CURATORIAL STATEMENT

The exhibition must be visually arresting and memorable.

It must illuminate the wonders and intricacies of contemporary art.

It must create a lively speculative conversation between constituency and institution.

My job is to provide the most appropriate platform for the presentation of the artists’ work, to assist in the elucidation of ideas, and the promotion of their vision. I must also provide a relevant context for the artist’s practice within the traditions of visual culture and discourse surrounding contemporary art. If the work is to be understood in those terms—formally, conceptually, and historically—the curator must facilitate a meaningful exchange between artist, audience, and exhibition space. If the audience is to comprehend the intended meaning and subtle nuances of and between the works the exhibition must be skillfully choreographed to offer surprising and unfamiliar results and provide the possibility for novel and unanticipated interpretations.

The curator must not veneer the work with her meanings and analyses but present it on its own terms and allow the viewer to participate in the excitement and satisfaction that the artist enjoyed in creating the work. Narrative drives my curatorial practice. It provides a structure to communicate varied and complex ideas in an enticing form. I strive for the same intensity and engagement that comes from watching classic Noir thrillers; a series of events that don’t seem connected, punctuated by moments of clarity, followed by reassessment. I attempt to create the same rush of excitement that is present in abandon, but equally important are the less dramatic and quieter moments that create more contemplative spaces, inspiring introspection and the revelatory insight.

In this way the audience may examine, attest, or challenge universal concerns.