Curating.info

Job Purpose:
To contribute to the conception and realisation of an exhibition and public programme of international standing.

Key Outputs and Accountabilities:
To contribute to the conception of an arts programme, which supports the vision and strategic aims of BALTIC.
To curate and realise individual projects and exhibitions through in-depth research, working with artists, guest curators, and collaborating with external institutions, including in respect of touring exhibitions.
To successfully realise projects, demonstrating best curatorial practise in all aspects of work, and in liaison with appropriate internal teams at BALTIC.
To manage the installation/ de-installation of exhibitions in close liaison with the Technical Manager (Exhibitions).
To liaise with the Learning team on the effective development of interpretation and mediation of the Programme.
To liaise with the Communications and Development team on the implementation of effective strategies to support the Programme through fundraising, promotion and marketing.
To lead on the management and delivery of individual publications for the arts programme, including the development, writing, commissioning, editing and proofing of such publications.
To effectively manage and monitor individual project budgets, in close liaison with the Chief Curator.
To sustain a well informed understanding of national and international developments in contemporary art and general knowledge of cultural developments.
Representing BALTIC and contributing to public and professional forums as required.
Accompanying touring exhibitions, as required.
To undertake any other duties commensurate with the level of the post, as may be reasonably required.

Person Specification:

Essential:
Significant curatorial experience at a comparable organisation.
Educated to degree level (or equivalent) or higher in a relevant qualification.
Excellent knowledge of contemporary art at a national and international level and general knowledge of cultural developments.
The ability to write and edit lucid text for the general public and specialist publications.
Substantial experience of initiating and project managing a wide range of visual arts projects of international and museum standard.
Proven ability to collaborate with artists, galleries, guest curators and external institutions.
Demonstrable commitment to the development of diverse audiences.
Excellent people management skills.
Excellent communication skills.
Experience of drafting contracts and letters of agreement.
Experience of developing and project managing publications (catalogues and books)

Desirable:
Second language (conversational level).

For further information and to apply, please visit http://www.balticmill.com/jobs/index.php

Changing Age: The Art of Ageing - Deadline: Friday 27 November

Background

Newcastle University’s new strategic plan, encompassing the Vice-Chancellor’s emphasis on
Newcastle as a Civic University, will focus on a series of societal challenges, the first of
which will be the theme of Ageing. ‘Changing Age’, as this programme is being called, has
three key objectives:

1. To celebrate the University’s achievements in Ageing
2. To create a lasting legacy of increasing involvement in Ageing across the
University and region.
3. To establish Newcastle in the national and international conscious as a leading
centre for Ageing.

A key feature of the Changing Age programme is to develop activities that reflect the
multidisciplinary nature of the challenges and issues associated with Ageing. Various
projects, initiatives and events spanning the full range of research, teaching and
engagement activities of the University will be undertaken during the remainder of 2009 and
throughout 2010 that will contribute directly to the Changing Age programme.
This Job Description relates to a project that will seek to organise a series of events and an
exhibition aimed at exploring dimensions of the Art and Science of Ageing.

The Art and Science of Ageing

The central idea of addressing the Art and Science of Ageing is to recognise that the ageing
process has its roots in the life sciences yet impacts on every dimension of human
experience including the aesthetic. The aim is to build upon the enthusiasm of several
members of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences who have identified possible
contributions to the Changing Age programme, including Fine Art, Music, the International
Centre for Cultural and Heritage Studies, Creative Writing and Culture Lab. This will be
combined wherever possible with contributions from biologists, clinicians, psychologists,
engineers and others, in the spirit of the sci-art collaborations that have been promoted by
organisations such as the Wellcome Trust, Academy of Medical Sciences, and the British
Academy.

One of the key initiatives will be a visual arts exhibition, The Art of Ageing, for which we
now wish to appoint a Curator. Core funding has been secured to pursue this venture. A
number of ideas have been discussed and these are captured below.

