Revisiting Ventzislavov's Thesis: "Curating Should Be Understood as a Fine Art"

Author(s): SUE SPAID

Source: The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism , WINTER 2016, Vol. 74, No. 1
(WINTER 2016), pp. 87-91
Published by: Wiley on behalf of The American Society for Aesthetics

Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/44510217

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 Discussion

Revisiting Ventzislavov's Thesis: "Curating

fine arts concern the production of artworks,
Should Be Understood as a Fine Art" not their public presentations, so claiming as he
does that "selecting art should be thought of as
I. ventzislavov's thesis
a fine art" suggests that the curator's selected set
succeeds on its own merit as an artwork (83). This
Rossen Ventzislavov has stated that his thesis "is
is akin to claiming that an orchestra's particularly
simply that curating should be understood asexceptional
a performance succeeds on its own as
fine art" (2014, 83). He claims that those whothe conductor's artwork due to his or her brilliant
reject this view typically cite division of labor conductorial ideas. Finally, Ventzislavov's mistak-
as the means of distinguishing curatorial work ing exhibitions for artworks overlooks the fact
from artistic work. I too reject his thesis, thoughthat exhibitions are performances of artworks
I heartily accept his characterizing curators as and are always in presentation mode, unlike
no more "institutionally, ethically, and financially
artworks in storage awaiting frames, assembly, or
encumbered" than artists, leaving neither profes- exhibition possibilities (Spaid 2015). Exhibitions
sion's duties inherently normative nor in need routinely
of travel, but no one considers their later
protection (84). Despite my sharing his assess-manifestations to be presentations of some orig-
ment that the divisions of labor between artists inal artwork, the way exhibitions are viewed as
and curators are quite porous, his thesis overlooks
artist-sanctioned presentations of artists' artworks
those features that actually differentiate artworks
(Irvin 2005).
from their exhibitions, thus distinguishing the In what follows, I reject Ventzislavov's thesis
radically different products resulting from artistic
that "curating should be understood as a fine art"
and curatorial work, however indistinguishable
because it overlooks four basic features of curato-
their modes of production may be. rial work: (1) The fine arts concern the production
While I agree that "curatorial ideas" offer
of artworks, not artistic directors' presentations,
(though only temporarily) a "genuine contri-
which fall under design or management, even if
bution to the life of the artworks involved," Ipresentation duties resemble production duties.
consider curatorial ideas to contribute cognitive (2) Curators contribute cognitive value, not
value, not artistic value (83). Ventzislavov's ex-artistic value. (3) Ventzislavov equates a curator's
clusive focus on the curator's contributing artistic
presentation mode, which he variously terms
value seems to be a version of George Dickie's"curatorial idea," "the creation of artistic value,"
institutional theory of art, whereby the curator "selecting art," and the "introduction of new
grants artistic value through the "art of selection
custodial narratives" with the idea-based nature
and through the introduction of new custodial nar-
of conceptual art (83). Unlike conceptual art-
ratives" (83). However inordinate the curator's works, which endure even when lost, temporary
creativity, it is illogical to consider "new custodial
classification systems rarely survive, unless the
narratives" or resulting exhibitions artworks public
as deems them useful. (4) An exhibition
does Ventzislavov, who recommends that philoso-checklist requires some third party to stage it, but
phers reconsider "curatorship and its stake onita does not require further interpretation the way
place among the rest of the fine arts" (83). The
artworks awaiting exhibitions do.
The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism 74:1 Winter 2016
© 2016 The American Society for Aesthetics

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 88 The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism

