Artist Gilles Massot:
Gilles is a multidisciplinary artist and academic whose work based on the idea of “the space between things” aims to establish links and decipher the narratives existing between disciplines, people, occurrences and parts of the world. His visual art practice more specifically deals with the theory of photography and its relation to time and space. After studying architecture in Marseille, France, and eventually graduating in photography, Gilles came to live in Singapore in 1981. His early participation to the local art scene saw him involved in a string of seminal art events with the first editions of the Festival of Arts Fringe among many others. In 1985, he chose the path of travel photographer and writer and followed it for the next 15 years. His photojournalistic work has been extensively published in various magazines, and his approach to the art of travelling has resulted in over 50 fine art exhibitions in France and Asia. |
My experience Archiving Artworks for Artist Gilles Massot:
I was given the opportunity to work with talented artist, Gilles Massot, to help with properly archiving his works. As for my weekly responsibilities, there were no specific schedule. Every day/week of the internship, I will be given different things to do. However, for the start my journey working with him, it started off with the design of the webpages for the new book Things I Remember that was done online with no physical interaction. (This is due to the situation that was happening with Covid-19 phase 1). We only started meeting at the start of phase 2, where by physical interaction was already allowed but in small groups.
Things that I had to do most of the time working with Gilles was to assist him in the process and classification of his archives. This includes making sure that there were no repeated images posted on the website and different links and URLs are placed at the right pages and images. Also the processing of digital files to create archives documentation, listing, captioning and labelling of the works. Scanning was one of the most crucial part of archiving because firstly, I am not familiar with the scanner Gilles have at home. And secondly, to scan drawing, writings, images and documents take so much time as i have to make sure to avoid any doggy ears on pieces of paper. Also, mind you, most of these works/documents are older than I am, so to edit them clean and restoring them already takes so much time. With that, i believe that archiving is one of the crucial process in the art world and it should b appreciated. I have learnt so much about archiving and how the role is actually pretty tedious.
Unique safe entry in Whampoa:
Before entering his palace, all visitors are only allowed in only after safe entering. No, he does not have a fancy QR code for his home entry or an id scanner. What he has is a beautiful map of Singapore pasted on his front door and some markers hanging on the side. We are meant to circle the areas we were from (mine is usually from home, Bedok) so he can keep track. After that, when you enter his apartment, you are "forced" to write something sweet, like a thank you note, in his little notebook behind the door. I honestly think this is the best 'safe entry' system I have experienced as it is more fun and creative. It is fantastic. We will then move to the kitchen where we will have our morning/early afternoon coffee and butter biscuits. While we have our tea/coffee, Gilles would share his experiences living in Singapore and the works he has created in this country and overseas. He also shared about his past academic life and how he did not expect to be where he is today. Its nice to hear the stories he shares every week. There is always something new i learn about Gilles every time i come over. For example, he used to make jewelry using found objects and also made his own merchandises ?!? |
Website:
At the start of the internship, Gilles gave me the responsibility to edit his website. I had to sort out the different dates of each photograph for his upcoming book, "Things I Remember". So how the process works is that he sends me a pdf of his final book outlook and I have to work from there. making sure I sort out the dates and years correctly from the 1980s to images in the 2000s. once I was done with that, we move on to adding the images and labeling them in proper order into the website. This was the crucial part because missing just an image or even reposting the same image will only confuse me even more. and of course, while labeling, sometimes we make mistakes and do not see the errors. As for my case, I accidentally labeled a few things wrong as Gilles had some description of the works too broad. For example, instead of stately "early 93", he states them "early 90s" or instead of stating the exact year. He quotes and says "1985-1986".
What i learn from this: check for the second time to ensure that it is accurate before publishing. And always ask if you need help.
At the start of the internship, Gilles gave me the responsibility to edit his website. I had to sort out the different dates of each photograph for his upcoming book, "Things I Remember". So how the process works is that he sends me a pdf of his final book outlook and I have to work from there. making sure I sort out the dates and years correctly from the 1980s to images in the 2000s. once I was done with that, we move on to adding the images and labeling them in proper order into the website. This was the crucial part because missing just an image or even reposting the same image will only confuse me even more. and of course, while labeling, sometimes we make mistakes and do not see the errors. As for my case, I accidentally labeled a few things wrong as Gilles had some description of the works too broad. For example, instead of stately "early 93", he states them "early 90s" or instead of stating the exact year. He quotes and says "1985-1986".
What i learn from this: check for the second time to ensure that it is accurate before publishing. And always ask if you need help.
Scanning and labeling:
Paperless offices and digitising documents is becoming commonplace for every type of archive. It’s a good idea to find an easy to use way to save, store, and protect critical and important documents. Document scanning and archiving is very important as it helps you make sure that no matter what happens, your documents, files, and records will not be lost.
The first time would be scanning the works. this varies from artworks, documents, invitation letter, brochures and more. As mentioned, scanning is a crucial part because I have to make sure to avoid any doggy ears on pieces of paper. Also, mind you, most of these works/documents are much older than I am, so to edit them clean and restoring them already takes so much time.
Paperless offices and digitising documents is becoming commonplace for every type of archive. It’s a good idea to find an easy to use way to save, store, and protect critical and important documents. Document scanning and archiving is very important as it helps you make sure that no matter what happens, your documents, files, and records will not be lost.
The first time would be scanning the works. this varies from artworks, documents, invitation letter, brochures and more. As mentioned, scanning is a crucial part because I have to make sure to avoid any doggy ears on pieces of paper. Also, mind you, most of these works/documents are much older than I am, so to edit them clean and restoring them already takes so much time.
