Saša Nabergoj: Curatorial Practices. A Brief Historical Overview

World of Art | School for Curatorial Practices and Critical Writing | Year 16

In the Middle Ages, the curator was the guardian of souls and bodies, and in the 17th century he was already the guardian of a museum, a gallery or a collection. For Harald Szemann, the pioneer in contemporary curatorial practices, a curator is the Ausstelungmacher or “the one who makes exhibitions”, but is also an administrator, amateur, author of presentations, librarian, manager and accountant, animator, conservator, financier and diplomat.

In the series of three lectures, we will first focus on the historical development of the profession, from the first mentioning to the end of the 19th century. The main part will be devoted to the development of curatorial practices and positions in 20th century. In the first half of 20th century with Katarina Dreier and the first modern museum, with Alfred Barr and MOMA in New York; in the middle of the century we will analyze the positions of curatorial mavericks, often in the context of the first museums of contemporary art, which were founded and led by curators (Harald Szemann, Pontus Hulten, Werner Hoffmann, etc.) and in the 1990s with the emergence of global contemporary art and the beginnings of many curatorial schools. We will discuss the curatorial positions, tasks, methodology, theory and practice in the 21st century.

Saša NabergojSaša Nabergoj (1971)
Art historian, curator and critic. Director of Škofja Loka Museum. Between 1998 and 2015 she was head of the programme of the World of Art, School for curators and critics of contemporary art, and between 2004 and 2015 Studio 6, exhibition and research programme. A member of AICA (International Association of Art Critics) and IKT (International Association of Curators of Contemporary Art, Amsterdam). Writer, editor, curator and lecturer on contemporary art, focusing on curatorial and critical practices. She curated numerous solo and group exhibitions, wrote several articles and edited different publications. (Photo: Voranc Vogel, Delo Archive)