Curating.info

It's the first of the month, which means it's time again for Pick 'N Mix, my monthly annotated list of interesting tidbits that have captured my attention recently - this month, it seems to be interviews, interviews, interviews!

• The Uncuratorial Curator is a recent interview on artnet.com with Massimiliano Gioni, Director of Special Exhibitions at the New Museum in New York. In the interview, Gioni discusses the unique possibilities at the New Museum, his friendship with controversial Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan, and much more. Speaking about future plans for his work at the New Museum, Gioni says: "...the museum itself is designed to become a place where the memory and the presence of the street is kept and preserved. [...] We want to do shows that are immersive. You come to an exhibition and the whole exhibition is an experience. It feels a little like being in the head of an artist."
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• David Garcia recently posted an interview with Chinese artist Lin Yilin and some commentary to the nettime mailing list. The post and the responses it generated are excellent and well worth a read. Early on in his post, Garcia notes the role of the Western curator in the Chinese art boom:
  

  Most of this kind of support for Chinese experimental art seems to come from the western curators. In part this is because a significant number of Chinese artists have chosen to speak our 'language', by which I mean they have adopted the lexicon of western contemporary art practice and used it to explore and to navigate their own experiences of rapid modernisation. The benefits of this kind of political 'economy' flows in both directions; the language of contemporary art practice seems fit for the purpose of navigating the extreme volatility of current Chinese experience and our tired cultural vocabularies are enlivened and transformed by their collision with a new context.

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• And last but not least, a good interview with Ex-Whitney curator Larry Rinder. Speaking about this new role as a college dean, Rinder says: "As a curator, you're generally dealing with things that are already made -- artifacts, works of art -- and trying to puzzle through what they mean and how to illuminate them through writing and juxtaposition. It's a reflective practice. Whereas working in an art school is a more productive activity -- catalyzing information and giving artists the tools and the provocations they need to move forward."
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Politically-aware artists marrying their activist tendencies to their creative expressions is a well-established practice. Festivals such as Artivistic and magazines, journals and blogs such as Art Threat, the Journal of Aesthetics and Protest, and Visual Resistance have sprung up in recent years to support this fusion of politics and art.

Reflecting on this naturally led me to speculate on how curators insert their political visions into the exhibitions and events that they create. One could argue that curating is an inherently political act, especially vis à vis historically established exclusionary curatorial practices, and the larger uses of culture as part of a geopolitical agenda. For this investigation, however, I was solely concerned with how curators explicitly commented on the politics of our times through their exhibitions, not the inherent politics of curating itself. What follows are a few key examples that I discovered.

In 2006, Michael Dupuis curated an online exhibition for rhizome.org. Entitled The New Political Action, the exhibition examines the evolving sophistication of "political action". In fact, though Dupuis is speaking directly about political action becoming "conservative" and "institutionalized", one could extend that statement to address the general phenomenon of radical expressions by curators and artists being softened by conservative systems. Dupuis sees much potential in younger structures, such as the World Wide Web:

So long as the contemporary powers of "political action" cannot infiltrate the largely decentralized structure of the worldwide web, new media holds immense potential for the advancement of the public discourse and art of a political nature. In this way, one can think of the mainstream media as the primary vehicle for contemporary "political action" (PACs, 527s, etc.) and new media as a voice for an old style of political activism. This exhibit hopes to present and comment on such new media works in the scope of political action. The following works either embody the notion of political action/activism themselves, or address political action from an outsider's perspective.

Modern Art Notes had a great series of interviews with American curators on the subject of artists' responses to the attacks on the World Trade Center. Tyler Green interviewed MoMA curator Ann Temkin, Art Institute of Chicago contemporary art curator James Rondeau, and MOCA chief curator Paul Schimmel. The interviews are excellent and well worth a read. In response to Green's question about particularly effective artworks in response to 9/11, James Rondeau offers this:

Language seems more powerful than images somehow. One of the very best, and most succinct art works pertaining to 9/11 -- I have a version of it on a T-shirt I cherish and wear -- is by the great Kay Rosen. Her work, Missing (2002), seems to consist of the word "remember" doubled and stacked vertically (like the twin towers) but the letter "b" is missing. Admonishing us to not forget, reminding us of an irrevocable, almost invisible absence, the work is so subtle, so smart, so clear, so right.

