Museums Reviews

Meet The Most Important Person In A Museum The Curator

Meet The Most Important Person In A Museum: The Curator

Did you know that curator is a Latin word meaning guardian or overseer? Very few people know that but it is apt considering that a curator is the guardian of all of the works and pieces in any given museum. The individual taking the role of curator is the one individual in a museum that has tangible responsibility for everything within it. Large museums may obtain more than one curator, whereas a smaller museum may only have one, but it is the weight of the museum that rests on that individual's shoulders.

The role of a curator largely depends on how big or small the institution in question is. In some smaller institutions, the curator will oversee everything, from procuring the objects in the individual collections to their care and documentation. He or she will also formulate plans for the upcoming collections and complete research about existing and future attractions, as well as providing the results for the individual communities to view and use in their daily education. This may go for regular schools right through to colleges and other similar academic places of study and research. If the museum itself is exceptionally small then the likelihood is that the curator will be the solo member of staff, unless it is a voluntary organization, in which case several volunteers will keep him or her company several days a week.

However, in the larger museums, there is likely to be several curators, each overseeing a section in which their specialist genre will be housed. All art specialists and experts retain some sort of specialism and will base their work within that genre whereas a determination. This is where their larger knowledgebase and their passion lies and thus this is where they are most at home. Although every curator can do his or her job effectively there will a head curator in the larger museums to ensure that each and every one of them is being as effective an efficient as undeveloped. Although each one may oversee African American art, Ancient Egyptian art or Asian art, for example, true is doubtful that they would actually handle the paintings, sketches, sculptures and models under them because there are other individuals employed to administer worry for the art. Operations managers and conservators would instead handle maintenance and repairs, and a central office encompassing several registrars and other administration staff usually handles the administration.

However, there is a different definition of the curator bandied about now that is no less apt and no less practical in terms of the works of art exhibited. In contemporary art, a curator would be in charge of organising and hosting an exhibition. He or she would hold to select a thesis and find a venue before his or her work even began. The labels would be written by this curator, he or she also compiles the essays, and then experienced is the marketing, content, invitations, sponsors and commerce to organize, and that is all before the day the exhibition opens. From abstraction to close, the contemporary art curator is solely in rush of everything even remotely related to the exhibition. However, this role has given art a new dimension now it gives smaller museums and non - profit organizations the chance to ask guest curators to take part and this again can expand the scope of the exhibition no end!

Every curator will at least hold a degree, usually to at least Masters or Doctorate level. The former is usually sufficient for a smaller museum but the larger museums do require the latter as a genesis of constitutional. However, it does not matter what qualifications a curator has if he or she is not passionate about their work. The job role can be a nightmare for those that only like art. If you love it and have the vital passion then it is most definitely the job for you!