Art Insight #6: Melissa Chiu

Director of the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden

On June 2014, the Smithsonian Institution announced it had appointed Melissa Chiu the new director of the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. The museum opened in 1974, as a result of the effort and generosity of Joseph H. Hirshhorn, who donated his collection of more than 6,000 pieces to the Smithsonian in 1966. The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden Collection now houses nearly 12,000 works, many of them by prominent contemporary artists such as Willem de Kooning, Francis Bacon and Sol LeWitt. Within the context of the American art scene, Chiu’s appointment was regarded as extraordinary in several aspects; a female director from Australia with Chinese-Australian heritage was by no means ordinary. So came to be the first non-American to run the Hirshhorn Museum.
Chiu was born in the city of Darwin, in the Northern Territory of Australia. She was born to a Chinese-born father who was a dentist, and an Australian mother who was a dental nurse. After what Chiu calls a typical upbringing, she studied at the University of Western Sydney where she received her PhDin contemporary Chinese art history. She was a prospective PhD candidateduring the 1990s, a time when the value of Asian art had yet to be acknowledged. Her advisors were distraught by her field of choice, and tried to convince the young Chiu to consider other subjects. The times have changed: Chinese art has long since taken the art world by storm and the ground swell continues to spread to all corners of Asian art.

Before her appointment, Chiu led the Asia Society Museum in New York for 13 years as director and vice-curator. She is a prolific curator with both depth and breadth, directing exhibitions of prominent Asian artists like Nam June Paik, Sarah Sze, Takashi Murakami and Yoshitomo Nara. She is also widely published, with titles including Contemporary Asian Art(2010), Breakout: Chinese Art Outside China(2007) andChinese Contemporary Art: 7 Things You Should Know (2008). Perhaps it was only a matter of time before she was recognized as New York’s leading expert in Asian art. With her expert knowledge, far reaching network, broad and refined sense of contemporary art tempered in New York, and outstanding directorial achievements credited to her name, Chiu was handed the directorial helm of the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. And, almost as if to outdo the Smithsonian’s expectations in pressing forth with such an exceptional appointment, the newly appointed director has expressed an ambition to aggressively pursuefresh avenues of contemporary art such as digital and installation. With her curatorial direction drawing the attention of the art world, Chiu’s inaugural exhibition will feature Shirin Neshat, the Iranian-born video artist and photographer. Chiu took time from her busy schedule and preparations for the retrospective, “Shirin Neshat: Facing History,” to sit down with us.

Art has become increasingly high profile and the work of museums is important to that discussion. It is museums that determine which artists will be remembered, since they are the institutions that build collections for posterity. -Melissa Chiu-

Q. You began your term at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in June 2014. Can you illustrate what your responsibilities include and how they differ from your post at the Asia Society?

The director of the Hirshhorn is responsible for the management of the museum, which includes its artistic direction. It is not dissimilar from my role at Asia Society, but obviously in that role my purview was only Asian arts and culture. Now my focus is broader and more international.
Our third floor was recently renovated and opened last October. The renovated spaceallows us to show contemporary installation and sculpture in a new way. Our plan is to showcase world-renowned collections in fresh and ground-breaking ways that tell a new global art history.

Q. You studied Asian art at a time when the field wasn’t well recognized or acknowledged. What was the impetus behind your decision to study Asian art?

I was living in Australia and saw first-hand some of the compelling work being done in emerging scenes across Asia in the 1990s. That was what prompted me to focus and study Asian art in greater detail. I came to America for a scholarship majoring in Chinese art. I was hired by the Asia Society to be the first curator to focus solely on Asian contemporary art in anAmerican museum. At that time, I was still in the process of completing my PhD on Chinese contemporary art.

Q. You oversee a staff of 50 and an international modern and contemporary collection of nearly 12,000 paintings, sculptures, photographs. How do you motivate your team?

Most staffs who work in museums start there because they love art. In fact, many of them are artists. One thing we should never lose sight of is how to think about creativity and art as a priority for all that we do.

Q. You recently wrote about Korean Dansaekwha(monochromatic paintings) for the catalogue of the 2015 Venice Biennale’s collateral event. What are your thoughts on Dansaekhwa?

Dansaekwha was an important movement in Korea and is increasingly being recognized internationally. I am pleased to say that the Hirshhorn has acquired some works from this movement since I have become director. I think Dansaekwha is a good example of how we can begin to tell a more global art history, since these Korean artists were aware of international developments while also referring to local traditions and circumstances.

Q. I understand you are preparing a ShirinNeshat show as your official inaugural exhibition. Do you think that art has a responsibility to be politically or socially conscious? If so, should artists be willing to take risks in the pursuit of that goal? Have you ever hesitated to exhibit anything that is politically sensitive?

I don’t think that art has a responsibility to be politically or socially conscious. Some artists are, however, interested in such issues, such as Shirin Neshat. I haven’t hesitated to show politically motivated art here at the Hirshhorn and we’ve never shied away from challenging projects. Remember, we did do an Ai Weiwei show some years back. At its best, art allows us to see the world differently—this may be through politics, but just as often it can be through other issues.
Q. During your directorship of the Asia Society Museum, you launched a collection after receiving a $1.5 million gift from a single benefactor. This has become a story of lore. What is your view on the relationship between benefactors and art?

American museum system is supported by private philanthropy in a way that is unlike any other country around the world. I have been fortunate enough to benefit from such support for my work when I was working in New York. Now in my role at the Hirshhorn, which is a national museum of modern art, we are able to build support across the United States and more.

