The road to becoming a curator is by no means an easy one. The role demands years of preparation, patience, and good fortune to even be considered. Yet amid the outbreak of Covid-19, the position feels less like winning the lottery, and increasingly something of a poisoned chalice.
Those who have fitted into the role for years are considerably less vulnerable than those preparing to take up the mantel amid a global pandemic. After all, it seems at times distasteful to appoint new board members and curators at a time when their peers are being furloughed across the board.
The current challenge is well defined by Sarah James, a head hunter for Phillips Oppenheim who specialises in cultural executive searches, who notes: “They’re looking for people who are tested, with a level of competence and confidence that will inspire them to feel comfortable, as well as give the staff comfort that this person understands what they’re up against.
“Nobody really knows how to deal with this.”
At first glance, the decision to continue or even to accelerate hiring amid a pandemic seems an odd decision. Yet James responds to this too, considering that new leaders “don’t want to just come in and stabilize, because nobody believes in going back."
The uncertainty of the current climate, arguably makes it more desirable to appoint unconventional leaders, perhaps adopting the old adage, nothing ventured, nothing gained.
James concludes that at present: “Everybody believes you’re going to die as an institution or you’re going to go forward as something better.”
