Mat Collishaw is an artist from London. Photography © Fabrice Gagos
1.In your opinion what is the role of a museum?
The artist James Lee Byas was asked to make an exhibition at the National Gallery in London. He chose to leave everything as it was and titled the show ‘Perfect’. I don’t have an agenda for Museums in general, but I do appreciate that each Museum has its own particular niche, and to try and force a specific curriculum on them would be unreasonable.
I think all museums are like lenses that concentrate and magnify the significance of a particular discipline. A well curated exhibition at a Museum is a treat, but it also denies the pleasure of discovering a dusty forgotten relic that may be on display but has been neglected.
I’ve just heard that the Van Eyck exhibition in Ghent won’t reopen and this is tragic, a magnificent opportunity that is unlikely to be repeated in my lifetime. Exhibitions like this are momentous and it’s deeply regrettable that more people didn’t get to see it.