Then we move on to labelling them in order into an Excel sheet. We started using excel sheet at first but realised it was too troublesome and complicated. So a friend of Gilles recommended us to use this thing called 'Airtable'. It has been just a few days since I started using Airtable and i honestly think It's amazing. Pushes me into structured thinking and clear planning/labelling. One main feature that we love about Airtable is that we can add images of the work in each column so it would be more detailed and clear. So anytime you want to find a specific art piece, u can simply just look for it under the image row.
Since discovering Airtable, it’s completely revolutionised how me and Gilles work and what we’re capable of doing. Prior to using Airtable, we used other spreadsheet-creating software and we didn’t even know what we were missing out on until we started using Airtable. Not only can Airtable’s software be used to create spreadsheets but it can also be used to create what are essentially databases, and their software is so flexible and intuitive it can be used to create pretty much any kind of spreadsheet/database for any kind of industry.
Since discovering Airtable, it’s completely revolutionised how me and Gilles work and what we’re capable of doing. Prior to using Airtable, we used other spreadsheet-creating software and we didn’t even know what we were missing out on until we started using Airtable. Not only can Airtable’s software be used to create spreadsheets but it can also be used to create what are essentially databases, and their software is so flexible and intuitive it can be used to create pretty much any kind of spreadsheet/database for any kind of industry.
Helping out here and there:
During this internship period, Gilles had a few guest artists that were invited over to his place to create an artpiece for his up coming show. A few artists like Jeremy Sharma, Wang Ruobing, Alecia Neo, Vimal and more were invited. I thought it was a beautiful way to invite his close friends to make this final work together before he leaves for France.
During this internship period, Gilles had a few guest artists that were invited over to his place to create an artpiece for his up coming show. A few artists like Jeremy Sharma, Wang Ruobing, Alecia Neo, Vimal and more were invited. I thought it was a beautiful way to invite his close friends to make this final work together before he leaves for France.
Reflection
Few important things Ive learned:
Scanning and maintaining the work’s quality was one of the few crucial parts of archiving because firstly, I was not familiar with the scanner Gilles has at home. And secondly, to scan the drawing, writings, images, and documents take so much time as I have to make sure to avoid any doggy ears on pieces of paper. Also, mind you, most of these works/documents are much older than I am, so to edit them clean and restoring them already takes so much time. With that, I believe that archiving is one of the crucial processes in the art world and it should be appreciated.
Another thing I have learned is the value of archived works and also having to work with an established artist. Especially a senior artist. With the number of works he has produced over the years and his years of experience in the art world. There will be certain expectations indeed. The monetary value of artwork archives isn’t the primary motivation for creating them. Their historical value is still significant, as an archive can provide us with valuable contextual information surrounding each work of art that we would not otherwise understand properly. In that regard, the information gathered within an artwork archive might even be equally invaluable, as it can document and support the entire creative process and provide us with a better understanding of the artwork and its artist significantly better than we would have without it. One fantastic example would be The Coffee Shop work done by the artist himself, Gilles, in 1992.
Finally, I have realised the importance of technology and how it has made the process of archiving much easier and more sufficient. The internet is a boundless treasure trove of information that we have — and it has made the creation of archives and collections so much easier. Even an amateur archiver like me can use the internet to try out different applications to document and have excellent results. There’s an absolute overload of information to seek to start with Google searches, through Adobe, Microsoft, and to academic archives by the great art museums, research universities, and government institutions.
It has come to my awareness that artists can and do use the internet’s freedom and convenient archiving capabilities to create their collections of artworks and associated information. In the future, we can only expect more expanding role of the connectivity and readily accessible digitised data to increase the popularity of archiving art. One example would simply be Instagram, and how many artists use it as a platform to post images of their work for notability and also a way to archive/document them.
Few important things Ive learned:
Scanning and maintaining the work’s quality was one of the few crucial parts of archiving because firstly, I was not familiar with the scanner Gilles has at home. And secondly, to scan the drawing, writings, images, and documents take so much time as I have to make sure to avoid any doggy ears on pieces of paper. Also, mind you, most of these works/documents are much older than I am, so to edit them clean and restoring them already takes so much time. With that, I believe that archiving is one of the crucial processes in the art world and it should be appreciated.
Another thing I have learned is the value of archived works and also having to work with an established artist. Especially a senior artist. With the number of works he has produced over the years and his years of experience in the art world. There will be certain expectations indeed. The monetary value of artwork archives isn’t the primary motivation for creating them. Their historical value is still significant, as an archive can provide us with valuable contextual information surrounding each work of art that we would not otherwise understand properly. In that regard, the information gathered within an artwork archive might even be equally invaluable, as it can document and support the entire creative process and provide us with a better understanding of the artwork and its artist significantly better than we would have without it. One fantastic example would be The Coffee Shop work done by the artist himself, Gilles, in 1992.
Finally, I have realised the importance of technology and how it has made the process of archiving much easier and more sufficient. The internet is a boundless treasure trove of information that we have — and it has made the creation of archives and collections so much easier. Even an amateur archiver like me can use the internet to try out different applications to document and have excellent results. There’s an absolute overload of information to seek to start with Google searches, through Adobe, Microsoft, and to academic archives by the great art museums, research universities, and government institutions.
It has come to my awareness that artists can and do use the internet’s freedom and convenient archiving capabilities to create their collections of artworks and associated information. In the future, we can only expect more expanding role of the connectivity and readily accessible digitised data to increase the popularity of archiving art. One example would simply be Instagram, and how many artists use it as a platform to post images of their work for notability and also a way to archive/document them.