Curation

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

The shift isn’t just about the aesthetic, it’s structural. As loneliness become endemic and public life becomes performative, people seek spaces with intention, coherence, and shared values. Curators, whether they’re running book clubs, shaping playlists, hosting salons, or steering micro-communities, they are steeping into a vacuum left by... See more

In a world of perpetual data overload, [curation] implies information design and selectivity: the channeling, filtering, and organization into intelligible and usable information; the digging up of new or long ignored cultural corpora. Most of these corpora are simply sitting in storage: less than 1% of the Smithsonian Institution’s permanent... See more

But why has the concept of curation risen to such prominence beyond the museum, and why now? For Steven Rosenbaum, curation “addresses two parallel trends: the explosive growth in data, and our need to be able to find information in coherent, reasonably contextual groupings” (Rosenbaum, 2011, 5). This latter need, to be able to find information,... See more

As content multiplies, the challenge isn’t access; it’s orientation. We don’t need more input; we need better filters. That’s where the curator comes in: not just as a tastemaker, but as a trusted lens in a world of endless noise.

Algorithms reward instant gratification, though your audience may prefer more depth and insights.

To stay visible, focus on synthesizing without losing depth.

One must seek Knowledge, but be a little wary of finding it. Perhaps excessive, but one could say the idea of possessing knowledge represents a kind of complacency. This is what Socrates meant: Once you think you know, you stop looking. You cease your wonder.

Software has eaten the world, and now it’s a commodity. It’s not about the technology anymore. The era of the engineer has ended; the era of the curator has begun.

CFC: What advice would you give to aspiring curators just starting their careers?

JA: I would say: cultivate a practice rooted in curiosity, listening, and long-term commitment. Curating is not only about articulating ideas, it is about building the conditions for others to create, experiment, and be heard. This requires patience, care, and the... See more