Exhibitions

Venue: Bethlehem Peace Centre, Bethlehem

Dates: 2006

Notes: curated by Kay Pallister and Charles Asprey. Dates to be confirmed.

Art School Palestine

PRESS RELEASE- As if By Magic. International Group Show in Bethlehem

Charles Asprey and Kay Pallister are proud to announce the opening of As if By Magic, which is the first exhibition of its kind to take place in Palestine.

The exhibition will showcase work by twenty-six leading contemporary artists, where the Palestinian audience will have the unique opportunity to view, interact and engage with artwork from around the world.

In an unprecedented move, the curators have chosen not to transport any artwork nor any artists to the exhibition venue. The invited artists have been asked to produce new work (or adapt existing work) in order that it can be produced at the Bethlehem Peace Centre by friends of the exhibition; including staff, those involved with Art School Palestine, local artists and the curators themselves. Artists have responded to this challenge by instructing works that encompass a wide range of forms, from stencil sprays to projections, wall paintings to T-shirts.

This serves two purposes: firstly it overcomes the inability Palestinians have to view international contemporary art, as most are unable to travel due to the Israel occupation, therefore bringing the artworks directly to them, secondly; it serves as a celebration of the versatility of contemporary art in that it can be made/remade/produced/reproduced following the artist’s instructions anywhere in the world, so much has it evolved. Both features bypass the boundaries; physical, notional and political, to deliver a truly international exhibition.

Artists such as Damien Hirst, Martin Creed, Wolfgang Tillmans, Douglas Gordon (all Turner prize winners) will show alongside major international artists such as Lawrence Weiner, Michael Craig Martin, Andreas Slominski, John Armleder, Elmgreen and Dragdet and Isa Genzken and a further range of emerging artists such as, Saadane Afif, Mauricio Guillen, Jim Lambie, Ceal Floyer, Lucy Skaer and Michael Fullerton among others.

As if by Magic aims to explore the possibilities of curating art exhibitions in new environments to engage with a new and highly educated audience and thereby establishing Palestine itself as a potentially vibrant new venue for contemporary cultural exchange.

Charles Asprey is a former London galleriest, a collector and supporter of contemporary art and co-founder of Art School Palestine.

Kay Pallister is director of Artists Pension Trust: London, she co-curated Zenomap: Scotland’s presentation at the Venice Biennale 2003, and was former exhibition director at Gagosian Gallery, London and New York.