Being a Curator – David Sequeira

Thoughts on working with artists and being a curator from David Sequeira, Director of Margaret Lawrence Gallery,  Melbourne…

• Create a brief for artists.
• Work to a curatorial problem based on research.
• Be honest and provocative.
• The importance of understanding research and politics (political context).
• Think about the voice of an individual artist when part of a larger group show.
• Artists are important. Context is important.
• From the place of making (studio) to the public domain (gallery/museum in the broader sense).
• Consider the role of pedagogy (educational practices) in a gallery/museum.
• Conversations with artists aren’t always clear or easy.
• Commitments of an artist and commitments of a curator aren’t always the same things.
• You must be able to negotiate.
• It is not about power-plays, its how conceptual ambitions align between the artist(s) and curator.
• Every organisation comes with its own idiosyncrasies – we all come to the party with something different.
• It is all about WORKABILITY.
• Check your ego in at the door.
• Have a plan B with artists.
• Bring in elements from the exhibition concept/context through the exhibition design.
• Exhibition designer and exhibition curator need to be on the same page.
• It’s not just about the artist…it’s what’s best for the exhibition, the organisation and audience.
• It’s having overarching grace and humility.