Coming to terms with ‘the curatorial’ in PLAY_an exhibition

Abstract

This article revisits observations pertaining to ‘the curatorial’ in order to come to terms with the informal exhibition setting and interactive thematic implementation of PLAY_an exhibition (2014). It is argued that curatorial insight can be addressed as a means to bridge the gap between the agenda of the curators as exhibitionmakers, and the artists who present works that are autonomous objects. Contemporary curating assumes a multidimensional and interconnected role, linking objects, images, people, and discourses. The curatorial thus requires flexibility, making allowances for constant revision through active research – positing the exhibition as open-ended, transformative, and fluid. The contemporary curator is the instigator for mediation, assuming an interventionist role through continued interaction with the artists, their works on exhibition, and the curatorial agenda. In revisiting PLAY it has become evident that the curatorial cannot be predetermined, and plays out supplementary to all aspects of curating research. The contemporary curator is required to exercise a dynamic approach and revise the original agenda of both exhibition format and autonomous art object in order to enhance the intended experience.