country. For example, in the northern part of the country, we have been speaking to Langkawi Development Corporation to open a gallery there. We also have plan to establish a gallery in Pahang and to perhaps enter in to enter into a collaboration with galleries in Sabah and Sarawak. So there are quite a few extensive development programes planned and we need the support of all parties, not only artists.

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