Help Desk is where I answer your queries about making, exhibiting, finding, marketing, buying, selling — or any other activity related to — contemporary art. Submit your questions 100% anonymously here: http://bit.ly/132VchD. All submissions become the property of Daily Serving.
I’m an artist and art writer and would like to complete the trifecta by seriously trying to curate. However, since I’ve only been on the curated side of the table I know embarrassingly little about the nitty-gritty of it. For example, when I have a proposal ready, do I inform the proposed artists of my intentions before or after I submit the proposal? Who arranges and pays for shipping work? I only know how I’ve personally been treated and not what is typical. I’m too afraid of looking like a fool to give it a shot.
Last things first: if you’re an artist and a writer, you must be used to sticking your neck out by now — at least a little — so I don’t believe that part about looking like a fool. You already know that the best way to learn is by doing, so stop worrying what other people think and get to work.
If you want to curate, you’ll need an idea or curatorial premise, some artists and artworks, and a space to exhibit the show. The process of putting together those items will often provide answers to many of the other questions, such as who pays for shipping. If the space you’re working with does not, you’ll have to pay for it yourself, or split the costs with the artists, or only work with local artists, or get a grant. You have lots of options for workarounds, and you’ll find that many of the smaller details will fall into place once you account for the fundamental parts of the exhibition.
VALIE EXPORT, Fragments of Images of Contingence, 1994.