Author: Malaya Del Rosario

Malaya is passionate about helping creative ecosystems thrive. She is an Art and Culture Programme Consultant, supporting cultural institutions and governments to amplify their impact. She has been working in Asia and Europe for the past 15 years and has an MBA in Art and Cultural Management from the Institut d'études supérieures des arts and Paris School of Business.

Insight: From connection to impact – Strategic networking in the arts

Art and culture programme consultant, Malaya del Rosario, shares her thoughts and advice on how arts organisations can optimise network-building initiatives.

Networks play a pivotal role in the sustainability of art organisations, yet the question of how they can be optimised remains largely underexplored. Many art leaders and managers perceive network-building as a ‘nice to have’ rather than an integral part of their strategic plans, overlooking its untapped potential for fundraising, advocacy, and teambuilding.

Strategic network-building can offer an invaluable system of support, which is crucial for an organisation’s growth and impact. It involves nurturing internal and external relationships and understanding how to manage diverse stakeholders who may have different perspectives and conflicting motivations. If done successfully, these links can contribute to both the short and long-term mission of your team.

As an art manager who has worked for both small organisations and global cultural institutions across different geographic contexts, I have encountered all kinds of challenges in network-building. How much time do I invest in it? How can my organisation benefit from it? Can I really link it to tangible results? In this article, I aim to summarise these barriers and propose practical solutions to organisations looking to refine and streamline their activities.

Why bother?

Strategic network-building can significantly enhance an organisation’s operation by diversifying funding sources and reducing financial risks. It can also help increase impact through resource-sharing and alliances. International partnerships can expand audience reach, while leveraging technology optimises communication and reduces costs. For bigger institutions, having a strong, internal network can foster strong connections among team members, creating a more inclusive, equitable and collaborative work culture.

Photo credit: Revital Salomon, 2016.

Overcoming challenges

Lack of a purpose. Without a clear purpose or vision, it will be difficult to engage stakeholders. Networks should be able to articulate their goals, values and how members can benefit from them. This allows stakeholders to assess their relevance and level of participation. While I was Head of Arts at the British Council in the Philippines, we identified the newsletter as an effective way to communicate and expand our network of artists. However, engagement rates were frustratingly low. We realised that one big motivation for artists when they subscribe is to discover professional development opportunities for themselves. We then highlighted this benefit in our content and made it easy for readers to respond, e.g. through clear call-to-action text. This instantly improved success rates and increased our subscription numbers.

Limited resources. Limited financial and human resources makes network-building more challenging for smaller organisations. However, cost-effective and time-efficient alternatives exist. Virtual networking, such as participating in online conferences and talks, provides an alternative solution. They can also optimise resources through stakeholder mapping and a donor database. This enables a prioritised approach, focusing on key relationships aligned with fundraising goals and achieving outputs without overextending resources. There are many free, practical tools that already exist online, such as donor templates for Microsoft Excel. Implementing Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems like HubSpot or Zoho CRM allows for centralised donor databases and streamlined communication at no cost. Project management platforms such as Trello can also assist in efficiency at no additional expense. Incorporating a researcher’s mindset will also help you identify and better target relevant contacts. A quick web search and conversations with trusted colleagues is a good place to start to generate new leads.

Unequal opportunities. This is something I witness everyday in my work, especially coming from a developing country context: disparities in access and opportunities for networking. Unequal resource distribution and lack of digital networking skills may limit smaller and less-established organisations to connect with relevant and influential contacts. Bigger, global cultural institutions and funders have a big role to play in addressing this particular challenge. One solution is by offering mentorship programs or purpose-driven networking events that provide a level playing field for smaller organisations. Additionally, training sessions on digital networking skills can ensure that organisations, regardless of their size or location, can effectively navigate online platforms and connect with stakeholders. This approach can foster inclusivity and promote a more equitable landscape within the art industry.

Difficulty measuring impact. Measuring the impact of a network is challenging as the results are not always one-to-one. Organisations will therefore need to adopt a short-term and long-term evaluation strategy in order to quantify its impact. The number of collaborations created, new business leads and the number of audiences engaged are just some of the indicators that we can track. For instance, the successful execution and reach of a virtual exhibition involving partners across different countries, as facilitated by your arts network, can be quantified through online engagement metrics. Employing digital tools, such as through online surveys or web analytics can further help automate evaluation and optimise limited resources.

From nurturing connections to amplifying impact, strategic network-building is transformative for the arts, and ultimately, to our society’s cultural diversity. It goes beyond being a ‘nice to have’ and therefore calls for more strategic thinking from arts leaders. By fostering internal and external relationships, navigating diverse perspectives, and leveraging technology, network-building catalyses innovative collaborations and growth.

It is equally essential to stress that effective network-building should be based on trust and mutual understanding. Emphasising shared values ensures these connections contribute to a straightforward, fair, and resilient future for the arts community.

Embrace the journey, for in each connection lies the potential to shape a resilient and bright future for your organisation.

5 artworks to discover now from Art Basel in Switzerland

A version of this article was also published in print by Art+ Magazine, Issue 86, 2023, Philippines.

Many art goers in Asia may be more familiar with Art Basel Hong Kong, but the art fair’s origins are in the charming city of Basel in Switzerland, which started 53 years ago. Opening its first year with only 90 galleries, the Art Basel brand has grown significantly over the years, creating a global reach and influence. 

The art fair in Switzerland and Hong Kong have very similar concepts, but being in Basel during this time is a 360-degree experience, with hundreds of events, exhibitions and site-specific works being launched across the city. The 2023 edition took place from 15-18 June 2023 with 284 galleries and a wide array of programmes for different audiences. 