In an interview with Dr. Kim Hong-Hee on Res Artis, Hong-Hee discussed how a strategy of difference and linking contemporary art to broader global discourses can open up some of the closed, conservative structures of the art world:

...a female curator with the virtue of tolerance and moral consciousness may be able to suggest a new standard of political art to overcome the contradiction of the conventional system of art world, by applying the strategy of difference. This can be realized by means of context-oriented exhibitions which link communal, geo-political and socio-historical elements to contemporary art, escaping from the format of mainstream exhibitions featuring renowned artists, exhibitions dependent on visual effects and techniques, and alchemical exhibitions based on formalism only. It is the ground provided by biennales and alternative spaces rather than museums and galleries where political norms of art can be experimented and embodied.

And last but not least, recently at the ICA in London, a roundtable discussion entitled Political manifesto as curatorial project was presented. The discussion seemed to highlight the power of politics at the centre of curatorial drive:

From the post-WWII era to Vietnam and 'the war on terror', curators have used the political issues of the day to create relevant and provocative exhibitions. The ICA has often been at the forefront of this practice, playing host to the politically controversial Unknown Political Prisoner exhibition in 1953, offering solidarity in the early 60s to LA artists protesting against Vietnam, and most recently inviting artists' proposals for a Memorial to the Iraq War (2007). In a time which is often described as apathetic, but which has also seen some of the biggest anti-war demonstrations ever, should contemporary politics be the domain of the curator?

I believe the last question, "...should contemporary politics be the domain of the curator?" should unquestionably be answered in the affirmative. Curators are often uniquely positioned on the boundaries between conservative and radical worlds, and so their position to exact change and act as "translator" between worlds is immensely valuable. Or, as Dr. Hong-Hee put it, "a curator can raise certain issues and problems whereto an artist can react and respond thus generating a collaboration process".

das weisse haus is a new exhibition space for young contemporary art that will open its doors mid-December 2007 in Vienna, Austria. Their aim is the presentation and support of young Austrian and international artists of exceptional quality. das weisse haus serves as a platform where artists can interact with different spaces, present their work, attract essential publicity, and become integrated into various networks.

Currently das weisse haus is offering a residency to an international curator. The curator shall become part of the local network, creating and nurturing contacts from the local art scene. The duration of the residency will be 2 to 3 months and culminates in an exhibition in which the curator should reflect his/her experiences, presenting works by artists they became acquainted with during the time of their stay. Furthermore, depending on the opportunities available, the the curator should organise an exhibition project back home. Applicants must be curators from abroad, with a special emphasis on North America (USA, Canada) up to 39 years of age. A jury will review all applicants in order to identify a guest curator.

Send the following documents by November 27, 2007:
- photos and description of recent work
- CV, including all personal contact information
- time guidelines, preferred dates of residency

Via post or email to:
Kunstverein das weisse haus
Westbahnstrasse 11 – 13/1/3
1070 Vienna, Austria
[email protected]

(via)

The inaugural Best Art Practices award for young curators has just announced the winners of this year's competition. The jury received 132 applications from 32 countries in 5 continents. Their press statement (re-arranged a bit, and with URLs added by myself) follows:

The purpose of the Best Art Practices Award, announced by the Italian Culture Department of the Autonomous Province of Bolzano (South Tyrol), is to reward the best contemporary art projects that have been completed in the last five years by curators under forty years of age in non-conventional spaces.

Best Art Practices award winners:
1st prize, 10.000 euros: FRONTERA, Laboratorio Curatorial 060
for the complexity of the subjects covered and for the innovative vision. Greatly appreciated were: the social importance; the ability to involve the tradition and the local population in the creation and fruition of the works presented; the innovatory character aimed at overcoming public art practices typical of the 90s; the topic and more precisely the research into the frontier question in an area of scarce media attention; the unusual ability to develop feelings of freedom, fantasy and poetry.

