Austronesia, the Cold War, and the Region Today

With the South Pacific islands as framework, this project spans geographic and geo-political wars, linking migration histories and social formations of Taiwan and the Philippines. The cultural perspective of the South Pacific islands forms a dispersed imagining of archipelago, revealing colonial and post-colonial history through discussions of the Cold War and modernity and contemporary in the process of regional formation, while also providing critical dialogue on art history and curatorial methods developed from Western and continental norms.

Proposed by The Philippine Contemporary Art Network (PCAN), in collaboration with TVAA, and hosted by curators Dr. Patrick D. Flores and Dr. Chiang Po-Shin, this research project explores the relationship between three historical shifts, namely the history of migration in the South Pacific islands, developments during the Pacific War and the Cold War, and the current configuration of the Pacific region. It proposes methods of art history writing and contemporary cultural curation, with research and publication as its output. Research will be based on specific topics and materials, published in paper and electronic formats which will include annotation and notes.