II. "CURATORSHIP AND ITS STAKE ON A PLACE AMONG Ventzislavov mentions the curious term 'cu-
THE REST OF THE FINE ARTS"
ratorship,' which Boris Groys first introduced.
Although Groys's characterization of curatorial
These days, art colleges and universities awardwork resonates in his view, Ventzislavov vener-
graduate degrees in nontraditional fine art fields ates as fine art what Groys condemns as abuse
such as aesthetics and politics, creative writing,(Groys 2008, 42-52). Despite its negative subtext,
critical studies, curating, film, photography, and curatorship aptly delimits the legal "power given
visual and critical studies as well as the more
by authority of law, to one or more persons, to
traditional fine-art and performing-art fieldsadminister
such the property of an individual who is
as architecture, dance, music, painting, poetry, unable to take care of his own estate and affairs,
sculpture, and theater. Some universities like either on account of his absence without an autho-
Goldsmiths College (University of London) rized evenagent, or in consequence of his prodigality,
award MFAs in curating, but it does not necessar- or want of mind" ("Curatorship" n.d.). Like con-
ily follow from this degree that curating is a fine theater directors, and publishers, curators
ductors,
art. Philosophers are most primed to recognize the
regularly administer property on behalf of others,
disjunction between degrees awarded and pro- in particular, artists and collectors who lend their
fessions sought, since U.S. philosophers earnartworks
only for exhibitions. However, artists, or
one percent of all Doctors of Philosophy awarded
their representatives, typically sanction artworks'
(National Science Foundation 2014, Table 13).
exhibition contexts long before artworks appear
In contrast to the performing arts, the fine
in exhibitions, organized by curators to test
arts are considered "a creative art, especially
particular hypotheses, rather than showcase their
visual art whose products are to be appreciated "art of selecting," as Ventzislavov contends (86).
primarily or solely for their imaginative, aesthetic,
To my mind, Ventzislavov's linking curatorial
or intellectual content" ("Fine Arts" 2010).work On to selecting artworks sets him off on the
its surface, this description fits exhibitions, which
wrong track, since curators do not really select
are the products of curatorial work. Unlike artworks the way collectors do. Curators rather
artworks, we do not credit exhibitions for develop
their hypotheses, what he terms 'custodial nar-
aesthetic content. We might credit the curator'sratives' or 'curatorial ideas'- temporary classifi-
procurement of particularly beautiful objects, but systems that curators devise in order to pro-
catory
only the artist can be credited for each artwork 's
pose how best to grasp artworks' significance and
beauty (aesthetic content), even if some curator's
timeliness. Public exhibitions thus offer curators
imaginative curatorial work prompted specta-
an opportunity to test their hypotheses, leaving
tors to recognize its beauty. A novel custodial
audiences to judge artworks' meaningfulness and
narrative may awaken spectators to an artwork's
to ascertain the most useful explanations. Spec-
pertinence, relevance, or specialness, but one eventually champion and transmit those
tators
could not say, "It used to be ugly, but now it
meanings that work best, leaving novel classifica-
is beautiful." While spectators' views routinely
tory systems either to dissipate or enter art history.
change, artworks rarely change, though of course
their contexts change with each new exhibition.
One might worry that a particular exhibition
III. CURATORIAL WORK AS ARTISTIC VALUE

does not do the work justice, but such remarks typ-

Just as Dickie seemingly proposed th
ically address context, not artwork appearances.
tutional theory of art to explain mus
Although neither the curator nor the exhibition
can be credited with the objects' beauty, one far-out
most exhibitions, Ventzislavov credits cu
definitely holds the curator accountable for with
the artistic value given "the vital role
meaningfulness of both the artworks and the shocking,
exhi- groundbreaking, and plain biz
ratorial decisions play in the artworld" (20
bition. The curator's mode of presentation invites
a particular reception, which inspires spectators
Although the curator is typically credite
selecting, obtaining, and positioning art
to weave particular narrative threads. I employ
the literary term 'narrative threads' to designate
his or her primary contribution concerns
stories composed by readers and spectators rather
exhibition hypotheses so that the exhibitio
than imposed by some narrator (exhibition texts).
can exact an exhibition that inspires specta

