The Periferic 8 international art biennial opened in the mid-sized city of Iasi, Romania, on Oct. 3. Scheduled to run for two weeks, the event was organized by Hungarian curator Dora Hegyi, who adopted the theme of art as a gift.
While on a visit to New York this past spring, Hegyi approached Queens College fine arts professor and theorist Gregory Sholette about participating in the exhibit. Sholette jumped at the opportunity and contacted fellow artist Maureen Connor about collaborating on a project. Together, they established the Institute of Wishful Thinking in July 2008. It was at this time that the two opened participation in IWT to M.F.A. candidates studying at QC. These student collaborators included Andrea DeFelice, Susan Kirby, John Pavlou, Nathania Rubin and Matthew Mahler.
The IWT is loosely based on Maureen Connor's ongoing project, "Personnel," in which she uses assorted media to comment on museum employees' experiences in the workplace. The IWT set up a Web site aimed at including the biennial's personnel. They were asked to make three wishes - an unrealistic wish, a practical wish and an anonymous wish. The only stipulation was that the wishes must be beneficial to the enhancement of the Periferic 8. These wishes were posted on the group's Web site.
Once the wishes were posted, the IWT scheduled regular meetings to discuss how to realize the wishes. The requests ranged from a wish for rolls of film to document the biennial to a request to expand the size of the host city, Iasi, so that more people could experience the Periferic 8. IWT is funded completely out of pocket and all wishes were dependent upon the group's ability to solicit donations.
Despite fulfilling others' wishes, the IWT was still longing for its own wish to be granted - the ability to send more than just Connor and Sholette to represent the project. Two weeks before the opening of the biennial in Iasi, QC announced that it would fund trips for three of the five student members. Up to this point, the IWT was abstract; Iasi was so far away and much of the IWT's work would have to be done on-site at the time of the biennial.
On Sept. 29, Andrea DeFelice, Nathania Rubin and Matthew Mahler boarded a flight that delivered them to Iasi's streets of wild dogs and chaotic traffic. The IWT was set up to challenge the ideas of an art institution (in this case, the biennial) and push the boundaries of an artwork's form. Some might argue that, by nature, art is a gift. The IWT was successful not only in setting up a dialogue between artist and viewer, but also between the viewer and the exhibition's organizers.
Much of the IWT's time in the city was spent granting about 30 wishes. The IWT did find time to get to know the many artists participating in the event, as well as its organizers. Hailing primarily from Eastern Europe, the artists included in the biennial showcased much video and installation-based artwork.
The IWT was able to make a considerable contribution to the biennial, not only by being included in the exhibit, but by the wishes that it was able to grant.
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-Jeff