Q. Hyundai Motors has recently begun to actively support art in Korea and aroundthe world. In particular, it has struck partnerships to initiate the Hyundai Commission in the Turbine Hall of the Tate Modern and the Hyundai Motors Series in the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea, to support long-term projects by international artists. As a leading figure in contemporary art, what insights would you like to share with Hyundai, or any other global corporation, in their mission to support art?

Q. Do you have any advice for aspiring young artists?

This is a wonderful time to be an artist. At no other time has there been so much interest in art, opportunities to exhibit work and build a community of support. ■ with ARTINPOST

Clemens von Wedemeyer <Afterimage> 2013 Courtesy of the artist and Galerie Wolff, Paris; KOW, Berlin © VG BildKunst, Bonn Image Courtesy of ARTINPOST
Installation view of <Days of Endless Time> at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden 2014 David Claerbout <Rocking Chair> 2003 Courtesy of the artist; Sean Kelly Gallery, New York; Galerie Yvon Lambert, Paris; and Galerie Micheline Szwajcer, Brussels © David Claerbout Photo: Cathy Carver Image Courtesy of ARTINPOST
Installation view of <Days of Endless Time> at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden 2014 Eija-Liisa Ahtila <Horizontal> 2011 Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Joseph H. Hirshhorn Purchase Fund, 2013 (13.1) © 2014 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / KUVASTO, Helsinki Photo: Cathy Carver Image Courtesy of ARTINPOST
Guido van der Werve, Still from <Nummer Negen (#9) The Day I Didn’t Turn with the World> 2007 Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC © Guido van der Werve Image Courtesy of ARTINPOST
Hans Op de Beeck Still from <Staging Silence> 2009 Collection of Aaron and Barbara Levine Image courtesy and © Hans Op de Beeck & ARTINPOST
Hans Op de Beeck Still from <Staging Silence> 2009 Collection of Aaron and Barbara Levine Image courtesy and © Hans Op de Beeck & ARTINPOST
Installation view of <Days of Endless Time> at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden 2014 Robert Wilson <Lady Gaga: Mademoiselle Caroline Rivière d’après Jean-Auguste-Dominque Ingres> 2013 © Robert Wilson. Photo: Cathy Carver Image Courtesy of ARTINPOST
Installation view of <Days of Endless Time> at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden 2014 Clemens von Wedemeyer <Afterimage> 2013 Courtesy of the artist and Galerie Wolff, Paris; KOW, Berlin © VG BildKunst, Bonn Photo: Cathy Carver Image Courtesy of ARTINPOST
Robert Wilson <Lady Gaga: Mademoiselle Caroline Rivière d’après Jean-Auguste-Dominque Ingres> 2013 © Robert Wilson Photo courtesy of the artist, Paula Cooper Gallery and ARTINPOST
Siebren Versteeg <Neither There nor There> 2005 Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC Photo by Lee Stalsworth, Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden © Siebren Versteeg Image Courtesy of ARTINPOST
Su-Mei Tse <L’Echo> 2003 Courtesy of the artist and Peter Blum Gallery, New York © Su-Mei Tse Image Courtesy of ARTINPOST
Charles Simonds <Rock Flower> 1986 Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC © 2014 Charles Simonds/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York Photo: Lee Stalsworth Image Courtesy of ARTINPOST
Mary Callery <Composition 19> 1960 Steel and brass 25.7×52.9×35.3cm Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, The Joseph H. Hirshhorn Bequest, 1981 Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden Collection Image Courtesy of ARTINPOST
Max Ernst <Figure(from Sedona)> 1948 Concrete 21.9×8.9×9.6cm Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, The Joseph H. Hirshhorn Bequest, 1981 Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden Collection, Surrealism (European) Image Courtesy of ARTINPOST
Henry Moore <Carving> 1935 African wood 26.2×40.2×23.6cm Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, Gift of Joseph H. Hirshhorn, 1966 Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden Collection, British Modernist Sculpture Image Courtesy of ARTINPOST
Julie MacDonald <Ocean Creature #2> 1961 Marble and lignum vitae 55.9×42.2× 17.1cm Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, Gift of Joseph H. Hirshhorn, 1966 Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden Collection Image Courtesy of ARTINPOST

Profile

A native of Australia, Chiu earned a bachelor’s degree in art history and criticism in 1992 from the University of Western Sydney, and a master’s in arts administration in 1994 from the College of Fine Arts at the University of New South Wales. She was the curator for the University of Western Sydney Collection and is the founding director of the Asia-Australia Arts Centre in Sydney. Chiu completed her PhD with a dissertation on experimental Chinese art at the University of Western Sydney. Chiu has been an executive committee and board member of the Association of Art Museum Directors, and a board member of The American Alliance of Museums. After moving to New York, Chiu served as the Museum Director and Curator of the Asia Society Museum for 13 years. She directed exhibitions by Nam JunePaik, Sarah Sze, Yoshitomo Nara and other prominent Asian artists, placing her at the forefront at the Asian art scene in New York. Chiu was appointed to head the Smithsonian’s division of the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden last year, in recognition of her outstanding career, knowledge and refined artistic sense. She has published several titles, including the anthology Contemporary Art in Asia: A Critical Reader, published by MIT Press in 2011.

Credit Xuejun Bao Smithsonian Institution Image Courtesy of ARTINPOST

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