NOW EVERYBODY IS A CURATOR, HUH?

Dontae Muse. Work by Danielle Scott

Between the Instagram carousel, the group chat exhibition announcement, and Chat GPT, the word “curator” slipped its shoes off and made itself comfortable. Too comfortable, maybe.

Let me be clear before the think pieces begin to make themselves: everybody can curate. We all do it daily. We curate playlists, dinner parties, mood boards, timelines, and digital selves. Selection is human. Taste is personal. Storytelling is a natural human preservation technique and a key element of human history. That part is undeniable.

But being a curator? That’s different. Just because you can technically do it does not mean that you understand the technical intricacies behind it. Cooking a tasty meal doesn’t make you a Michelin chef.

Placing beside you what to pick, what to enjoy, is not curatorship. It’s about responsibility. It’s about context. It’s about understanding how things, ideas, and people move through space, history, and power. And yes, it’s about networking and influence as well. Pretending otherwise is alluring, which isn’t the case. And keep in mind: This is an art business.

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