Artist as Curator Symposium at Whitechapel Gallery Explores Collaborative Exhibition-Making

On April 19, 2013, the MRes Art: Exhibition Studies program at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design (CSM) hosted a symposium called 'Artist as Curator: Collaborative Practices' at the Whitechapel Gallery. This event built upon a previous Afterall symposium held at CSM in November 2012, focusing on how artists' collaborative efforts in exhibition-making disrupt conventional curatorial roles. Notable speakers included Clémentine Deliss, who shared insights from her work with artists in Dakar between 1992 and 2002; Liu Ding, who discussed two exhibitions he co-curated in Shenzhen, China—'Little Movements: Self Practice in Contemporary Art' (2011) and the 7th Shenzhen Sculpture Biennale 'Accidental Message: Art is Not a System Not a World' (2012); and Ines Doujak and Oliver Ressler, who previewed their exhibition at Secession, Vienna (September–November 2014). The day wrapped up with a round table led by Pablo Lafuente, focusing on self-organisation and collaboration. The Austrian Cultural Forum, London, along with Afterall and the Whitechapel Gallery, supported the symposium.