Curate a Show? Sure You Can!

“How can I curate an art exhibit?”

Real world involvement in the art world can start before you even graduate! It can be annoying trying to find an art related job as an undergraduate; however, by volunteering and networking you will find that people are really receptive to your ideas. Don’t be scared of networking! I like to think of it as a chance to share ideas, and the person you’re sharing them with always has the opportunity to say yes. Rejection is not the end of the world. Some things just aren’t meant to be, but they will lead you to other opportunities!

It’s important to sell not only your ideas, but also yourself. You have to convince the person you are networking with about how serious you are. If you have passion and show energy for a project, people will want to help you. By volunteering at a small gallery in Ottawa I met people with established careers in the art field. The best thing about being young and not knowing what you want to do is putting your ideas out there and exploring them! If someone asks what you want to do, tell them some ideas you have, or suggest goals you are working towards achieving.

In my first year of university, I met many other students looking for outlets to perform music and display their artwork. I recognized a need for type of artistic outlet and really wanted to be an advocate for young artists by providing them with a platform. Someone I met while volunteering at the gallery told me of a theatre festival that is always open to new additions! The vision was to show Ottawa as a hub of budding creativity by displaying different trendy mediums students were exploring such as: painting, drawing, sculpture, photography, animation, and video editing.

By working with the festival I had the opportunity to learn how to curate a show. This was completely self-directed, by no means professional, but it was a great learning experience. I met with the artists I had sourced to learn about their interests in art, pieced together how the works and artists complemented each other, and actually set up an exhibit (which takes a lot longer than I thought!).

This was one step towards figuring out my interests for future pursuits! What I learned from this was: just go for it! Time, effort, dedication and passion can go a long way!