An anniversary is more than a celebration. To remember history is also to take stock, to review and reread the past in order to gain momentum for the future. This review exercise also necessarily implies the recognition of the work of all those people and institutions that, in one way or another, have participated in the planning and execution of a programme and in the construction of an essential public collection. Hence the title of this exhibition, Teamwork, emphasises the collective effort of those who, since 1993, have contributed to building and consolidating an essential project for culture and art in Galicia.
To mark the 30th anniversary of the Galician Centre of Contemporary Art (CGAC), two institutions dependent on the Regional Government of Galicia (the CGAC itself and the City of Culture’s Gaiás Museum) are joining forces to highlight the transformative importance of the CGAC as a museum as well as the creator, depositary and custodian of the Galicia's most outstanding public collection of contemporary art.
Hence, the Teamwork project is articulated in two separate but complementary exhibitions. On the one hand, the building designed by the Portuguese architect Álvaro Siza Vieira will house the exhibition entitled A Possible History of the CGAC. This exhibition is conceived as a journey through the exhibitions, activities and publications promoted by the centre since its creation. It highlights the milestones and unique pieces that have marked its history and, concurrently, the evolution of Galicia’s artistic context over three decades. On the other hand, in the spaces of the Gaiás Centre Museum, Peter Eisenman’s work, the exhibition Contemporary Stories from the CGAC Collection proposes a thematic approach to the present, based on materials from collection of the centre in Compostela.
Contemporary Stories from the CGAC Collection
MONA HATOUM. La grande broyeuse (Mouli-Julienne x17). Foto: Mark Ritchie
ÁNGELA FERREIRA. Messy Colonialism / wild decolonization. Foto: Ovidio Aldegunde
Contemporary Stories from the CGAC Collection is a reinterpretation of this collection, marked by some of the major themes of the contemporary world: nature and ecology, dialogues with space and architecture, the idea of construction, work, feminisms, postcolonial perspectives, the reexamination of history, and art as healing.
Each of these sections or chapters allows for intersections with others, and the journey facilitates dialogue between the artworks. Given that the CGAC Collection has been largely shaped by the center's exhibition program, an exhibition of this nature perfectly visualizes the main lines of the exhibition and activity project that give CGAC its unique character.
MAR VICENTE. Truncado. Foto: Ovidio Aldegunde
TONO CARBAJO. Mesas e cadrado negro. Foto: Mark Ritchie
FRANCISCO LEIRO. Retablo Hannover. Foto: Mark Ritchie
Starting in 1996, with its initial acquisitions and deposits—consisting of a significant section of the Xunta de Galicia Collection on one hand, and a relevant group of international pieces from the ARCO Foundation Collection on the other—the CGAC Collection was primarily presented to the public through temporary thematic exhibitions or exhibitions of new acquisitions. However, this project highlights the CGAC Collection's ability to construct a narrative that incorporates new narratives and can be historically articulated, balancing art in Galicia, the Spanish context, and international references.
As a model of a public collection of contemporary art, the CGAC Collection is an essential tool for understanding the artistic, social, and cultural changes and developments that have taken place in Galicia from the mid-20th century to the present day.