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 Discussion 89

grasp When
the it comes to AV, I imaginecur Ventzislavov
also being a pluralist since he credits Stecker for
recomm
to honed recognizing that "artistic value
hyp does not have to
much be coextensive creativ with aesthetic value as [Monroe]
on some Beardsley would have it" (Ventzislavov
pres 2014, 86).
ideas and
Since spe
Ventzislavov's main point concerns the way
neglects the
curatorial ideas drive spectator appreciation, his
distributing view of AV likely parallels Stecker's, whereby
arise artistic
sometim values are "valuable properties [that]
exhibitions artists commonly try to imbue in their works, t
prior ones. and which critics and appreciators commonly
Ventzislavov repeatedly claims that curators look for or seek out" (Stecker 1997, 184). Even
"create artistic value through the art of selection when exhibition teams imbue exhibitions with
and through the introduction of new custodial valuable properties that they hope spectators
narratives" (83). For him, artistic value (AV) is notice, visitors tend to focus on determining and
added when an artwork is broken "out of one evaluating the exhibition's narrative threads,
or CV.
mode of spectatorship and plac[ed] in another" or In some cases, postexhibition chatter,
situated in "different custodial scenarios" (2014,
prompted by some combination of artworks and
86). As I next explain, new custodial narratives
ephemera presented as evidence for the curator's
generate cognitive value (CV), not AV.hypotheses,
The facilitates audience access to CV.
transformative effects that Ventzislavov ascribes
When CV, or the truths that exhibitions convey,
to curators seems a bit overblown, since artworks
stray from curatorial ideas, audience reception
stay the same even when they are positioned or tends to override the curator's presentation.
installed in ways that render them unfamiliar,Moreover, audiences typically attribute AV to
inviting spectators to attend to different aspectsexhibiting artists, not the curator whose exhibition
of familiar artworks. Each artwork's meaning is is especially compelling. While critics comple-
enriched by custodial narratives that complement mented Robert Storr's installation of Gerhard
or challenge older ones, yet not all narrativesRichter's 2002 survey at MoMA and quoted his
survive. His accrediting exhibitions with trans- catalogue essay, none referred to his curatorial
forming artworks strangely positions exhibitions ideas or his exhibition's merits as an exhibition
as informing artworks, yet it seems to go the (Kimmelman 2002; Perl 2002; Schjeldahl 2002).
other way around. Removing or repositioningLopes's view that an artwork's AV is its value as
artworks reframes the hypotheses being tested, "one of the arts" explains why audiences tend to
thus altering spectators' responses. attribute AV to Richter's paintings, though not
Although Ventzislavov repeatedly creditsStorr's exhibition (Lopes 2014, 102). For Lopes,
curators with creating artistic value, he never AV distinguishes something as art. To claim that
curating is "one of the arts," Ventzislavov would
actually defines this term. Aestheticians as diverse
as Dominic Mclver Lopes and Robert Stecker need to prove that exhibitions have AV. Finally,
have expressed their skepticism regarding AV's CV is not a value for any art "as one of the arts"
so AV cannot be a cover term for CV.
being a distinct value. Lopes not only worries that
any value could be AV, but claims that "there is The normativity that some curators claim,
no characteristically artistic value because therewhich Ventzislavov rebuffs, does not concern the
is no reason to believe that alleged instances truth
of of their claims so much as their capacity to
assemble constitutive sets whose members prompt
it are anything but instances of aesthetic value or
art from value" (Lopes 2014, 101). Alternatively, particular thoughts among spectators. Not surpris-
pluralists like Stecker consider AV a cover term ingly, whatever values spectators assign artworks
for aesthetic experience, meaningful features, reflect some combination of their reception skills
emotional response, CV, ethical value, and and the exhibition team's presentational skills. For
therapeutic value as well as art-historical value example, exhibition teams that anticipate aspects
(Stecker 1997, 200). I take the pluralist positionof their exhibitions offending some spectators
adopt protective measures like signs, cordoned-
to be that distinct values prove useful, since each
plays a particular role in evaluating an artwork. off areas, or symposia, while those who fail to

