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© Xandra Eden, 2005. Used by permission
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Curators are so over
by Xandra Eden
Date: 16 July 2005
Event: Banff
Xandra Eden
Xandra Eden is curator of exhibitions at the Weatherspoon Art Museum at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, where she organizes exhibitions of contemporary art and serves as adjunct faculty in art history. She was formerly assistant curator (2001-2005) at the Power Plant, Toronto, where she curated exhibitions such as Emma Kay: The Story of Art (2005), Republic of Love (2004) and In Through the Out Door: David Armstrong Six/Germaine Koh/Nestor Kruger. Other recent exhibitions include Jay Isaac (2005) at CUE Art Foundation, New York, and The Cave and the Island (2004) at White Columns, New York and Galerie Kunstbuero, Vienna. Eden has written articles for various magazines including Flash Art, Canadian Art and Prefix, and catalogues for exhibitions such as Bounce/In Through the Out Door and Marla Hlady. Eden holds an MA in curatorial studies from the Center for Curatorial Studies, Bard College, and a BFA in studio art from the State University of New York at Purchase. She is currently working on an upcoming exhibition and catalogue on the sculptor John Duff.
Abstract
The idea of the curator is controversial in contemporary art. There is disagreement on the definition of the term, as well as the authority afforded to them, with some artists and directors even going so far as to question whether the existence of a curator is justified. More and more, I see institutional curators having to devote more time to administration and fundraising, with less emphasis placed on research and writing. At the same time, there is an increased popularity in the use of the term curator to describe various practices in the arts, for example, the emergence of curator positions at some commercial galleries and curator of education positions at many museums. How does this effect the position and status of independent and institutional curators of contemporary art? A proper understanding of how the contemporary art curator functions today is important if it is to remain a viable role.
The curatorial role has a long history, but it is only recently that this history has begun to be explored and evaluated. Since the Paris Salons opened to the public in the late-18th century, curators have been fundamental to the presentation and public reception of new art. They have proven to have the potential to serve as catalysts towards the progression of art history. Even our conception of art history is affected by our understanding of artists as they have been presented in past exhibitions by curators. Curators, for the most part, worked discretely behind the scenes for much of the 19th and 20th centuries, but the identity politics of the 1980s, coupled with an increased need for curators to play a role in fundraising (following budget cuts to arts funding) paved the way for more transparency within art institutions and museums. The identity of curators became much more public and, in turn, their claim to authority more openly contested. This transpiration was followed by a rise in interest in contemporary art, a profusion of international biennials and the "global" curator, such that by the mid-90s the identity of a core group of curators became very well-known. The curator role came into fashion. Dealers, critics, collectors and artists began to solemnly tout the label -- this is not to say that these individuals hadn't always played an important role in presenting exhibitions before, but that the term "curator" began to be used more often, appearing on exhibition invitations and on title walls. The widespread use of the term "curator" made it increasingly problematic to define the profession and the title began to be used to validate and provide status to a much more varied field of projects.
As most of us in the field are aware, the benefits of high status in the curatorial field are not connected to wealth, but to respect and acknowledgment. Is there a system of accreditation and a heirarchy based on knowledge in place for curators? How does it work and who makes those distinctions? How closely does the art market tie in to status-making in the curatorial field? A discussion of the role of the contemporary art curator in terms of status is not intended to vaunt particular practices or exclude others, but to develop a better language of critique around curatorial practice.