Pick 'N Mix #34
Posted by Michelle Kasprzak • Saturday, January 23. 2010 • Category: Pick 'N Mix
Welcome to another edition of Pick 'N Mix, my collections of links and news relevant to curators.
- "A New Spin: Are DJs, rappers, and bloggers 'curators'?" by N. Elizabeth Schlatter was published in the latest issue of the American Association of Museums magazine. It's so incredibly useful to have an article written on this subject by a curator (Schlatter is deputy director and curator of exhibitions at the University of Richmond Museums, Va.) rather than another pundit who ultimately has very little idea of what curators do. Give it a read.
- The usual onslaught of end-of-year summary lists was heightened by also moving into a new decade, and my personal experience of it was taken even further by unearthing some art magazines from 10 years ago as I cleaned my flat over the holidays. "A Blast From the Past", a post on my personal, more general-interest blog was a specific reaction to an article on internet art from an old issue of Tate Magazine, and how things change but perhaps stay mostly the same. At the time, internet art (and art on the internet, not the same thing) was often seen as a possible attack on institutions and curators, reducing their significance. A decade later, it could safely be argued that curators and institutions remain instrumental, and bear more responsibility than ever given the swelling number of artworks available to view both online and in physical space, while savvy art consumers only stand to benefit.
- Speaking of summary lists and end-of-the-decade reflection, which we were all inundated with, I broadcast a select few of my favourites on Twitter, which ranged in subject matter from meat to technological innovation to music. The most relevant of these in this context was the year-end Top Ten list, John Cage-style at artnet Magazine. Also worthy of mention is the Guardian's review of the past decade of visual art. But mostly, rather than reading endless lists, I found going back and reading online archives from around 2000 the most engaging way to take the temperature of that time and compare. For example, I enjoyed "Y2K-Positive" at Mute Magazine, and an article reviewing the first Liverpool Biennial at Frieze Magazine.
- "A New Spin: Are DJs, rappers, and bloggers 'curators'?" by N. Elizabeth Schlatter was published in the latest issue of the American Association of Museums magazine. It's so incredibly useful to have an article written on this subject by a curator (Schlatter is deputy director and curator of exhibitions at the University of Richmond Museums, Va.) rather than another pundit who ultimately has very little idea of what curators do. Give it a read.
- The usual onslaught of end-of-year summary lists was heightened by also moving into a new decade, and my personal experience of it was taken even further by unearthing some art magazines from 10 years ago as I cleaned my flat over the holidays. "A Blast From the Past", a post on my personal, more general-interest blog was a specific reaction to an article on internet art from an old issue of Tate Magazine, and how things change but perhaps stay mostly the same. At the time, internet art (and art on the internet, not the same thing) was often seen as a possible attack on institutions and curators, reducing their significance. A decade later, it could safely be argued that curators and institutions remain instrumental, and bear more responsibility than ever given the swelling number of artworks available to view both online and in physical space, while savvy art consumers only stand to benefit.
- Speaking of summary lists and end-of-the-decade reflection, which we were all inundated with, I broadcast a select few of my favourites on Twitter, which ranged in subject matter from meat to technological innovation to music. The most relevant of these in this context was the year-end Top Ten list, John Cage-style at artnet Magazine. Also worthy of mention is the Guardian's review of the past decade of visual art. But mostly, rather than reading endless lists, I found going back and reading online archives from around 2000 the most engaging way to take the temperature of that time and compare. For example, I enjoyed "Y2K-Positive" at Mute Magazine, and an article reviewing the first Liverpool Biennial at Frieze Magazine.
