Lisa Bubbers

Lisa Bubbers

THE CURATORIAL VOICE IN CONTEMPORARY ART

Originally I looked to curatorial practices to investigate the interplay of words such as wall texts, brochures, catalogues and promotional cards in conjunction with art. When I approached the research I began to see these various texts as a framing device, or filter, for the work. My interests evolved from the microcosm of text and image relations to the larger history and condition of exhibiting contemporary art and the curatorial profession. A viewer utilizes texts to narrate an exhibit, those texts are manifestations of the curator’s thoughts and intentions for the show, and these intentions are formed by a theoretical foundation. A curator can speak personally about his or her own views of how to set up a show, but when exhibiting art is considered generally and historically, many issues come into play. Most important are issues of the art market, the institutional system, the power of the curatorial voice, and the capacity the exhibition has to echo a cultural current. I worked on the project with Jenelle Porter, Associate Curator of the Institute of Contemporary Art, as she organized her January 2006 show Gone Formalism to gain insight into the theoretical and practical aspects of curating contemporary art.

SECTOR B/ Art & Culture of Seeing

ADVISERS: Julie Davis (ARTH) | Jenelle Porter (Professional)