Sara Reisman - Curating the Contemporary

Curating the Contemporary is a twelve week course focused on curatorial practice, within museums, nonprofit galleries, independent art spaces, and public space, that will provide students with insight into the curatorial process. Taught by New York-based curator Sara Reisman, Curating the Contemporary will include lectures focussed on a selection of projects organized by Reisman, interspersed with historic thematic shows that have influenced current exhibition making, beginning with a broad overview of salons in the 19th century, charting the origins of early biennials, to more experimental models for presenting contemporary art. Intended to give students an understanding of how curatorial decisions are made,  the course will emphasize the evaluation of artworks in the development of exhibitions, the logistical considerations of their realization, and the critical reception of contemporary art. Assignments will include readings on historical exhibitions, catalogue essays and related criticism, as well as written reviews of shows that students will experience both in person and online. The title of the course Curating the Contemporary recognizes how contemporary art extends beyond the conventions of artmaking, from research-based methods, performance art, and socially engaged art, to other forms of cultural production, such as sound art, digital art, and archival practices.