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Ep30. 我們都是大時代下的curators

話咁快就第三十集喇!唔知大家今年過得點呢?我就覺得今年過得好漫長。每一日都有好多難受嘅新聞。我記得我係十二月中開始戴口罩嘅,咁快就戴咗一年喇。2020 is really a roller coaster ride。難得就嚟年尾,又就到我生日,喺講今集嘅題目之前做一個小小嘅總結--其實點解開始呢個podcast係因為我喺上年開始有失眠嘅問題,試過meditation、bedtime music,於是我就想臨訓前聽一啲輕鬆柔和啲嘅故事,但係搵極都無。通常都好informative,所以把心一橫,我就諗不如自己錄俾自己聽啦。所以其實大家而家聽緊嘅每一集都係好personal嘅創作,感動唔到、啟發唔到我嘅,我係唔會整出嚟架!

之後都算係我一個小實驗,因為當時我有自己嘅blog、已經開始咗youtube一段時間,而反應都唔係好好。而我好想知究竟我哋嘅世界係咪只係容得下開箱、襯衫、化妝、旅行?究竟如果我講一啲比較冷門、深入啲嘅話題,我嘅content會唔會得到認同呢?我同一位而家香港非常大嘅fitness youtuber係一場相識,佢同我講:youtuber一定要show personality,觀眾先會鍾意。當時我好自卑,覺得我真係好渣,樣唔靚,連最基本表達自己嘅性格都做唔到。我好慶幸開始咗podcast,喺呢個世界可以講同一個話題10分鐘,唔係一個表演,亦都冇樣、無鮮明嘅人物性格,同大家接觸嘅就係最簡單、無視覺包裝嘅想法。所以當我睇到《娛樂至死》呢本書嘅時候非常有共鳴,亦都好多謝大家唔嫌棄冇視覺嘅娛樂,陪咗我30集!

今次嘅題目同我嘅podcast嘅靈感來源都幾有關係,我諗鍾意分析文化嘅朋友應該都會鍾意。今次唔再扮《好青年荼毒室》哈哈,要講嘅係Highsnobiety嘅一篇文章《Creativity is Dead, Long Live Curation》,作者Ana Andjelic 【1】。Highsnobiety係一個我做trend research經常都會睇到嘅評論來源,相信如果大家對streetwear or street culture有研究,都會聽過。佢喺2005年由喺瑞士日內瓦出生嘅David Fischer成立,當時佢讀緊Business Administration【2】,開始嘅時候只係單純想分享一啲佢認為特別同獨一無二嘅產品【3】,到咗2020年,已經由當年嘅一個blog發展成專門研究youth culture嘅consultation agency (strategy) ,有strategy重要嘅係有埋一條龍去到media house (creative & production)。其實有冇人覺得有少少conflict of interest呢哈哈因為佢哋嘅blog嘅影響力舉足輕重,然後佢哋可以將自己個blog變成strategy(咁一定啱架喎)再execute埋。

講返篇文章,佢大概就係話未來嘅creativity會係由curation(策展)嘅形式展現。文章指出:「Curation as the 21st century creativity: Curation contextualizes product within a specific time and a point of view. Consumers are ready to spend premium on products that belong to a curated collection and that are enriched with cultural and social value. Viewed through the lens of creativity, curation becomes a perfect connective tissue in our niche and micro culture...“The curator is a junction-maker, a catalyst, a sparring partner, somebody who builds bridges,”」大意係話:策展將產品放入一個有特定嘅時間、角度嘅context,經過策展從而賦予產品文化同社會價值,而消費者會願意花費更高嘅價錢落呢啲產品。如果將策展睇成創意嘅展現,策展嘅作用就係連接niche and micro culture(小眾文化?)。策展人就係個度橋樑、catalyst(催化劑),「The role of a curator is to sort through culture and show us what we need to know and why.」佢哋嘅責任就係梳理文化,展現、解釋一啲我哋需要知道嘅嘢。如果《娛樂至死》入面講電視就係文化嘅載體,咁狹義上來講,curators都係藝術世界入面嘅載體。呢度我會建議大家睇2016年喺立場新聞嘅一篇文章,叫做「策展人做乜㗎? ── 一個關於展覽的展覽」,作者周文慶【4】。文章探討究竟策展人嘅權力與創造力點樣影響整個展覽,「藝術既存在於觀眾凝視的目光裡,也同時存在於展覽場域裡?」放眼國際,又有啲咩出名嘅策展人呢?呢度我會放一條Vogue Taiwan嘅連結【5】。

