Curatorial Practice and Identity Transformation with “Shell” as the Core
This week’s study and practice revolve around the exhibition “Our Shell” of JIJU Collective, which is not only the landing of a curatorial project but also an in-depth exploration of identity, space, and sense of belonging.
In concrete practice, I gave full play to my own design background and was responsible for the visual design of posters and booklets.
At the same time, I also participated in the creative conception of the main work.
In addition, in this exhibition, I am not only a curator but also an artist, exhibiting a series of personal lacquer paintings. This dual identity enables me to reflect and integrate the two dimensions of creation and curation.
From execution to reflection: the awareness of problems in the curatorial process
In this relatively complete group curation practice, I have a more concrete understanding of the complexity of the exhibition work.
Firstly, during installation, I found the process more complex than expected. Two frames cracked due to transport damage, requiring a quick fix. This highlighted that curation involves not only concept and design, but also risk management—anticipating issues and preparing contingency plans (Plan B) to ensure the exhibition runs smoothly.
Secondly, during the exhibition, I applied the learning about “archives” in the classroom to practice and took the initiative to record the scene, including the exhibition space, the display of works, and the image collection of audience interaction. These materials not only provide traceable evidence for the exhibition but also provide an important basis for subsequent summary and dissemination.
Finally, I reflected that the most prominent problem lies in the lack of publicity strategies. Because this exhibition belongs to students’ activity to some extent, it is not included in the push and introduction of the official Summerhall exhibition, and the preparation period was short, which led to the audience being mainly confined to the acquaintance network and lacking wider public communication.
This problem makes me deeply realise the key role of publicity in curation, especially when the exhibition goal involves promoting emerging artists, and the communication strategy will directly affect the audience composition, the feedback of works, and the social influence of the project. Therefore, in the practice of curation, publicity needs to be included in the preliminary planning, not as an accessory link.
