PIN–UP 32, THE ARCHITECTURE OF ART: LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

“What is art? Where does it come from? And how and where is it shown? Those are the questions that were on our minds when planning this issue. When I think about art, I think about space, structure, and the laws that reinforce them — labor policies, curatorial practices, and the physical context in which things are viewed: the gallery, the museum, art fairs, etc. In this issue, dedicated to the architecture of art, we move through image, institution, and person the only way we know how: by talking through memories, desires, and refining the myth of being and existing. We examine the status quo and show alternative models to the current standards. It’s about exposing the infrastructure, and learning the language that permits us to change the framework we use to see the world, examining how it’s negotiated, and on whose terms. What’s at stake for us now? Conversations around war, violence and displacement move through social spaces and reach all of us in different ways without engaging the politics of responsibility. But what we think we know will always eclipse what we do know. And if we don’t learn to treat every issue with the same care, criticality, intimacy, and attention, we can never truly have anything sustainable. Understanding the structural architecture of art — with the help of people invested in the wellbeing of others — is a first step to rethinking how we build and model the world. If we don’t learn to recognize the limits of living in a world designed for someone else’s needs, we’ll never be able to intervene and create new channels and standards for conversation, expectation, and existence.”

— Emmanuel Olunkwa, Editor