12 Mar 2010

Derik-Baegert-Gesellschaft - smax: Curatorial Grants - Practice and Networking

Curatorial Grants – Practice and Networking

In July 2010, the State of North Rhine-Westphalia and the Fonds BVKB (NL) will inaugurate a new model for promoting postgraduate curatorial work by offering a programme-based grant for three curators.

The grant provides €1,250/month in support for each participant for a period of 12 months. The curatorial grant is practice-oriented and tied in with the German-Dutch European project smax. The programme is located at Schloss Ringenberg, in Hamminkeln on the Lower Rhine.

Schloss Ringenberg has been in operation as a studio and exhibition centre for 30 years. With eight German and Dutch artist fellows per year, dialogue-focused exhibitions and cross-border knowledge exchange, along with a wealth of activities for the public, the Schloss unites under one roof in an exemplary fashion the whole spectrum of contemporary cultural endeavour.

Since 2001 the work of Schloss Ringenberg has centred on European projects involving German-Dutch cooperation. In conjunction with changing project partners on both sides of the border – including the Akademieverbund ArtEZ in Arnhem, the Museum voor Moderne Kunst Arnhem, the Kröller-Müller Museum in Otterlo, the Museum Abteiberg in Mönchengladbach and Kurhaus Kleve – the Schloss has since 2005 been providing cultural producers and mediators with the means to try out unusual contemporary art concepts and formats.

The new European project smax (2009-2012) is now carrying these promotional efforts forward with a practice-oriented model consisting of new residential grants. For the invited curators in the cross-border region smax offers a versatile selection of concrete fields of work as opportunity to independently put their ideas into practice. In a special match situation, the participants are integrated into a cultural network that provides them with a model for the real conditions under which they will embark on their careers.

Curatorial fellows (2 from NRW / 1 from Fonds BKVB) will be chosen by a Dutch-German expert jury. Required for the two candidates from NRW is a completed course of studies in art history or art studies at a university in North Rhine-Westphalia, as well as demonstrated professional qualifications. The three fellows will live and work for the most part at the Schloss together during the 12-month grant period. Residence at the Schloss and participation in smax are mandatory for grant-holders.

During the grant period, smax offers the curators:
• The opportunity to conceive and implement three art projects in the Lower Rhine region, financed through smax
• Expert curatorial guidance and moderation of the projects by the smax team at Schloss Ringenberg
• Exchanges between mediators and producers of contemporary art via artist and curatorial fellowships taking place under one roof
• Network expansion through the German-Dutch platform Schloss Ringenberg
• Programmatic drafting of mediation offers for the public, in particular for school children through coordination with German-Dutch school projects
• Publication of the projects in magazines and as a DVD collection

The grant serves to equip curators with professional credentials, including:
• Developing their own criteria for the quality and relevance of artistic approaches
• Creating their own curatorial profile/ aesthetic approach
• Experience with institutional structures and practice-related processes such as mounting an exhibition, public relations, organisation and budgeting
• The ability to discriminate between artistic product and curatorial approach, leading to better comprehension of creative practice
• Potential addressees, integration of local viewer profiles

smax
July 2009 to July 2012
The German-Dutch cultural project smax is dedicated to fostering young German and Dutch artists and curators at the project site Schloss Ringenberg. In topographic terms, smax is oriented around the Euregio Rhein-Waal area.

smax brings together young cultural practitioners (producers and mediators), small- to medium-sized cultural institutions (museums, art initiatives, cultural affairs offices) and educational institutions on both sides of the border in continually new matches, producing a rich array of cultural offerings for schools and the public.

The touchstones for the project are: region, cross-border cooperation, cultural experiences, cultural mediation, practical experience and expansion of networks. During the project period, the partners are actively involved in building a cooperation network that continues to be available to all cultural
institutions in the region following the end of the project phase.

Project activities
• 9 exhibitions
• 19 projects with schoolchildren
• 10 excursions for schoolchildren
• 19 public events
• 6 films
• 3 magazines
• 1 Lower-Rhine cultural conference

Project participants
• 4 exhibition spaces (Schloss Ringenberg D, Museum Goch D, Museum voor Moderne Kunst Arnhem NL, Ausstellungshalle fuÌ?r zeitgenössische Kunst MuÌ?nster D)
• 3 exhibition initiatives (Villa de Bank Enschede, CBKG Nijmegen NL, ArToll-Kunstlabor Bedburg-Hau D)
• 4 cultural affairs offices/city spaces (Moers D, Boxmeer NL, Niederrheinischer Kunstverein, Wesel D)
• 1 academy (ArtEZ Arnhem NL)
• 3 postgraduate institutions (De Appel Amsterdam NL, Werkplaats Typografie Arnhem NL, Fashion Institute Arnhem NL)
• 19 schools
• 95 artists (19 exhibitions)
• 12 NRW artist fellows
• 12 NL artist fellows
• 6 NRW curators
• 3 NL curators