我覺得啟發到我嘅係,隨著社交媒體同資訊普及化,無論你鍾唔鍾意都好,策展人嘅角色唔再局限喺展覽入面。Curator嘅字根係拉丁文curare,意指to treat, cure,文章話,本來curator只係喺博物館複雜安裝、照顧、打理藝術品,但係隨住藝術、文化嘅定義expand,curator嘅角色亦都expand咗。(“Curare, curatus means to care. Initially, it meant to install objects in the museum. A curator was a caretaker of objects. Curation is also about curiosity. But then it happened that curation has expanded, and that has to do with art having expanded.”)文章提到嘅例子係幾個比較多人follow嘅instagram account。其中一位主理人話:佢覺得自己係一個educator and a dot-connector。「A good curator does the research, writes and edits, and doesn’t just repost images... 一個好嘅curator會做資料搜集、寫作同編審,唔係淨係repost。好多followers鍾意你既我post嘅嘢背後嘅context、故事同歷史。我將而家文化、潮流興起嘅嘢,同過去連結,用新嘅角度去將新舊事物連結係有價值嘅。 (“A lot of my followers enjoy reading the context and history behind images,” he says. “I connect what’s happening in culture right now with the past. There’s value in finding a new angle on old things and connecting them with new things.”)In a way,我嘅podcast都可以算係一種curation?哈哈 其實到咗2020年,大家都可以係一個curator。可能唔可以係狹義上,capital letter C curator,但係廣義上,只要我哋想,我哋都可以係一個small letter C curator,將我哋嘅審美觀、價值觀、想法向世界策展,作者稱之為「democratization of curation」。

咁究竟呢個方向係好定唔好呢?文章嘅一位受訪者話:「Democratization of curation changed the role and value of curators in form, but not in cultural importance. 策展普及化改變咗策展人嘅角色同形式,但係文化上佢地既重要性冇改變到;the role of curation has always been to democratize, to bring art to different sections of society and “build exhibitions into society,策展嘅存在就係為咗democratize,將一啲嘢普及化,將展覽帶到去社會唔同嘅地方,佢提到“civic curation",一啲具有社會意義嘅exhibition。但係亦都有佢嘅壞處,當每個人都可以係curator,文化嘅改變速度就會加快,我哋會容易覺得悶想睇新嘢。同埋當curation係創意嘅一種,我哋就唔再拘泥於博物館入面,而策展就可以變得更生活化同立體,可能一個人睇嘅書、聽嘅歌、著嘅衫、視覺、氣味等等都可以係一個curation。

另外一篇喺GQ嘅文章,題目《The Rise of Instagram Curator》作者Avidan Grossman【6】。入面提到嘅instagram account嘅主理人一開始只係想說服設計師整一啲佢想要嘅風格,所以就用instagram curate唔同嘅物件。Grossman話:「Eventually, the line between “curator” and “literally anyone with a phone” starts to look mighty thin. We’re all curators of our own little slice of the culture...」特別喺後武漢肺炎嘅年代,喺社交媒體等如我哋嘅生命嘅年代,物件同歷練都可以成為創意、藝術嘅展現,我哋每個人都可以係我哋理想中文化嘅tastemakers,只要你肯output。雖然我個人非常唔鍾意youtube,但最近一個Youtube channel就係一個唔錯嘅實驗,佢個名叫【懷疑人生就去散步】,每一段影片都好似係一個策展【11】。相比起係戲院、展覽入面,youtube嘅模式更mass,影片影住創作者嘅背影,喺中大、土瓜灣、石硤尾散步,將創作者心目中嘅感受用音樂、步伐、街景展現。如果我哋都可以將每一款output當成係一種策展,唔知我哋會唔會少啲網絡垃圾呢?

