Curatorial Studio module (DJ51045)

This studio-based module takes contemporary curating as an inquiry-driven, knowledge-producing, always ‘emergent’ (O’Neill 2012), and expanding field of praxis. It provides an orientation to support you in finding your own curatorial voice and to equip you with the necessary knowledge and tools for developing a self-reflexive creative practice.

What you will learn

In this module, you will:

• explore institutional and self-directed strategies for curating in various contexts
• meet practising curators, researchers, museum and archive specialists, gallerists, and artist-curators from Scotland and beyond to hear about and discuss different curatorial approaches to collections, media art, performance, commissions, and online exhibitions or presentations
• engage with models of practice in various contexts and develop a robust curatorial vocabulary
• learn about care ethics, which is essential to curating
   
• visit events, exhibitions, performances, and open lectures advertised across DJCAD (including the CAP Contemporary Art Practice Speakers Programme, exhibitions at the Cooper Gallery, Lamb and Tower Galleries, and Matthew Gallery)

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

• compare, analyse, and evaluate key concepts and approaches applied in contemporary curatorial thinking and practice
• articulate, document, and reflect on your own learning and research
• understand a range of approaches to curating in art and design
• articulate your own curatorial enquiry through exhibition and presentation
• write effectively using specific terminologies in contemporary curating
• reflect on your own work and the work of others demonstrating critical engagement with contemporary curatorial practice
• work in response to a brief within a specific timeframe

Assignments / assessment

• presentation (exhibition or event) (70%)
  • includes discussion of curatorial inquiry
  • developed through engaging with DJCAD archives and collections as a starting point
  • due in Week 12
• dictionary-style written piece 1,500 words (30%)
  • about a chosen term used within the field of curating that is relevant to the curatorial inquiry
  • due in Week 12

This module does not have a final exam.

Teaching methods / timetable

• seminars and talks
• workshops
• tutorials
• group critique
• scheduled visits