A must-see section is Unlimited, which focuses on curated, large-scale installations that will otherwise look out of place in a typical gallery display. It is housed in a 16,000 square-meter exhibition space. Unlike the Galleries sector, which is laid out as a series of booths with changing displays, Unlimited invites viewers to interact not just with the work but the physicality of the space. Monumental sculptures, live performances, larger-than-life paintings and video projections are just some of the surprises that await fair goers. Curated by Giovanni Carmine, Unlimited this year featured 76 artworks by emerging and named artists from across the world. Themes predominantly explored artistic responses to politics, climate change, technology, and major global crises. 

Malaya del Rosario, art manager based between the Philippines and Switzerland, roamed Unlimited’s grounds and has selected five unforgettable works to discover.

  1. Rirkrit Tiravanija, untitled (curry for the soul of the forgotten) (2015)

Presented in an enclosed space, Rirkrit Tiravanija’s work features a three-channel video projection as well as actual objects. In front of the screens are low, plastic stools. At the center of the room is a bronze cauldron, a replica of the one in the video, on top of a flattened cardboard. It is meant to feel like someone is in the middle of cooking a meal on an open fire. 

Tiravanija is known for combining film, readymade and performance in his practice. Food, and specifically, Thai cuisine, is a long-standing component in his works, often symbolising community, gathering, and the everyday. An earlier work from 1992 saw the artist feeding curry to visitors in a New York gallery as a performative piece.

In this particular work, the artist wanted to pay tribute to ‘the forgotten,’ presumably the political activists fighting for democracy, through food. Shot in Thailand,  the film documents the ritual of cooking curry to highlight “the often-forgotten agents of social and political change in protests both domestically and around the world.” Interacting with this work in a three-dimensional setting is like being transported to a street kitchen that would feel very familiar to someone coming from Southeast Asia.

  1. Wu Chi-Tsung, Dust 002 (2023)

Taipei-born, Wu Chi-Tsung, is very much interested in how we see the world through media and how our perceptions are easily altered by technology. The installation, Dust 002, consists primarily of a telescope, video camera and projector. Entering a darkened room, the viewer’s gaze is drawn to the telescope facing a wall, a halo around it, and fluttering specks of light. The movement is caused by magnified particles in the air, as activated by the viewers’ movements inside the room. 

The combination of optical tricks, technology and chance is quite smart, and the result is a highly aesthetic and poetic experience for the viewer.  It demonstrates how we can so easily and inevitably impact our environment without realizing it. To fully appreciate the artwork means to take one’s time in observing the elements and delicate motions in the space.

  1. Mika Tajima, You Be My Body for Me (2023)

Los-Angelos born Mika Tajima’s practice is driven by an inquiry into how technology and virtual spaces transform bodily and physical experiences into new forms. Interacting with Tajima’s work, Be My Body for Me, feels like walking through a rock garden, in which large, rose quartz sculptures are positioned alongside freestanding ‘smart glass’ panes. As the viewer moves around, the glass panes change opacity through electric charges. While these changes seem random, the glass panes are in fact connected to a digital algorithm. 

The rose quartz, on the other hand, pinkish and massive, seems to represent human torsos. Upon closer inspection, one will notice holes cutting through the sculptures, acting as pressure point openings. Tajima’s choice to use this material is due to its inherent technological capabilities. “The punctured diagram of acupuncture pressure points on rose quartz brings together ancient materials, techniques, and the enigmatic symbols of human energy, life, and the urge to control the unknowable,” explains Tajima. 

  1. Kaloki Nyamai, Dining in Chaos (2023)

Kaloki Nyamai’s triptych of gigantic paintings are hard to miss. Hanging gracefully as unstretched pieces of canvas across the monumental exhibition hall, they powerfully represent Nyamai’s interest in painting as a sculptural medium. Depicting vignettes taken from the artist’s Kenyan heritage, they are unforgettable not only for their scale but their bright colours and eye-catching imagery. 

Using acrylic, sisal rope, and dye transfer on paper over canvas, all three paintings show human figures doing seemingly leisurely activities against a backdrop of social unrest. Despite this context, the paintings successfully depict a beautiful kind of chaos – organic, textured, contrasting, full of movement. 

Referring to the title, ‘Dining in Chaos’ the artwork asks a simple yet provocative question: When a major disruption occurs, “does one stop abruptly, or carry on dining?” 

  1. Martha Jungwirth’s Memorial II (Triptychon) (2021)

Martha Jungwirth’s work, Memorial II (Triptychon), is a nearly nine-meter-long frieze-like painting. Made up of oil on paper on canvas, it features animal-like elements painted through rapid paint brushstrokes. The three-part image is mostly sparse, raw and unprimed, making the figures look like they are floating in space.  

The work is inspired by animals affected by modern environmental disasters and sculpted creatures found in ‘King Tut’s (Tutankahmun’s) tomb in Egypt a century ago. Looking through this long canvas, the painting acts like a window to the past. It portrays a lone creature on the left panel contemplating its uncertain destiny, while streaks elsewhere suggest exposed ribcages or animals’ wiry legs. Jungwirth’s expressive and poetic approach seamlessly connects ancient civilizations to contemporary environmental issues and eternal life and death questions. 

Born in 1940 Vienna, Jungwirth has developed a unique abstraction grounded in observation and the body. Her work spans over six decades, occupying an intuitive space beyond spoken language and object obtrusiveness. 

With so many high-impact artworks, Unlimited has proven to be the pulse for global art trends and an excellent platform for artists we need to know now.