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90 The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism

anticipate potential sionals

audiencesearching for concerns risk
intellectual stimulation. If
Ventzislavov
protests and the show's being envisioned AV as a cover term that more
remembered
includes anit
for the public controversy exhibition's
generatedCV, one would expect its
than
unusual claims. him to say much more about the spectators- how
Some philosophers have been reluctant tothey interact, what they learn, how curators assess
attribute CV to artworks because it is especially
whether spectators are grasping the right stuff. So
difficult to verify whether knowledge gained by long
a as CV is distinct from AV, the curator (in his
or her double role as spectator) must admit that
felt experience is appropriate to that experience.
In short, we need evidence to know whether our
he or she cannot manipulate public opinion. He
conceptions of knowledge are true (Stecker 1997).or she can only attempt to provide sufficient cues
Others deny the importance of CV for artworks to prompt appropriate thoughts.
because CV is not an artwork's main value,
as compared to emotional, felt, therapeutic, or
aesthetic values. By contrast, CV is an exhibition's
IV. CURATORIAL ART AS CONCEPTUAL ART

primary value. Spectators, even artworld profes-

sionals, attend exhibitions with some expectation Some might view Ventzislavov's request t
that they will think anew, not just refine their philosophers consider curating's stake among
intellectual, perceptual, or imaginative powers.fine arts rather lightly, the way people descr
In fact, studies show that U.S. museums are themedicine as an art. To my lights, his thesis is f
nation's most trusted informational source. Mystronger, since he places the curator's immate
claim is not that CV is unimportant for artworkscontribution, which he variously terms t
but that curated exhibitions are designed with CV'curatorial idea,' the 'creation of artistic valu
in mind, since curators want their exhibitions to 'selecting art,' or the 'introduction of new cus
generate discussions that enable their proposeddial narratives,' on par with conceptual art.
hypotheses to impact art history. notes, "With the advent of conceptual art, the l
Since exhibitions are typically accompanied between the creation of meaning and the creat
by written documents, it is far easier to affirmof value has been effectively erased. While t
whether CV generated by felt exhibition expe- permits artists to engage in purely conceptu
work, it also allows for a reconsideration of
riences ring true, something that is not true for
status of curatorial ideas" (2014, 83). He t
singular artworks. Exhibitions are designed to be
readily grasped, so they do not require furtherleads readers to leap from creative curato
interpretation the way artworks do. I do not, ideas to conceptual art to the curator's produc
however, consider exhibitions' primary purposes fine art, which he calls curatorial art.
to be educational, any more than lab experiments Ventzislavov claims that his study explores "t
are. Like lab experiments, exhibitions happen ways in which curatorial art- from the simple g
because some curator has something to discover,tures of selection to the sweep of grand custod
demonstrate, or prove to the public. Because narratives- meets [the] same conditions" as
the public has the last word, whatever narra- validation of conceptual art, since both depend
tive threads the public weaves survive, not thethe "delivery of artistic meaning" (2014, 83). A
curatorial ideas being tested. have tried to show, his "grand custodial narrat
Supposing that Ventzislavov is a Stecker-typeis simply the specially arranged set of artwo
pluralist, one imagines him countering that CV isthat spur spectators to judge an exhibitio
implicit in his use of AV as a cover term, but as Imeaningfulness. Those who reduce exhibitio
have tried to show, CV arises from the audience'swhich are the product of curatorial work, t
reception to the curator's exhibition. Once again,curatorial ideas or custodial narratives are not
AV fails as a cover term for an exhibition's CV,really focused on curatorial work, whose product
since it excludes audience reception. Moreover,is the exhibition. As repeatedly mentioned,
Ventzislavov's primary focus is what curators andspectators may judge the meaning of exhibitions
artists contribute, not what spectators contribute.or the beauty of conceptual art, but there is
Exhibition goers are not students cramming no judgment outside their presentation as/in an
for exams, nor do they aspire to learn from exhibition. Theoretically, a curator could generate
some master. They are typically nonart profes-one hundred different custodial narratives from