2nd prize, 3.000 euros: THE PAINTING MUSEUM, Florin Tudor
for the clarity of the curatorial elements as regards to the contents indicated, the historic and geographic context of these and the results obtained. Greatly appreciated were: the strong public impact and the great media attention; the political and cultural importance in a context in rapid social evolution and the innovatory method of approach to the work, which investigates the relationship between state power and artistic institution

3rd prize, 2000 euros: LIMINAL SPACES, Eyal Danon, Philipp Misselwitz, Galit Eilat, Reem Fadda
for the ability of the curators to organize a joint project, in a very troubled area, such as that of Palestine and Israel. Greatly appreciated in particular was the desire of the project to create a discussion platform in which writers, artists and curators from Palestine, Israel and other parts of the world were involved, as well as the ability of the curators to find support for the other stages of the project in Europe.

The jury has also chosen to give a special mention to five projects of similar merit:

• 6th Festival de performance de Cali-Colombia, Wilson Diaz Polanco, Ana Maria Millan Strohbach, Jaime Andreas Sandoval Alba, Claudia Patricia Sartia Macias, Juan David Medina Jaramillo
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• En Route: via another route, Adam Carr
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• Radio Gallery, Anna Colin
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• Sandwiched, Jacob Fabricius
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• Lagos Open, Emeka Udemba

Jury's statement:
The work of selecting the projects was a collective team effort by the jury who identified in this award a first platform for reflection. The jury thus decided to accompany the motivations for the winning projects with a first few general considerations on the state of young curatorial practices, which might be a good omen for the organization of future debates on this topic.

In many candidatures the lack of a solid cultural background was problematic. This denotes a tendency of the projects to approach the requests of the cultural industry. On the other hand the jury valued as positive the experimental approach of many projects and in particular the active position of many curators, who, through different forms of public involvement, share the interest for activities which enter in the respective social and political contexts. The last observation regards the growth of awareness regarding the practice of the curator orientated at overcoming the traditional separation between the artist as cultural producer and the curator as a simple complementary element to the role of the artist.

President: Carlos Basualdo
Members of the Jury: Montse Romani Monserrat, Andrea Viliani, Anton Vidokle, Letizia Ragaglia, Marion Piffer
Jury Assistant: Denis Isaia, curator of the project Best Art Practices
Secretary of the Commission: Cristina Alietti, executive officer of the culture department, Provincia Autonoma di Bolzano

Liverpool Biennial is working with Jiyoon Lee, a curator based in Seoul and London, on an international exchange project involving artists and curators from Seoul and Liverpool. The exhibition-based project will investigate models of artists’ studio and will involve residencies in each city.

Liverpool Biennial is currently looking for expressions of interest from ambitious Liverpool-based curators who would see this as a fantastic opportunity to gain more international experience and make the project a great success.

In order to be considered for the project, please send a CV to paul -at- biennial.com by 9th November 2007.

Colchester and Ipswich Museum Service is an exciting, friendly and customer focussed organisation that is a highly regarded East of England Renaissance Hub museum which is looking to recruit an Art Curator. You will have particular responsibility to develop, interpret and make accessible the nationally important collection of fine and decorative art held primarily in Ipswich and also in Colchester. You will also give occasional support and advice about art to other museums in Essex and Suffolk. Salary range: £19,592 to £24,996.

Required Skills:
The Museum Service is seeking a motivated and creative communicator with a passion for, and a background of working with, art collections, who will contribute as a member of the community history team to achieving the objectives of the museum service as a whole. All museum posts are subject to a Criminal Records Bureau Check.

Application Instructions:
For an application form and further details please call the 24 hour recruitment line on (01206) 507343, e-mail customerservicecentre -at- colchester.gov.uk, or collect a form from the Customer Service Centre, High Street, Colchester quoting post reference LM45.

You can find out more about the borough on www.colchester.gov.uk. Closing date: 21 November 2007. Interviews will be held on: 13 December 2007.

