art21+Season+1,2+and+3+Reviews

//Art:21—Art in the Twenty First Century// **//AN INTERVIEW WITH SUSAN SOLLINS, EXECUTIVE PRODUCER & CURATOR//**.
//Art:21—Art in the Twenty-First Century//. The four-part series was created by Susan Sollins in collaboration with Susan Dowling. In the following interview, Sollins shares her insights on the significance and value of the groundbreaking series.


 * Q: How and why did you conceive of the idea for this series?**

The series [//Art:21—Art in the Twenty-first Century//] grew out of my experiences as a curator of contemporary art and as the Executive Director of Independent Curators International (ICI), an organization I founded and led for over 20 years. Under my leadership, ICI organized and traveled approximately 75 exhibitions of contemporary art to several hundred museums and other cultural organizations in this country and abroad. By coincidence, just toward the end of my years with ICI, I was asked by WNET/Channel 13 (the New York public television station) to work with them as a consultant on a new series that they were developing for local audiences – a series that needed a visual art component for which the station staff lacked skills and knowledge. It was through this consultancy that I began to learn about broadcast television, and to realize that the skills required to organize and curate exhibitions had something in common with those required to create a television series. So, I came to television from the point of view of a curator of contemporary art, rather than as a filmmaker, and as one who felt that art – of any era, particularly the contemporary – had not been presented well on television, but could be presented in a new and engaging way. I was aware that there had been few serious attempts to present contemporary art on public television almost since the inception of PBS, and none that were sustained over time. Thus, the field was open, and my idea for the //Art:21// series – including its component parts (book, Education and Outreach programs including an Educators’ Guide, and website) – was part of my concept from the beginning, as was my belief that the artists should speak directly to the viewer, without curatorial or critical intervention or interpretation. Once I had developed the initial ideas, I approached Susan Dowling, a life-long friend who had an outstanding and award-winning career as the Executive Director and Producer of //New Television Workshop//, the experimental wing of WGBH, the prestigious Boston-based public television station where she worked with artists and independent filmmakers. We then worked together for four years to further develop the initial ideas, and to bring the first season to broadcast in 2001.


 * Q: Why is it important for the general public to have an understanding of contemporary art and artists?**

It is very important for the public to have an understanding of contemporary art and artists because our artists reflect the time in which we live, provide role models for creative thinking, and mirror and inform us as people striving for an understanding of our shared world.

The series offers viewers an intimate view of the processes of an artist in the studio, a private arena that is almost never accessible to the public. The series also allows the viewer to learn directly from the artist; there is no overlay of opinion from an outsider, no interpretation from a “talking head.” This is the closest one can get to an understanding of the artist’s thinking, short of being privileged to take part in a private conversation with any one of the featured artists. In addition, in many of the series’ segments, we have been able to show works in progress in the studio, and then completed and installed in an exhibition. This is another special and unique experience for the viewer, not otherwise possible.
 * Q: What does this series offer to viewers that they cannot learn from museums, textbooks or exhibitions?**

The abstracts above were taken from an extended interview with Susan Sollins. Click on [|Full Interview with Susan Sollins] to read additional questions and answers.