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 Discussion 91

a fixed set
Kimmelman, Michael. 2002. "Helplessness andof
Beauty in
Vision of a Skeptic." New York Times. February 15. http
hundred exh
www.nytimes.com/2002/02/15/arts/art-review-helplessness-
If there is
and-beauty-in-the-vision-of-a-skeptic.html.
a
exhibition,
Lopes, Dominic Mclver. 2014. Beyond Art. Oxford n Unive
Press.
National Science Foundation. 2014. " Doctorate Recipi-
V. EXHIBITIONS AS ARTWORKS
ents from U.S. Universities." http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/
sed/2013/data/tab 13.pdf.
Perl, Jed. 2002. "Saint Gerhard of the Sorrows of Painting," The
To be presented to the public, visual art,Newand es- April, http://faculty.georgetown.edu/irvinem/
Republic.
visualarts/JedPerl-NewRepub-GerhardRichter-04-2002.
pecially immaterial conceptual art, must be per-
html.
formed, either by the artist or some curator. In 2002. "The Good German." The New
Schjeldahl, Peter.
this sense, visual art is closer to scores, scripts, and4.
Yorker. March http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2002/

texts than has previously been acknowledged.03/04/the-good-german.

If
Spaid, Sue. 2015. "Performing Artworks." Eastern Division
curatorial ideas were "artworks," then third par-
Meeting, American Society for Aesthetics, Philadelphia.
ties would request curators to sanction their trav-1997. Artworks: Definition , Meaning, Value.
Stecker, Robert.
eling exhibitions the way artists sanction Pennsylvania
otherState University Press.
people's presentations of their artworks. When ex-
duction. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littl
hibitions travel to host institutions, host curators
Ventzislavov, Rossen. 2014. "Idle Arts:
often treat the exhibition checklist more like a rator." The Journal of Aesthetics and A

shipping manifest than a blueprint for staging the

show. Host institutions are under no obligation to 1. I wish to thank Ivan Gaskell, Sh
follow the originating curator's checklist, nor are
anonymous referee for their advice co
they obligated to follow his or her layout, even
if they specifically request him or her to pinpoint
each artwork's placement. Because host exhibi-
tion teams owe a greater fidelity to their public
The Curator as Artist: Reply t
than some originating curator, they often augment
traveling exhibitions with works from their ownI am grateful to Sue Spaid for
collection and/or works borrowed from local col-
article "Idle Arts: Reconsideri
lectors and so on. And they do so without firstfor two reasons. First, her attention and her
seeking advice or permission from the originating conviction prove how momentous and philosoph-
curator who is still likely to be credited or blamedically relevant the issues I raise are. Second, even
for its reception. In fact, host exhibition teamsthough I often disagree with her particular argu-
reign free to demonstrably alter, and even botch,ments, Spaid raises important questions, which
custodial narratives without first discussing theirput my original proposal- that the curator should
curatorial ideas with the originating curator. Nobe regarded as an artist- in further perspective.
exhibiting institution would treat artists (dead orIn what follows, I go over some of Spaid's
alive) this way. Furthermore, living artists can al-objections to my thesis and offer my replies to
ways undo curatorial work, and they regularly do.1
them. I regret that due to space constraints I
am not in the position to engage all of Spaid's
SUE SPAID
comments, but I hope she considers the ones I
Independent Scholar, Belgium have singled out for discussion as pivotal as I do.
Spaid structures her commentary around four
internet: suespaid@gmail.com
main arguments based on purported exclusions in
my study of four respective features of curatorial
REFERENCES
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http://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Curatorship.
"Fine Arts." 2010. In Oxford Dictionary of English, arts concern the production of artworks, not
3rd edition.
Edited by Angus Stevenson. Oxford University Press.
artistic directors' presentations, which fall under
Groys, Boris, 2008. Art Power. MIT Press.
Irvin, Sherri. 2005. "Appropriation and Authorship indesign or management." The second is that cura-
Contem-
tors are in the business of creating cognitive value
porary Art." British Journal of Aesthetics 45: 123-147.

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