Demystifying the Art World: Get to Know Curators

Session 3 of the series Demystifying the Art World: Practical Knowledge & Skills for Early-Career Artists will start off with briefly clarifying the role and tasks performed by a curator and the relationships they have with galleries, artists, and community. What is their responsibility to the artists they work with? Suzanne Carte, Sandy Saad-Smith, and Heather Canlas Rigg will speak about how exhibition and programming choices are made; how artists should approach inviting curators to engage with their work; what to know about writing exhibition proposals, and how to know whether a gallery or opportunity is right for their work. Following the presentations and discussion, Sandy Saad-Smith will offer a tour and visit to the exhibition Erika DeFreitas: it’s because of the shimmer, the verge, and the yet. at the Doris McCarthy Gallery.

This session is free and open to all early career and emerging artists. It will be offered in-person at U of T Scarborough (Ralph Campbell Lounge & Doris McCarthy Gallery). Space is limited, registration is required. If you have accommodation needs, please let us know through the registration form or contact dmg.utsc@utoronto.ca.

Suzanne Carte is an award-winning curator and cultural producer living in Toronto, Canada. She is the Senior Curator at the Art Gallery of Burlington (AGB), an institution at the intersection of contemporary art and craft and the founder of the Artist Material Fund. Previously, she was the Assistant Curator at the Art Gallery of York University (AGYU) focusing on the integration of exhibitions and public programming for over a decade. Within her independent practice, she has curated exhibitions in public spaces, artist-run centres, and commercial and public art galleries and previously, she held positions as outreach programmer for the Blackwood Gallery and the Art Gallery of Mississauga, and as professional development and public program coordinator at the Ontario Association of Art Galleries. Suzanne holds an MA in Contemporary Art History from Sotheby’s Art Institute in New York and a BFA from the University of Windsor, and she was a member of the 2017 Toronto Arts Council Leaders Lab. 

Sandy Saad-Smith is an Egyptian-Canadian curator, writer, and arts educator, and administrator from Scarborough. Much of her work considers the ways in which artists disrupt and subvert hierarchical systems and narratives. Her curatorial practice aims to bring new perspectives to seemingly fixed or frozen accounts and systematic structures while creating more accessible and meaningful ways of engaging with art and asking questions. Sandy has held several positions in the arts including Curator of Exhibitions and Education at the Visual Arts Centre of Clarington, Public Engagement Coordinator at the Koffler Gallery, Education Coordinator at the Varley Art Gallery, and Curatorial Assistant at Art Museum of the University of Toronto. She is currently Curator at the Doris McCarthy Gallery, University of Toronto Scarborough. Sandy holds a Master of Visual Studies from the University of Toronto and is now an independent curator.

Heather Canlas Rigg is a curator and writer based in Toronto. She is the Artistic Director of CONTACT Photography Festival, and is half of the curatorial collective ma ma. Canlas Rigg’s practice explores all mediums, and is rooted in investigating how artists employ the materiality of camera technologies to interrogate imperialist structures. Prior to joining CONTACT she was the inaugural Curatorial Resident at the artist-run-centre Gallery TPW. Past projects include Stephanie Comilang and Simon Speiser: Piña Why is the Sky Blue?, Jesse Chun: And verse (혼잣말의 언어 그리고 cosmos); and a year long program series on sound entitled Audibility. Recently ma ma interviewed Jumana Manna for the Gossip issue of C Magazine, and this winter the collective will release a collaborative cookbook published in conjunction with Art Metropole and The Table. Canlas Rigg co-teaches Contemporary Photographic Art in Toronto Metropolitan University’s Continuing Education program.

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This session is offered as part of the series Demystifying the Art World: Practical Knowledge & Skills for Early-Career Artists, running from September 2023 - May 2024.

Whether you’ve attended art school, pursued other forms of art education or are self-taught, there are foundational professional skills and practices that are rarely taught in formal environments. Artists often glean such knowledge through trial and error, having mentorship, or through information shared in their social and professional circles. Conceived of for early career and emerging artists, this series, organized by curator and educator Su-Ying Lee for the Doris McCarthy Gallery, aims to make key information accessible and demystify how artists approach essential tasks. Through nine sessions, some in-person and some online, participants will be familiarized with the practical knowledge needed to enhance and support their careers, through advice offered by a wide-range of experienced artists, curators, writers, and arts workers. The entire series is free, and participants can sign up for one session, multiple sessions, or the whole series – choose your own adventure and learn with us!

Session 1
Professionalism Starter Pack: Besides making art, what makes an artist a professional?
Thursday, September 21, 12:30 – 2 pm

Session 2
How to Talk About Yourself: Writing CV’s, artist statements, and artwork descriptions
Monday, October 23, 12:30 – 2 pm
Online, registration now open

Session 3
Get to Know Curators: What do they do, why approach them, and how?
Thursday, November 16, 6:30 – 8 pm
Doris McCarthy Gallery, registration now open

Session 4
See and Be Seen: Documenting your artwork
Saturday, December 9, 12 – 3 pm
Doris McCarthy Gallery, registration opens in November

Information on sessions 5 - 9 to be announced later this fall, stay tuned for more details!