It's the first of the month again! Hard to believe it's November already. Time for the November edition of Pick 'N Mix, my monthly annotated list of bite-sized items that have captured my attention recently.

• "CURATE OR DIE" is the title of a series of discussions at KW Institute for Contemporary Art in Berlin.
  "The focus of classical museum work seems to have changed in the past fifteen years. The balance of exhibiting, collecting, researching, and conserving activities has shifted towards a marked concentration on exhibiting. Both the public eye and possible sponsors tend to privilege the spectacular potential inherent in exhibitions. In collaboration with the Berlin-based Bureau des Arts Plastiques, KW Institute for Contemporary Art is planning a series of panel debates addressing these and related questions. Curate or Die seems to be the only possible future perspective."
  The two remaining talks in the series are taking place November 29 and December 10 at K-W.
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• A recent article by the Washington Post asks the question: Is There a Future for Old-Fashioned Museums? It focuses primarily on the story of the "Newseum", a new museum being erected in downtown Washington, while a copy is simultaneously being "built" in the online platform of Second Life. It has not yet been decided if this virtual copy of the museum will go fully public, but if it does, it will allow a global audience to have some experience of the museum. The article explores the notions of emotional attachment and collective experience that we have when visiting physical museums, which pose a series of questions as to the similarities and differences to the way we share experiences online. As well, the article looks at the ways success is measured for museums and how this is changing.
  
  

  Maxwell L. Anderson, CEO of the Indianapolis Museum of Art says: "The root of the problem is that there is no longer an agreed-upon method of measuring achievement. Half a century ago, art museums were largely measured by a yardstick comparable to that applied to libraries of the time: the size and importance of their collections." But today, he argued, art museums increasingly "are to their detriment places that privilege entertainment over learning."
  
  This year, in the journal Curator, he argued, "The message has been conspicuously entrepreneurial: we can be compared with theme parks, so we matter."
  
  He calls for measures of success that focus on the visitor's experience of the "resonance and wonder" of artworks -- "an intangible sense of elation -- a feeling that a weight was lifted."

  
  Anderson's words remind us that while some of these buildings may be architectural or technological marvels, what really impacts audiences is personal and collective perceptions of the contents of museums - in other words, the fruits of labour by artists and curators.
  
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• An old webcast came to light via bellebyrd's blog: "Global Curating in the 21st Century" was a panel discussion held in 2003 at the Walker Art Center, as part of "How Latitudes Become Forms: Art in a Global Age".
  
  "Five visual arts curators discuss art in a global context. Participants are: Kathy Halbreich, Director, Walker Art Center; Vishakha Desai, Senior Vice President/Director, Galleries and Cultural Programs, The Asia Society; Hou Hanru, Paris-based, independent curator-critic; Paulo Herkenhoff, independent curator and critic (Sao Paulo); and Latitudes exhibition curator Philippe Vergne."
  
  You can access the stream of the panel discussion by clicking here.
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• File under slightly unusual curatorial careers: being a curator of a hotel's art collection. Jennifer Phelps is the curator at the Chambers, a luxury hotel in downtown Minneapolis, USA.
  
  

  "My first job was to catalog everything and use the floor plans to place it in the rooms," Phelps said. "That was fun, like a puzzle, because there are 60 rooms, and each got two or three pieces, depending on whether it was a suite or a single. "
  
  One recent addition is a bronze sculpture by British artist Gavin Turk. It sits in a hallway near the hotel's banquet rooms and looks like a pile of black plastic garbage bags stuffed to overflowing with trash. It's Phelps' job to tamp down the ire of outraged hotel guests who stumble upon it en route to a soiree.
  
  "They call up, furious, because they're having a party and what are we doing with garbage bags dumped in the hallway?" she said. "When I tell them it's art, they burst out laughing."

  
  

A lighthearted note to end this month's Pick 'N Mix on, I'm sure you'll agree!

Zabludowicz Art Projects, a not-for-profit charity which facilitates public access to contemporary art via exhibitions of works from the Zabludowicz Collection, is looking for a new Exhibitions Curator for 176, a new North London contemporary art project space for artistic and curatorial experimentation and research.

