Curatorial Strategies in Saint-Petersburg Contemporary Art. Some Examples

Abstract

Contemporary art within the last thirty years has developed new types and forms of representation. This process was strongly supported by the emergence of the institution of independent curatorship. The phenomenon of an independent curator of the actual art scene has been determined by certain circumstances. The first is, if not paradoxical, a poorly structured market for contemporary art. This makes it possible for curatorial initiatives to have greater maneuverability. Secondly, the flexibility of the cultural field in St. Petersburg, without a hierarchical framework, has allowed artists to vary the ‘palette’ depending on the concept of a project. And finally, the social status of the curator, not as a person of a certain profession, but as a kind of activity corresponding to the role of a free agent, or according to Harald Zeeman, “Gastarbeiter of spirit”. Apart from the galleries with definite commercial goals, there are many public spaces for the realization of curators’ projects. Moreover, there still exists a living tradition of consolidated artistic groups, totally prepared for representation of their activities. Aesthetic preferences, types of creativity, and forms of artistic activity are embodied in the choice of certain curatorial strategies. The artists themselves can work as curators, thus combining several functions. Recently, a new generation of curators has appeared in St. Petersburg who actively promote local art on the international scene. Having emerged in the 1990s, the institution of curatorship has not yet become a subject of comprehensive scientific research. Meanwhile, the very existence of art itself to a great extent depends on its representation shaped by curators’ artistic will.