Ethical Art Writing: Workshop with Charlene K. Lau and Claire Voon

As part of programming associated with Plug In ICA’s forthcoming solo exhibition by Leonard Suryajaya, we will be hosting a one day art writing workshop in our galleries on Sunday, May 15th at 1 pm. Under the heading of ‘Ethical Art Writing’, the workshop will be led by writer and editor Claire Voon, and art historian, critic and curator Charlene K. Lau. As a guiding frame for the workshop our leaders ask : How does one write with rigor as well as care in regard to the artist and reader? How can one be not only a conscious observer but also a conscious writer?

The session will look at different types of art criticism and other public writing, with topics covering: writing technicalities; the art writing industry; making space for writers of colour; and working to decolonize your library and mind. Attendees will come away from the workshop with an understanding of the art of slow and careful looking/research and of writing as process, not product. If criticism is inherently a “performance of thought,” an act of choosing, how do we write beyond the self, to contribute to and foster welcoming and generative spaces for art in critical dialogue with the world around us?
Upon registration, a small list of suggestive readings will be provided in preparation for the workshop, in addition to a resource guide and bibliography.
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If you are interested, please sign up by emailing luther@plugin.org to reserve your seat. Seats are limited please reserve by May 12th at 6 pm.
Priority reservations will be given to BIPOC participants.
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This is not a virtual event and won’t be recorded.

Charlene K. Lau is an art historian, critic and Curator of Public Art at Evergreen Brick Works. She has held fellowships at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity; Parsons School of Design, The New School; and Performa Biennial. Charlene has also held teaching positions at Parsons School of Design, OCAD University, Toronto Metropolitan University, Western University and York University. Her writing has been published in Artforum, TheAtlantic.com, The Brooklyn Rail, Canadian Art, frieze, Critical Studies in Fashion & Beauty, Fashion Theory and Journal of Curatorial Studies, among others.

Claire Voon is a writer and editor who has contributed to publications including ARTnews, the Brooklyn Rail, Frieze, the New York Times, and Teen Vogue. Previously a staff writer at Hyperallergic and an assistant editor at Chicago magazine, she currently edits for Aperture and Borderless Magazine, a news outlet working to reimagine immigration journalism. She was born in Singapore and lives in Brooklyn.