Curating the Unit X 'Ruins' Exhibition

The initial set up of the exhibition was slow due to the late delivery of the cardboard. There were discussions about the best way to utilize these boards in an exhibition and it was decided that the best way of using the card was to tape three pieces of card together to make a triangular prism which would then be stood up vertically to create three walls to exhibit on.
        A problem with the material used to make the boards was that it wasn't strong enough to hold up large canvases and frames, but in some ways this worked in our (the curators) favour because it gave some indication as to where some of the work should be situated, i.e. the lighter pieces such as photographs, drawings and small canvases had to be put on the boards.

         

When it came to setting up my own work, I knew I had to be flexible with where the work could be displayed. Due to the number of windows and adjacent pillars that would not have been suitable to mount work on, I decided to use this space to hang my work: one canvas piece in front of the window and another hung in front of, and thus obscuring, the pillar.

     

The first problem I encountered was how I should suspend the canvas pieces. The ceiling tiles didn't lift up in front of the window and so I had to locate thinner hooks that would fit through the holes of the ceiling tiles. A useful feature of these hooks was that they were also slightly longer.

Once I had set up my own work, and had temporarily located a space for each person's work, I began setting the work up of those who could not be in to help set up. Some of the pieces had instructions attached with suggestions on how they would like their work to be exhibited. When considering where to place work, I had to ensure that photographers weren't bunched together and likewise for fine artists, but in some cases, photography pieces had to be displayed on the walls facing away from the window to reduce the glare on the images, meaning that in some areas, there were 'pockets' of fine artists' work and photographers' work. In spite of this, I found that it didn't compromise with the way the exhibition flowed. The film making students, of which there only seemed to be one group of three, exhibited two films in one of the smaller office rooms through a projector. Also in this room was a fine artist's film, and both pieces of work really complimented one another.

The image above shows a floor plan of the 'Ruins' exhibition. The green stars indicate which pieces I set up/displayed while the blue stars indicate which pieces of work I curated. I worked closely with the members of the group that came in during the set-up time and ensured that they were happy with their space and offered advice if they wanted any. I also aided them in setting up their work and making decisions about the best way to hang/stick/pin work up.

        The image below shows two pieces of work, one by a fine artist and a photographer that I curated and set up. In the case of the fine artist's work, we had to find away to attach the plaster pieces to the board securely, which was difficult because they were so heavy. We discussed placing them on plinths but I decided that they were best displayed at eye height, where they could be fully appreciated. This also meant that we could include another piece of their work, for which we build a plinth. There was a great deal of deliberation between myself and the artist as to whether to include the broken glass wind chime, but after finding a location and height at which to display the piece so that it complimented the display as a whole, we decided to include it.

 Also visible in the image above is the photography piece on the right-hand side that I set up. The photographer had left guidelines as to how she wanted the work to be exhibited, and I was able to meet that request. I was very happy with how both displays came out - and that both the plaster pieces and the letters stayed securely to the board and pillar right the way through until Friday morning when we had to take them down!

I wasn't able to take a great deal of pictures as I went along due to always being busy, but as a whole I was very happy with how the 'Ruins' exhibition looked and proud of myself that I had helped a great deal to make it happen. I learnt so much by curating this exhibition and while it was demanding and hard work, I really enjoyed it and would definitely do it again. Most of all, though, I enjoyed working with other students, from photography, fine art and filmmaking, and helping them to bring their own ideas about what they wanted from the exhibition to life.