Invisible Structures

Invisible Structures is a manifesto that examines the subliminal language of the Gallery (i.e. art gallery and art museums) space and systems, offering a framework built on existing literature and artists’ works on the topic to analyse these hidden dynamics. The project is called invisible structures to illustrate the covertness of the systems, especially in terms of how they establish an image of neutrality and how they are used to establish order, both in the art world as well as beyond it.

Our project started with our interest in space and the rules that exist in it. We decided to focus on our space: the arts.

The core aims of our project are:

1. To understand how the Gallery, as a space, reinforces systems of discrimination through invisible ways using the space and the systems that controls it.
2. To create a response that takes into account the complexities of space, systemic inequalities, and lived experiences of marginalised artists

From those goals, we established our research questions:

1. In what ways do the Gallery space and systems contribute to or challenge systemic inequities in the art world?
2. What are the experiences of marginalised artists in navigating the gallery space and systems?

The culmination of our rigorous research is a transformative framework that forms the essence of our publication. This framework was created to reshape perspectives and inspire change.

Our framework is built on three primary theses that we found on the topic: the White Cube Theory, first introduced by Brian O’Doherty and positing that the gallery space is a neutral, decontextualised space; the theory of the Universal Museum by Carol Duncan, which argues that museums exist to civilise; and artworks of institutional critiques.

We mapped this research into a framework, one that could be used by our readers to analyse some key points of the Gallery space and systems:

1. How the Gallery portrays itself as a neutral institution
2. How it is used as a site of control
3. How the historical and contemporary context turned the Gallery into a place that civilises the visitors.

From this framework, we established the goal for our publication: to create a reference list, an archive that reframes the common worldview in an accessible form with a call to action. Our publication is built on the idea that the reader will journey through reframing their current framework.