“Placing the artist, not the art”—Alanna Heiss, founder and longtime curator of P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center in New York, reveals her crucial credos in her notebook “Placing the Artist.” According to Heiss, the primary task of a curator is to remain neutral. Against the idea of “curating-as-art,” Heiss highlights the importance of placing the artist and his or her work in the center. The curator’s role is to provide space for the artist to make coherent statements and establish a dialogue with the public. This position comes along with the discretion, help, and carefulness of the curator, who should basically act like a “concierge” (analogous to the commissaire, the French word for “curator”), who works in the background.

 

Alanna Heiss founded and was Director of P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center from 1976 to 2008 and is Director of the Clocktower Gallery and its radio station, ARTonAIR.org, New York.

 

Language: German/English