商業嘅世界入面,呢個唔係乜嘢新鮮事,物件同經歷都有同等價值,咁我哋未來嘅世界,有遠見嘅品牌會由生產產品去到生產文化【1】。通常呢啲以前都係啲luxury brands會做嘅嘢,但其中一個case study我覺得做得好好嘅係Havana Club。佢係一個冧酒牌子,唔算係luxury,本身風格充滿古巴特式,但係近呢幾年佢哋嘅branding abstract away from 古巴文化,由尊重品牌古巴嘅歷史,昇華到對自己嘅cultural roots嘅熱愛,去到擁抱authenticity、street culture,因為咁係尊重熱愛真實嘅一種方式,而佢近年直情同Daily Paper launch咗個streetwear line【7】,最近又同RetroSuperFuture合作【8】。由一個飲品跳出去變成生活,而且風格非常大膽。我都佩服公司有咁嘅勇氣。另外一個商業嘅例子,係一個叫Curated嘅網上平台【9】,上面有唔同嘅類別,入面有唔同嘅專家。例如你想去滑雪,唔知買咩裝備、去邊度好,你可以俾錢平台上一個專家,佢會同你傾計、提供建議。而家就話講運動類,但係之後可以係任何一個類別,例如好似另外一個平台Baalm,就係同樣嘅原理,但係美容產品,佢哋叫平台上面嘅專家做beauty trainers。聽到呢度,我諗大家都會覺得curation已經變得好廣泛,我哋由masterclass(權威由上而下教學)到大家都係咁高咁大互相學習,呢一個訊息嘅distribution model同以前好唔同。最主要嘅分別係,flat distribution model係冇QC嘅,所以我哋未來要更加嚴謹知道自己鍾意、想要啲乜。

策展嘅主導權、種類、模式隨著社交媒體有翻天覆地嘅改變,定義亦都越趨模糊。但我想講嘅係:策展唔一定係虛偽,或者唔真心。佢只係我哋文化嘅散播模式。或者《娛樂至死》嘅作者都冇諗到,未來嘅文化可以咁多元化。可能一個唔係print-based、尊重理性思考嘅文化令到我哋都膚淺咗,但係無可否認嘅係,我哋嘅世界又真係前所未有咁豐富,情感放題。變返做以前咁已經無可能,咁我哋迷失喺情感豐富嘅文化、商業世界嘅時候,可能我哋嘅唯一嘅防線就係我哋要有a sense of control and creatorship,培養自己嘅cultural literacy(文化素養?),知道我地自己先係主宰自己世界、價值、喜好嘅curator,無論有冇觀眾都好。

【1】https://www.highsnobiety.com/p/special-report-q3-creativity-dead-long-live-curation/

【2】https://www.businessoffashion.com/community/people/david-fischer?collections=10&tags=6&offset=15

【3】https://fashionista.com/2017/04/highsnobiety-agency-streetwear

【4】https://www.thestandnews.com/art/策展人做乜㗎-一個關於展覽的展覽/

【5】https://www.vogue.com.tw/culture/content-47084

【6】https://www.gq.com/story/the-rise-of-the-instagram-curator

【7】https://havana-club.com/en/project/havana-club-x-daily-paper/

【8】https://retrosuperfuture.com/collections/havana-club

【9】https://www.curated.com/

【10】https://www.instagram.com/thebaalm/

【11】https://youtu.be/6YbPrsNPcsU