Hours: Full time, 40hrs per week, flexible
Monday - Friday with weekend work as appropriate
Based at: 176 Prince of Wales Road, NW5 3PT
Starting salary: £23,000 per annum

Application by CV and Cover Letter by 4pm on 2nd November 2007 to: Assistant -at- zabart.org or by post to: 176 Prince of Wales Road, London, NW5 3PT

New Work UK: Open Call for Curatorial Proposals

For the screening series New Work UK LUX and Whitechapel have been inviting individual curators to present programmes of the best of new British work as part of Whitechapel’s film programme. Now we would like to extend this invitation into an open call for curatorial proposals, one of which will be selected for presentation at Whitechapel on 28 February 2008.

Proposals are invited from anyone based in the UK – curators, artists, filmgoers – to develop a programme that will showcase new British artists’ moving image work in distinctive and revealing ways. You will determine the format and content of your programme and how it is presented. It could be a selection of work by one artist or a group of artists containing works that are formally, aesthetically, politically or otherwise connected, whether these connections are implicit or explicit, provocative or symphonic. The programme should consist primarily of new British work that has not been widely seen in London with a total running time of up to 90 minutes. There is a total budget for your programme of £500 which includes your fee and any screening fees, and you will be responsible for presenting the programme and getting agreements from artists to show their work.

In selecting the programme for presentation particular attention will be given to the coherence and originality of proposals and the clarity of your curatorial statement.

Proposals should take the form of a one-paragraph outline of the programme, accompanied by either a list of artists or a list of individual works that you would like to show.

Proposals should be sent by Friday 30 November 2007 to nwuk -at- lux.org.uk or by post to NWUK, LUX, Shacklewell Studios, 18 Shacklewell Lane, London, E8 2EZ.

NB: Whitechapel can show the following formats: 16mm, all video formats, DVD.

Curating a Second Life by Daniele Balit
October 26, 2007; 8:00 pm, Skopje
Contact for more info: Tel: +389 2 3228 594 Email: presstoexit [at] on.net.mk

The word “avatar” derives from the Sanskrit term Avatāra, meaning “incarnation” and today, it commonly designates the identity assumed for exploring virtual worlds and online communities such as Second Life. The avatar is not only a tool or a threshold to the virtual, but often becomes an incarnation of desires. It represents the will to be different or, at least, the illusion of holding the threads of existence. At this point, the boundaries between ‘the virtual’ and perceived realities start to become very porous.

The lecture will introduce Daniele Balit’s curatorial practice and will focus on Second Night, an exhibition curated together with the French artist Christophe Bruno, for the recent Nuit Blanche (White Night) in Paris. As part of the lecture artworks by Yona Friedman, Claude Closky, Miltos Manetas, Andreas Angelidakis, Alain della Negra and Kaori Kinoshita will be presented and discussed.

Daniele Balit (Rome, 1976) is a freelance curator and art critic based in Paris. He is a PHD researcher at La Sorbonne with a research on the intersections between sound based art and experimental music. He is a founding member of 1:1 projects, established in January 2006, which functions as a platform for cultural production based in Rome and London. 1:1 projects are devoted to promote art projects, artists and artistic practices. Balit has developed projects and collaborations with different institutions, including Fondazione Pistoletto (Biella), Palais de Tokyo (Paris), CNEAI (Paris), Careof (Milan), NICC and MUHKA (Antwerp). He is currently a guest of the Visiting Curatorial Initiative (VCI) programme at press to exit project space. (via)

I've noted of late that the term "open source" gets bandied about quite a bit, not just in technology-related industries, but also increasingly in the art world. To be sure, some systems in the art world, including curatorial processes, are very open and transparent. Is it stretching it a bit, however, to relate this transparency and receptivity in the art world to the "open source" movement, a crusade mostly associated with software that you can download for free and possibly manipulate before sharing your evolution of the product with others?

