A Companion to Curation
If there was ever a book that should be top of the bibliographic list for students studying art institutions and curatorial practice(s) of the past, present and future, this is it – A Companion to Curation edited by well-known Australian artist academics Brad Buckley and John Conomos. The editors acknowledge the challenges of providing a companion to curation, one of the most overused terms in the contemporary art world and beyond. The verb ‘curate’ – derived from cura, meaning ‘to take care’ – conveys multiple meanings associated with degrees (no pun intended) of art education and practice. And the associated nouns, ‘curator’, ‘curation’ and adverb ‘curatorial’ are readily available as descriptors – euphemisms – for organisations and activities anywhere including travel, food and drink, furniture, fashion and so on.
The one major issue that determines the difference between artists and curators is money. As has been noted in dozens of recent books and articles, including the critic William Deresiewicz’s , artists are members of the precariat and typically receive little or no compensation from exhibiting their work. The curators receive a salary or honoraria for professionally organising museum and gallery exhibitions, biennales, art fairs etc., and yet artists may even have to pay for the privilege of having their work exhibited.