It is envisaged that various strands of activity will be brought together in a major exhibition on
The Art of Ageing to be held in the Great North Museum: Hancock in the autumn of 2010.

The core programme might involve:
• Artwork drawing upon biomedical images such as magnetic resonance scans, electron
microscopy images, live cell imaging, etc. Inputs and participation will be drawn from
researchers within the Institute for Ageing and Health and other groups. There will also
be potential material from artists in residence including Susan Aldworth (images of brain
scans and MRI’s) and Valerie Laws.
• Artworks by older people, involving the Friends of the Hatton Gallery and possibly the
annual art competition run for the over 60’s by Age Concern Art Awards.
• Workshops with schools looking at intergenerational issues, working with the Hatton’s
educational programme and Culture Lab’s Social Inclusion through the Digital Economy
(SIDE) project.
• Ageing faces, including work by Carla Broomhead, winner of the 2009 Lee Turner
Publishing Prize.
• Lecture series given by FBAs, linked to the Public Lectures with the support of the British
Academy (arranged through Prof Vicki Bruce).

The Art and the Science of Ageing Steering Group has highlighted the urgent need to
appoint a curator to co-ordinate the development of the exhibition and bring together the
various ideas in a cohesive manner. A job description outlining this curatorial role follows.

Job description: Curator for ‘The Art of Ageing’ programme

Main Purpose

To co-ordinate the development of The Art of Ageing exhibition, exploring various potential
contributions and bringing selected ideas together in a cohesive manner.

To work with members of the Art and Science of Ageing Steering Group to sketch out a
programme of activities and develop a Wellcome Trust application (deadline 29 January
2010). This could provide resources, additional to the core funding already secured, to
support enhancements such as a more extensive engagement programme and artists’
commissions.

To co-ordinate and oversee the installation of the exhibition.

To liaise with relevant partners to contribute to marketing plans and ensure that the
exhibition fits with the broader cultural and Changing Age programmes.

Support and advice will be provided by the Dean of Cultural Affairs, to whom the Curator will
report, and the Cultural Affairs Development Officer, along with members of the Steering
Group. The Curator will also work closely with staff in the Great North Museum.

Main Duties and Responsibilities

1. Liaise with the Dean of Cultural Affairs, the Art and the Science of Ageing Steering
Group, the Great North Museum (GNM) and other partners to ensure key objectives and
expectations relating to the proposed The Art of Ageing exhibition are understood, and
will indeed fit within the broader Changing Age programme.

2. Develop a robust proposal – including a timeline and full budgetary details – to cover both
the core programming costs and an expanded programme for further funding applications
(this would include a more extensive engagement programme, as well as artists’
commissions, etc).

3. Support the development of a Wellcome Trust, Arts Award application by working closely
with the Dean of Cultural Affairs and the Art and Science of Ageing Steering Group.
4. Liaise with other museum, art gallery professionals, artists and outside agencies, to
negotiate the loan of appropriate artworks and exhibition materials.

5. Work with the education teams at GNM and the Hatton Gallery to design a series of
engagement workshops for different community groups – these may involve schools, as
well as those who work with the elderly (Equal Arts, Helix Arts, Age Concern, etc.)

6. Support the promotion and marketing of the exhibition and associated programme by
working with the University Marketing and Publicity Unit, as well as key staff at Tyne and
Wear Archives and Museums. This may include the development of an exhibition
catalogue.

7. Oversee the delivery and installation of art work, working alongside the GNM team.

8. Explore opportunities for student involvement in the development and delivery of the
exhibition. This may involve liaising with key academics from the School of Arts and
Cultures as well as representatives from the Union Society.

Knowledge, Skills and Experience

• A degree (or equivalent) in a relevant subject area such as fine art, history of art or
cultural and/or heritage studies.
• Experience of working in a museum environment, preferably in a curatorial role.
Experience of developing exhibitions and programmes for non-specialist audiences
would also be desirable.
• Some experience of undertaking research, responding to public enquiries, and preparing
and delivering presentations is desirable.
• An understanding of collections’ management issues, particularly collections care and
storage.

