Admission requirements
BA students from all departments of the KABK & BA students of the Leiden University
Master students are welcome if the department head agrees.
Description
About this course
This course offers students practical, material and theoretical knowledge of exhibition-making - something that is very important, yet fluid and often overlooked or simply implied in art and design practices. Exhibition-making is an open and dynamic term that relates to any form of showing work including art and design exhibitions, a fashion show, print-making, (lecture)performances, spatial design, film screening or online events. How can we see exhibition-making as a space for social, aesthetic, deeply individual or collective/communal expression? The course provides space for individual and peer-learning research and practical experimentation to understand how to position art/design practice in a broader context of showing work and research, and how to engage with the public.
In the first part of the course, we focus on gaining knowledge and acquiring insights through presentations, exhibition visits, discussions and lectures. We develop a deeper understanding of what exhibition-making is and why and how it is important for the practices of artists and designers. We become acquainted with attitudes, frameworks, techniques, themes, vocabulary and agencies relevant for contemporary exhibitions that take place in biennales, (pop-up)galleries, museums, project spaces and elsewhere. We dig deeper at important roles such as maker (artist or a designer in any discipline) and curator (organiser, artistic director, display designer). What is a role of a curator? Can anyone be a curator? How and why could artists/designers (not) become a curator?
In the second part of the lab, the focus is on the practical and experimental side of exhibition-making. Students engage in making an exhibition together and in collaborating in various stages of production. For example, we engage in formulating thematical and technological concepts, in production of new works based on new insights, in developing curatorial strategy, designing digital and offline visual communication (poster/IG etc.), and organising exhibition opening. The exhibition(s) take place in the galleries at The Royal Academy of Art and possibly outside the academy. According to their individual preferences and group dynamics, students can choose to make:
a group exhibition
solo exhibition
duo-collaborations and/or
online exhibitions.
Special attention is given to:
Giving space for student's agency and for the plurality of voices, methods, backgrounds, interests, cultures, disciplines and attitudes.
Creative, conceptual and technological innovation based on critical theories and research methods such as rhizome: a non-binary concept of Deleuze and Guattari and non-Euro-centric approaches.
Expanding student's practice and portfolio and preparing for future exhibitions.
Working and experimenting with any equipment from KABK rental (free of charge for the final exhibition) and with KABK material workshops to produce new work.
Is an exhibition a mere platform for presenting an artwork/design/idea or is it an intrinsic part of the creative process? Where lies the difference and what are the implications of these different positions for the research process of artists and designers? How do various roles and agencies, for example curator organiser/ artistic director relate to notions of creative autonomy? Why do artists and designers make exhibitions anyway?
Course objectives
Students will be able to:
Make new work based on acquired insights.
Critically reflect and investigate the possibilities of an exhibition as a framework for research, experiment and (re)presentation.
Develop a deeper understanding how to relate one's work to the public.
Develop a deeper understanding of relevant concepts, theories and topics of exhibition-making for their practice and discipline.
Develop a deeper understanding of how to position creative practice in a broader theoretical, historical and societal context.
Developing organising and communication skills.
Timetable
Wednesdays, semester I and II of academic year 2024-2025 and self-initiated research on other days, dates and times TBA here.
Mode of instruction
Seminar, lectures, peer-learning, debates, field research (visits to exhibitions/screenings), practical and theoretical assignments, self-study, collaborative, reflective (writing) and individual assignments.
Course Load
6 EC
Assessment method
Students will be assessed on:
Producing one or more works for the exhibition.
Actively participating in group discussions and exhibition production process.
Reflecting on their research process.
Minimum of 80% attendance.
The result of the course will be determined by how students:
Show agency, initiative and originality in the reflection and experiments. Give expression to distinctive ambition or creative vision.
Demonstrate critical and inquiring attitude towards relevant theoretical perspectives, concepts and themes.
Engage in a productive dialogue about their own work and that of others.
Effectively organise and document research process.
Draws insights from discussions and implements feedback.
Assessment
Grading Scale
□ Fail/Pass/Pass with distinction
□ 1-10
Compensation
Student is asked to provide visual documentation of their process (5-7 images) and a short reflection in a form of a position paper (650-750 words).
Attendance requirements:
80%
Main competencies:
Critical practice: making new work and shaping researching trajectory based on new insights.
Research skills: acquiring, mapping and visualising knowledge, presenting and articulating ideas in written and verbal form.
Contextual awareness, critical reflection, growth and innovation.
Professional skills: develop an understanding how to engage with the public.
Organizational skills: planning and time-management.
Soft skills development: communication, collaborating, self-expression.
Reading list
T.B.A.
Registration
Application
Participants will be selected on the basis of their motivated application.
For KABK students: Apply in OSIRIS by registering and uploading a brief letter of motivation (max. 300
words or 1A4) plus a few images of artworks and/or designs in OSIRIS.For Leiden University students: register in uSis before (date and time TBA) and send motivation to
lectoratektp@kabk.nl) before TBA: was 25 January 2023.Max. 12 students can be admitted for the course.
Full attendance is obligatory in order to receive study points towards the Individual Study Trajectory (IST)
Registration Studeren à la carte and Contractonderwijs
Registration Studeren à la carte
Registration Contractonderwijs
Contact
For questions about the courses in the Art Research Programme, please contact Oliver Doe, co-ordinator, at coordinatoracademywide@kabk.nl.
Remarks
About tutor
Tatjana Macić (she/her) is a visual artist and researcher. She works in a variety of media such as lectureperformances,
installations, artistic archives, collages and artist’ books. Her work is shown at the Tate
Modern, the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, the Venice Biennale Collateral Events, W139, The Wrong
Biennale, KunstVlaai and de Appel. Tatjana received a BFA from ArtEZ Institute of the Arts, and an MFA with
honours in Theory and History of Contemporary Art from the University of Amsterdam. where she wrote a
thesis about curating, politics and innovation. She founded Leftover initiative for research into the politics
of sustainability of exhibition-making; and is currently a teacher of Artistic Research at the KABK.