Becoming A Curator

By (author) Brubach Holly
Description
An illuminating guide to a career as a curator written by acclaimed journalist Holly Brubach and based on the real-life experiences of an expert in the field—essential reading for someone considering a path to this challenging, yet rewarding profession.

Go behind the scenes and be mentored by the best to find out what it’s really like, and what it really takes, to become a curator.

Esteemed journalist Holly Brubach takes readers to the front lines to offer a candid portrait of the modern curatorial profession. Brubach shadows Elisabeth Sussman of the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York to reveal how a top curator actually works. In Becoming a Curator, Brubach reveals the path to becoming a curator in today’s ultra-competitive art world, from education to exhibition.

Sit in on acquisition meetings, plan a splashy new show, go on a studio visit with an up-and-coming artist, and attend an opening at famed David Zwirner gallery in Chelsea.

As museums step into the 21st century, the role of curator is changing and more crucial than ever. For those passionate about art, culture, and museums, this is the most valuable informational interview you’ll ever have—required reading for anyone considering this dream career.
Biographical note
Holly Brubach writes about art, fashion, culture, and dance. She is a former staff writer at The New Yorker and the former Style Editor at The New York Times Magazine. She has had a long and illustrious career, writing for Vogue, The Atlantic, W Magazine, Vanity Fair, Architectural Digest, and many other publications. She has also consulted with Prada and other luxury goods companies throughout the world. She is the author of Becoming a Curator, A Dedicated Follower of Fashion, and Girlfriend: Men, Women and Drag. She is currently working on a biography of Tanaquil Le Clercq, a ballerina for the New York City Ballet and George Balanchine’s last wife, which will be published by Simon & Schuster. She lives in Pittsburgh.
Excerpt
Becoming a Curator 1
“Warm. Sunny. Curated. That’s your Caribbean,” says Silversea’s ad for its cruises. Gwyneth Paltrow, in partnership with J. Crew, modeled “eight outfits curated from the fall collection.” A New York Times comedy critic recommends a weekly Brooklyn stand-up show as “superbly curated.” Curating, an activity once confined to museums and galleries and carried out by trained professionals, has become the favorite pastime of every influencer with an Instagram account.

Initially, curating entailed bringing an educated eye to bear on art, wielding the impeccable taste and discernment that comes with long exposure to masterworks. The halo of expertise persists though curating in the popular sense requires no credentials. Any shopper with a sense of style can become a self-appointed curator whose authority is ratified by a legion of followers. At which point curating confers value: the books Oprah chooses rise to the top of Amazon’s frequently purchased list; the makeup beauty bloggers promote sells out at Sephora.

So ubiquitous is this exercise of assessing the world and ranking everything in it that it’s easy to lose sight of the fact that there are people—still—who work as curators in the traditional sense of the word. Many are based in museums and galleries. Others, independent, direct big exhibitions, often on an international scale, like the Venice Biennale or Documenta in Kassel, Germany. There are curators who act as advisers to individuals and corporations, helping them assemble and maintain a collection. There are curators who steer artists’ estates, positioning their legacy, ensuring that the work is taken care of and seen in a sympathetic context, placing it with museums and determining what to sell.