Curation

That an individual can him- or herself shape the way people understand the world is not itself radically new; however, concomitant with the rise in data has been what Clay Shirky has called a “cognitive surplus” (Shirky, 2010), whereby the connection and aggregation of humanity via the network also makes it possible to aggregate humankind’s time... See more

Arguably, algorithms already curate the information that we encounter online. They are, as Kevin Slavin puts it, “like an invisible architecture that underpins almost everything that’s happening” (Slavin, 2011). In doing so, they reshape how our culture works and how we understand the world. Unlike Brand, whose view of the curating done by the... See more

History shows that successful adaptation requires taking active control of information filters rather than passively accepting them. Just as Renaissance scholars developed personal commonplace books to organize knowledge, and early internet users created bookmarking systems before Google dominated search, we need personalized AI curation systems... See more

In fact, I’d argue an emerging class of creators and consumer brands is actually employing curation as a business strategy. Gohar World, Ganni and Soeur have been sharing city travel guides, Ghia has been sharing Spotify playlists, and tastemakers like Olympia Gayot and Alex Eagle are joining entirely new social platforms purpose-built for... See more

Curation has historically emerged at moments when institutions failed to provide coherence. Salons rose when the Church and monarchy lost epistemic control; DJs rose when record labels could no longer define taste; curators rise today because algorithms are riddled with decision fatigue, influencers are intrinsic to their own needs, and the... See more

Curation is an act of illuminating [something that is not us].

We used to associate intelligence with accumulation. Who knew the most. Who could recall the fastest. Who sounded the smartest in a room.

But in a world where AI knows more than anyone—and everyone is shouting into the void—intelligence has quietly changed shape. It’s no longer about how much you know. It’s about how well you filter .

References

Ahn, A. (2013). “You are not a curator”. Bullett. Consulted February 4, 2013. http://bullettmedia.com/article/you-are-not-a-curator/

Arnold, K. (2006). Cabinets for the curious: Looking back at early English museums . Hants & Burlington, Ashgate Publishing.

Belk, R. (2013). Collecting in a consumer society . Abingdon, Oxfordshire, & New... See more