Self-motivated and able to demonstrate your ability to plan and organise your workload,
manage projects and build positive relationships within an organisation and external
partners.

Timing and salary

The curator will be expected to commit around 35 days in total to the project, of which
approximately 10 will be before the end of January to shape the exhibition proposal and
develop a Wellcome Trust application. A further 25 days will be delivered during the rest
2010, building towards the exhibition itself in the autumn. A daily rate of between £200 and
£250 is envisaged, depending on experience.

Application and Interview

Interested candidates should send a letter of application together with a CV to
jennifer.allinson -at- ncl.ac.uk (Cultural Affairs Development Officer) by Friday 27 November.
Interviews will be held between 9 and 16 December 2009.

BALTIC, one of the largest contemporary art galleries in the world, has established a national and international reputation as a highly successful and exciting centre for contemporary art and is a very important part of the cultural infrastructure of North East England.

BALTIC provides a challenging and rewarding environment in which to work to fully develop your personal potential and offers this exciting opportunity for an enthusiastic individual to join its highly motivated team.

Salary: c. £45,000 pa, Full Time

You will lead the exhibition team and provide astute artistic judgement to contribute to the strategic development of BALTIC's creative vision and its audience development. You will conceive, plan and manage an artistic programme of high quality and international standing. An excellent team leader, you will have significant successful management experience in a gallery or museum, managing a large scale visual arts programme with an international dimension. You will be able to demonstrate extensive experience of audience development and diversity along with strong financial management skills.

For an informal discussion, please contact Godfrey Worsdale, Director on +44 (0)191 478 1810.

For an application pack visit http://www.balticmill.com/jobs, email recruitment -at- balticmill.com or call BALTIC's 24 hour jobsline on +44 (0)191 440 4938, or text phone +44 (0)191 440 4944.

Closing date: Monday 29 June 2009.

Digital Curatorship: Public Programming in the Information Age is a Connecting Principle event at Culture Lab, Newcastle University, organised in collaboration with the School of Arts and Cultures, 12th February 2008.

This mini-symposium is an opportunity to engage with the constantly evolving nature of practice in the curatorship of digital and new media art. We (Newcastle University) aim to do this by bringing together some of the different constituencies at work in the field both in the North East and beyond, and by providing a platform for different perspectives and informed debate. The event will comprise a series of short presentations from practitioners within the field followed by wider panel discussions including further invited participants.

Likely themes/questions to be addressed might include:

- The natures and identities of digital curatorship (products and processes, changing ideas of the 'artwork'/'artefact', visitor experiences)
- Different professional perspectives on digital curatorship and programming, e.g. those of the artist, artist-curator, curator, technician, educator, artist-educator, conservator, academic etc.
- Digital art and sound/music
- Digital curatorship/programming, installation and site specificity
- Net art and the gallery/exhibition
- Digital curatorship/programming in urban contexts
- Conserving and managing new media in art museum/gallery and exhibition contexts

Speakers include: Chris Whitehead, Michelle Kasprzak, Alistair Robinson, Kirk Woolford, Sarah Cook,
Atau Tanaka, Beryl Graham, Sally Jane Norman.

The panel discussions will pick up and expand upon key themes, issues and ideas which emerge in the preceding talks and will allow for dialogue between speakers and audience members.

The event is linked into the curricula for the postgraduate programmes in Art Museum and Gallery Studies and Art Museum and Gallery Education, but is also open more generally: to staff and students from other programmes, other universities, artists and cultural sector professionals from the region and beyond.

The proceedings may be disseminated in various ways -- through digital recording and streaming and possibly through web or print publication.

Register to attend this free event here.

Links:
Culture Lab
Connecting Principle
Centre for Cultural and Heritage Studies
Fine Art Department