Open source (appropriately, as defined by Wikipedia) "...is a set of principles and practices that promote access to the design and production of goods and knowledge. The term is most commonly applied to the source code of software that is available to the general public with relaxed or non-existent intellectual property restrictions. This allows users to create software content through incremental individual effort or through collaboration."

OK, so that's our basic definition. The Wikipedia article goes on to state: "The open source model of operation can be extended to open source culture in decision making, which allows concurrent input of different agendas, approaches and priorities, in contrast with more centralized models of development [...] ." If we agree with this, that does seem to answer our question about the use of the term - it can be applied as a model to nearly anything. What, then, have been the interesting examples of late that cause me to go trawling on Wikipedia for definitions of open source? Let's look at them one by one:

VIEW_EXTENDED_ENTRY »

Lorie Mertes, Director of the Galleries at Moore and Janet Kaplan, Director of the new BFA in Curatorial Studies announce: Curating and Education: Conversations with an International Panel

Saturday October 27, 2007, 10am – 5pm
Moore College of Art & Design
20th and The Parkway, Philadelphia, PA 19103

Curating and Education is the second in an ongoing series of public conversations about issues and ideas in contemporary curatorial practice presented by The Galleries at Moore in conjunction with Moore’s new BFA in Curatorial Studies. Through a series of paired conversations with an international roster of distinguished panelists, we will discuss the creative nexus between curating and education. Questions to be considered include: What do the growing number of projects in which curators are creating educational forums as exhibitions suggest about opening up the creative exchange between curating and education? Given the institutional hierarchies that often impede creative collaboration between curators and educators, how can curating and education work together as powerful laboratories for the production of ideas? What is at stake and what is possible?

The program is free but pre-registration via e-mail is requested for planning purposes. Please RSVP by October 22, 2007 to: jkaplan -at- moore.edu VIEW_EXTENDED_ENTRY »

Catriona Jeffries Gallery is searching for the position of Associate Curator/International Exhibitions Manager.

The successful candidate will possess the following:
- undergraduate or post graduate education in Art History, Curatorial Studies or related studies
- knowledge of the national and international museum system
- knowledge of the international art market
- experience in curatorial practice
- knowledge of collection management
- knowledge of the history of art in Vancouver and related international histories of contemporary art
- published critical writing
- strong leadership and organizational skills

Closing Date November 15, 2007.
Position available for December 15, 2007.

Interested individuals are asked to submit: current CV, three references, writing samples and detailed letter of interest to the address below by the closing date.

Please submit application to:
Catriona Jeffries
Catriona Jeffries Gallery
274 East 1st Avenue
Vancouver, British Columbia
V5T 1A6 Canada

E-mail: cat_jeffries_gallery -at- telus.net

The John Hansard Gallery is one of Britain’s leading public galleries of contemporary visual art and plays a key role on the cultural life of the campus and the city.

As Deputy Director, you will play a pivotal role in managing and coordinating the Gallery’s transition from its current location into new premises in 2012, as part of Southampton’s Capital Lottery bid. Responsible for developing and overseeing a range of curatorial, artistic and administrative initiatives, you will ensure a coherent transition in terms of programming, events, audience development.

Closing date: 12 noon, 22 October 2007 VIEW_EXTENDED_ENTRY »

Smack Mellon, based in Brooklyn, NY, is accepting proposals from emerging curators for its emerging artists summer show. Smack Mellon’s mission is to nurture and support emerging, under-recognized mid-career and women artists in the creation and exhibition of new work by providing exhibition opportunities, studio workspace, and access to equipment and technical assistance for the realization of ambitious projects.

The Emerging Artists Summer Show will be curated by a selected Emerging Curator and will be made up of Emerging Artists. An Emerging Artist is considered to be an artist without commercial representation who has been working as an artist for less than 10 years and who may not have had previous opportunities to show at a gallery or non-profit space. An Emerging Curator is defined as an independent curator who is beginning their career as a curator.

Proposals are due at Smack Mellon on November 1st. After being chosen, the selected Emerging Curator will review submissions from Emerging Artists with the Smack Mellon staff. Curators will be expected to select some artists from these submissions for their show. VIEW_EXTENDED_ENTRY »