Curatorial Practice (Contemporary Art) Master of Letters

The MLitt Curatorial Practice (Contemporary Art) is a 12-month programme run jointly between The School of Fine Art (GSA) and The School of Culture and Creative Arts (UoG). Through a pedagogical framework that operates at the intersection between practice-based learning, contextual enquiry and professional perspectives, the programme offers an introduction to curatorial practice in the field of contemporary art and a dynamic exploration of current developments, while supporting you to locate, articulate and refine your own curatorial interests and approaches.

The MLitt Curatorial Practice (Contemporary Art) sits within The Glasgow School of Art’s Common Academic Framework and the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SQFC), with all courses offered at SQFC level 11.

Situating Curatorial Practice:
The programme proposes a dialogue between curating as an endeavour that is inextricably linked to visual arts practice, and its inter-disciplinary expansion through curatorial discourse.

Central tenets of the programme are:

• The link between curator and artist.
Curating is presented as an activity that is reliant upon close and on-going contact with artists and a considered understanding of their work. The programme focuses on the curation of contemporary art, situating its origins in the conceptual and post-conceptual practices of the 1960s and 1970s.

• The focus on individual practice.
Students in the programme are supported to identify and undertake individually motivated curatorial projects that will set the basis for the development of a self-sustaining practice. The programme encourages a diversity of approaches, which is reflected in the wide range of curatorial work produced by the students and the diversity of backgrounds of Tutors and visiting staff.

At the same time, the programme explores curating as a form of research, in which knowledge is generated through practice. In this respect, it functions as a primer for practicebased PhD study.

Core to the programme is the accommodation of the MLitt Curatorial Practice (Contemporary Art) students alongside the Fine Art Practice students at The Glasgow School of Art. You will have access to a studio space, which functions also as a project space, and will be encouraged to test and develop projects alongside your MFA and M.Litt peers. The programme places emphasis on practitioner / peer support.

• Contextual relevance.
Curating is framed as an activity that takes place across an expanded field of practice, spanning a range of public spaces and social situations. Equally, it is grounded, and seeks to implicate itself, in specific contexts, whether institutional, geographic and cultural. The programme investigates different modes of curating and encourages you to locate and test your developing practice within a field. From this base, you will examine curatorial concepts, theories and practices through a mixture of practitioner/ professional-led sessions and group analysis.

The context of Glasgow has been central to the development of the programme. The city has a distinct contemporary art scene that connects to Europe and beyond, and its artist-led ethos is echoed in the agile approach to curating encouraged within the programme. The course draws upon on this community of artists, institutions, curators and international connections.

Throughout your year of study, you will be guided to undertake research and curatorial work and develop approaches to practice that stem from a strong awareness of context and active participation within it. You will be encouraged to explore a wide range of resources, including collections, archival material and publishing facilities. The programme makes topical use of curatorial projects and programming taking place within Glasgow and Scotland more broadly.