COLLECTIVE collaborated with French Philosopher Bruno Latour, curators Martin Guinard, Eva Lin, Jean-Michel Frodon and Rasha Salti; to design the exhibition space and displays for artworks New Diplomatic Encounters and Interspecies Cinematic Encounters, 2020.

Now in its 12th edition, this cohort showcases 57 participants from 27 countries. Taipei Biennial takes place at the Taipei Fine Arts Museum, and looks to question the current geopolitical tensions and climate crisis by examining our differences and influences on a planetary perspective. The biennial proposes a fictional “planetarium’ within the museum where artist, activists and scientists will explore the tension between the gravitational pulls of different ‘planets’.

New Diplomatic Encounters, curated by Eva Lin with Bruno Latour and Martin Guinard, is imagined as a space where ‘diplomacy’ happens, a procedure which usually occurs after a conflict took place. The space accommodates a wide range of activities such as lectures, discussions, debates, and seminars; with an aim to bring together people who disagree to engage in conversations. The key feature of a diplomatic encounter is to have no arbiter, referee, or judge; and the design would mimic what would be needed in the real world and subconsciously prepare the visitors for the tasks that lie ahead.

COLLECTIVE created 3 key formats of encounter that takes place during diplomacy: theatre of negotiations (sub-encounters: plenary sessions, contact groups, informal lobbying), compass workshop (group or 1:1 workshop) and lecture. Various formats and spatial arrangement of national assemblies from countries were studied and informs the design process of the negotiation theatre.

The ribbon design is a result of intensive research on ‘Spaces for Negotiations’, which accommodates all types of encounters during diplomacy, incorporating the essences of assembly formats from the House of Commons in the UK (facing each other confrontationally); UN General Assembly (directionally front facing); Taiwan Legislative Yuan and House of Representative Chambers in USA (concentrically facing the middle). The winding ribbon form and varying heights breaks down the hierarchy between a speaker and the audience, creating an egalitarian space for discussions. The space doubles up as a study area or leisure space for the public and visitors at the Biennial when no events are planned in the space.

Interspecies Cinematic Encounters, 2020, is an installation that explores ways in which cinema has imagined, represented, and incarnated encounters belonging to different realms. Based on Jean-Michel Frodon and Rasha Salti’s abstract idea of organic ‘clusters’ with screens showing excerpts from films where encounters between humans, animals, plants, the atmosphere and supernatural beings. The ‘clusters’ are displayed like coral reefs and low-level audio montaged from the films fills the room gently.

The films on show include: The Cow (1969) by Iranian director Dariush Mehrjui, a tragedy about an Iranian villager and his beloved cow; Comradeship (1931) by G. W. Pabst where virtues of international cooperation are extolled via a mine disaster met by the combined rescue efforts of French and German workers; and The Assassin (2015) by Taiwanese director Hou Hsiao-hsien, based on Tang Dynasty writer Pei Xing’s short story Nie Yinniang and played by Taiwanese-Hong Kong actress Shu Qi.

Full list of films:

The excerpts, between two and six minutes in length, are shown in a loop.

The Assassin, dir. Hou Hsiao-hsien (Taiwan, 2015).Central Motion Picture Corporation, Taipei.
The Battle of Tabatô (A batalha de Tabatô), dir. João Viana (Guinea Bissau, 2013). Capricci, Paris
The Box of Life (Sûndûq al Dunyâ), dir. Ossama Mohammad (Syria, 2002).
City of Jade, dir. Midi Z (Taiwan, 2016). Seashore Image Productions, New Taipei City
Comradeship (Kameradschaft), dir. Georg Wilhelm Pabst (Germany, 1931). Praesens-Film AG, Zurich
The Cow (Gav), dir. Dariush Mehrjui (Iran, 1969). Farabi Foundation, Iran
The Dead and Other Tales (Chuva É Cantoria Na AldeiaDos Mortos), dir. João Salaviza and Renée Nader Messora (Brazil, 2018). LUXBOX, Paris
Father (Otac), dir. Srdan Golubovic´ (Serbia, 2020). Film House Bas Celik, Belgrade
Fire Will Come (O que arde),dir. Oliver Laxe (Spain, 2019). Pyramide, Paris
Kongo, dir. Hadrien La Vapeur and Corto Vaclav (Congo, 2019). Pyramide, Paris
Leila Attacks (Leila attaque), dir. Chris Marker (France, 2006). Les Films du Jeudi, Paris
Leviathan, dir. Lucien Castaing Taylor and Véréna Paravel (USA, 2012).
Monte, dir. Amir Naderi (Italy, 2016).
My Joy (Schaste moe), dir. Sergei Loznitsa (Ukraina, 2010). Pluto Film, Berlin
Paradise (Le Paradis), dir. Alain Cavalier (France, 2014). Pathé Films, Paris
The River, dir. Tsai Ming-liang (Taiwan, 1997). Central Motion Picture Corporation, Taipei.
Tropical Malady (Sud pralad), dir. Apichatpong Weerasethakul (Thailand, 2004).